/
Navigation
Chronicles
Browse all articles
Explore
Semantic exploration
Research
Entity momentum
Nexus
Correlations & relationships
Story Arc
Topic evolution
Drift Map
Semantic trajectory animation
Posts
Analysis & commentary
Pulse API
Tech news intelligence API
Browse
Entities
Companies, people, products, technologies
Domains
Browse by publication source
Handles
Browse by social media handle
Detection
Concept Search
Semantic similarity search
High Impact Stories
Top coverage by position
Sentiment Analysis
Positive/negative coverage
Anomaly Detection
Unusual coverage patterns
Analysis
Rivalry Report
Compare two entities head-to-head
Semantic Pivots
Narrative discontinuities
Crisis Response
Event recovery patterns
Connected
Search: /
Command: ⌘K
Embeddings: large
TEXXR

Chronicles

The story behind the story

days · browse · Enter similar · o open

A student wins a contest to read the text inside a carbonized Roman scroll, which had been unreadable since a volcanic eruption in AD 79, using an ML algorithm

A 21-year-old computer-science student has won a global contest to read the first text inside a carbonized scroll …

Nature Jo Marchant

Discussion

  • @col000r@mastodon.gamedev.place Markus on mastodon
    See - this is a good use of machine learning!  Making text in ancient scrolls readable. https://www.nature.com/... #machinelearning
  • @natfriedman Nat Friedman on x
    Today we are announcing a major breakthrough in the Vesuvius Challenge: we have read the first word from an unopened Herculaneum scroll. The word is “πορφυρας” which means “purple dye” or “cloths of purple.” Congratulations to 21yo computer science student @LukeFarritor who is th…
  • @lukefarritor Luke Farritor on x
    What a day! Could not be more thankful. So much support from so many people. This is just the beginning - I won't let you all down!
  • @omar4ur Omar Shehata on x
    Super cool to see progress on this! This is history/computer vision research happening out in the open, in Discord, by volunteers all over the world And they just decoded a phrase in an unopened ancient scroll!
  • @wallaceme Mark Wallace on x
    This is hugely exciting; there are 100s of carbonised Herculaneum scrolls, which may well include many texts by philosophers + historians lost to the historical record except as references in other surviving works. Reading them offers a leap in our knowledge of the ancient world
  • @kseniase_ Ksenia Se on x
    What a wonder! In essence, Herculaneum scrolls act as both historical treasure and a modern-day litmus test for advanced imaging techniques. The fusion of past and future in rolled papyrus! Some facts below ->
  • @natfriedman Nat Friedman on x
    Credit is due to the brave donors who took a chance on this project when it wasn't at all clear that it would work. Thank you for your sense of adventure, @JosephJacks_ @AlexanderGerko @patrickc @collision @photomatt @tobi @rauchg @ArthurB @matthuang @juliadewahl @dwr @Basti... […
  • @tim_zaman Tim Zaman on x
    These projects are the best way for people to get into CS. Grand scope with many mini objectives. They will force you to pick up skills and tools you'll use throughout your career. Reminds me of Zodiac Cipher crack a few years back https://www.iflscience.com/...
  • @lukefarritor Luke Farritor on x
    @KennethCassel It was 1am on a Saturday night, I was walking home from a party and randomly opened my phone to check the model progress. Saw the letters you saw here (though less clear) and freaked out
  • @jomarchant Jo Marchant on x
    First text from inside intact Herculaneum scrolls! And they'll have more very soon... My piece for @Nature - most exciting story I've worked on in a long time https://www.nature.com/...
  • @steve_sailer Steve Sailer on x
    Here's some good news. There's been a million dollar contest going on to figure out how to use high tech to read a Herculaneum library of extremely fragile scrolls that were damaged by the 79 AD Mt. Vesuvius eruption. This open source project is now making progress.
  • @natfriedman Nat Friedman on x
    @elonmusk this was done by a SpaceX intern, btw!
  • @optimoprincipi Gareth Harney on x
    A tidal wave of new primary sources from the ancient world could very soon be on its way - enough to keep scholars busy for decades! The first words have being read from digitally ‘unrolled’ carbonised scrolls from a Roman library in Herculaneum! (Image: Nat Friedman) [image]
  • @youssef_m_nader YoussefNader on x
    Thank you @natfriedman for the shoutout, and for organising this great (addictive) challenge! This challenge has been quite an incredible journey and I can't wait for what's yet to come.
  • @natfriedman Nat Friedman on x
    But there's more: a few days ago, @Youssef_M_Nader, working with new segmentations from the Vesuvius Challenge segmentation team, was able to generate this image of stunning clarity and size: This is the revolution in digital papyrology that Dr. Seales has created. Nothing like..…
  • r/Futurology r on reddit
    AI reads text from ancient Herculaneum scroll for the first time
  • r/technews r on reddit
    AI reads text from ancient Herculaneum scroll for the first time
  • r/technology r on reddit
    21-year-old uses AI to decode a burnt & unopened Herculaneum scroll
  • r/ancientrome r on reddit
    First word discovered in unopened Herculaneum scroll by 21yo computer science student
  • r/programming r on reddit
    First word discovered in unopened Herculaneum scroll by 21yo computer science student
  • r/history r on reddit
    First word discovered in unopened Herculaneum scroll by 21yo computer science student
  • r/interestingasfuck r on reddit
    First word discovered in 2000yo unopened Herculaneum scroll by 21yo computer science student using AI
  • r/books r on reddit
    First word discovered in unopened Herculaneum scroll by 21yo computer science student