Danie on Nostr: They’ve read the scroll thing! AI helps decipher ancient document charred by ...

They’ve read the scroll thing! AI helps decipher ancient document charred by Vesuvius

“A sealed scroll from the Roman town of Herculaneum, which was destroyed by Mount Vesuvius' eruption nearly 2,000 years ago, has finally given up its secrets, thanks to a combination of machine learning and high-resolution CT scans. According to the research paper, the ability to make out the entirety of the scroll was thanks to high-resolution phase-contrast X-ray microtomography performed at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in France – an improved imaging technique over prior methods used to capture prior images that were analyzed in the prize competition.“

I've actually experienced something similar, although nowhere near to this achievement. I was pushing some old family photos through AI and asking it to repair, colourise, etc the photos. One photo was a front view of an old family home that had been demolished to make way for a new road. AI clearly showed a man in the garden (my great-grandfather). When I look again at the original, I could just make out the faded image of the man. I had completely missed that when looking at the original.

Obviously the achievement with the scrolls is even more impressive as it is deciphering the faded writing in a closed and very fragile scroll.

See https://gadgeteer.co.za/theyve-read-the-scroll-thing-ai-helps-decipher-ancient-document-charred-by-vesuvius/
#ai #technology