/oss/taxonomy/term/478/all en /oss/article/science-science-everywhere/atom-bomb-and-age-wine <p>The purveyors of fake wines probably never dreamed that they could be caught by a carbon atom. A special kind of carbon atom. One that in addition to the six protons in its nucleus has eight neutrons instead of the usual six. It’s called carbon 14. It’s very rare but can be a powerful tool in analytical chemistry. Let’s start at the beginning. In fact, the very beginning, the Big Bang. Over 13 billion years ago the universe began to expand from an extremely dense and hot core, spewing out the basic units of matter that would eventually form the chemical elements.</p> Sat, 18 Feb 2012 17:02:37 +0000 Joe Schwarcz 1661 at /oss