8 - History Spotlight
(Cont...)
read the text without the risk of destroying these historical artifacts. X-rays have helped us read some scrolls that were written with lead-containing ink. However many of the scrolls were written with purely carbon-based ink, which blends in with the carbonized papyrus that the scrolls themselves are made from. Infrared scans helped somewhat, but most of these scrolls remain unreadable. That’s where Artificial Intelligence comes into the picture. Researchers believe that machine learning software can use data obtained from Infrared scans to learn how to detect writing in X-ray images that humans can’t see. If they manage to get this to work it would be groundbreaking for the fields of computer science, classics, and archeology. A $700,000 prize is currently being offered to the research team that achieves this first, with many
smaller prizes along the way. If the researchers succeed, this writing that’s been hidden for almost 2,000 years will finally be able to be read.
(Photo from the Herculaneum Society)
Hypatia
Treasurer Nora Donovan (Seven Hills)
Hypatia was an Egyptian mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher. Born in Classical Alexandria, being female was not compatible with any of those roles, yet she managed to become the greatest mathematician and philosopher of her time. Her father, Theon of Alexandria, was also an astronomer, who spent much of his time copying down and preserving Greek astronomical and mathematical writings. On top of continuing her father’s efforts, Hypatia taught and gave lectures on philosophy; her knowledge and ideas were so compelling that the men of the time would submit to being taught by a woman to hear her theories. In particular, a theory called Neoplatonism: a complex outlook on religion and connection. You will rarely, however, see her name connected to this theory, because her life gets ignored in favor of her gruesome death. Her teachings got her marked as a pagan during a time of great religious turmoil, and when Cyril rose to power and became the bishop of Alexandria, Hypatia was no longer protected by Theophilus, the previous bishop. A mob of angry Christians brutally killed her in 415 CE. Though today she is mostly remembered for the gory details of her death, her intelligence and passion for her field, despite the odds against her, is what I find most inspiring.
(Deakin, M.. "Hypatia." Encyclopedia Britannica, August 22, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hypatia. )
(Deakin, M.. "Hypatia." Encyclopedia Britannica, August 22, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Hypatia. )