Which of the following statements accurately describes the process of dating earth's history?
a. scientists use radiometric dating to determine the relative age of a new fossil.
b. scientists use relative dating to determine the absolute age of a new fossil.
c. scientists use radioactive isotopes to determine the absolute age of a new fossil.
d. scientists use index fossils to determine the specific years of age of a new fossil.

the relative atomic mass of an element is the mass of one atom of that element, relative to 1/12th of the mass of a  1212c atom. to convert to an absolute mass in kg, it is necessary to multiply by  1.661×10−271.661×10−27.

the relative atomic mass is roughly equal to the number of neutrons, plus the number of protons, in the nucleus of the atom.

for elements with more than one stable isotope (different types of nucleus with different numbers of neutrons but the same number of protons), the quoted mass is usually the average mass, weighted by the relative abundance of the different isotopes.