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For more than 5,000 years, cuneiform clay tablets have contained valuable insights into some of history’s earliest civilizations. However, deciphering these ancient texts has proven extremely difficult; only a small portion has been translated so far. Now, artificial intelligence (AI) is finally cracking the cuneiform code, unlocking lost languages and revealing fascinating details of life thousands of years ago. Let’s take a look at the AI-decoded Ancient Tablets and what the future of AI holds for the world of astrology.
The challenge of deciphering cuneiform script
Cuneiform script is one of the oldest writing systems known to man. Writing emerged in ancient Mesopotamia around 3400 BCE and was printed on wet clay with a reed stylus, creating wedge-shaped marks. During its long lifespan, cuneiform was used to write several languages, including Sumerian, Akkadian and Assyrian.
The cuneiform clay tablets cover a wide range of ancient life forms – from shopping lists to court rulings, and provide a unique insight into early civilizations. However, several factors make translating these tablets exceptionally difficult:
- Severe weathering – Cuneiform symbols can become eroded over thousands of years, making the original etchings invisible
- Patchy condition – Many tablets are damaged or incomplete, with parts of text being irrevocably lost
- Complex scripts – The languages themselves are complicated for modern scholars to interpret
- Limited expertise – Very few experts can read cuneiform
Although there are more than 500,000 tablets worldwide, only a small percentage has actually been translated by historians and linguists.
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AI to the rescue
Recent advances in artificial intelligence are helping to overcome the barriers to decoding cuneiform script. AI’s pattern recognition capabilities allow it to identify eroded or partial symbols on damaged tablets. His analytical skills also facilitate translation once the script is discerned.
How AI decrypts old tablets
AI uses different techniques to decipher ancient tablets. One technique is machine learning, which trains a computer to recognize patterns in data. In the case of ancient tablets, the data are the symbols written on the tablets. The AI is trained on a large corpus of tablets that have already been deciphered, and then uses this knowledge to identify patterns in new tablets.
Another technique is natural language processing (NLP), an area of AI that deals with the interaction between computers and human language. NLP can be used to analyze the syntax and semantics of ancient texts, which can help identify the meaning of the words.
A tailor-made toolbox
In 2021, a collaborative team from Israel unveiled an AI system specifically designed for analyzing cuneiform texts. They trained their model using two main strategies:
- Transliteration translation – The AI examined transliterations of Akkadian and then converted them into English. This developed key translation skills.
- Instant translation – It also analyzed the cuneiform symbols themselves, linking patterns to word meanings. This made reading completely new texts possible.
The system can quickly produce an initial translation draft that scientists can refine using their expertise. It also predicts any missing sections, allowing fragmented tablets to be completed over a period of more than 4,500 years.
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Key AI capabilities
Modern AI translation tools have an impressive range of capabilities that facilitate cuneiform analysis:
Identification of eroded and damaged symbols
Tablets etched more than five thousand years ago are often severely weathered, with the symbols faint or broken. AI’s advanced pattern recognition capabilities can still identify these accurately. Analyzing 3D scans instead of 2D images also avoids problems such as inconsistent lighting or color distortion. This allows a clear view of damaged sections.
Translate as soon as symbols are distinguished
The AI uses smart statistical models to match cuneiform patterns with associated meanings in other languages, such as English. Training was done on a corpus of Akkadian texts with associated transliterations and translations. This allows completely new tablets to be deciphered.
Predict missing sections
Many tablets have missing segments where parts have broken off over time. AI can analyze the surrounding context and patterns to predict lost passages with high accuracy. This produces more complete translations.
Fast transit
While human experts can spend weeks translating on a single tablet, AI can process massive volumes in minutes. This greatly speeds up the overall speed of the translation.
Enriching Scholarship
Rather than replacing historians, AI aims to augment the science of ancient civilizations. A few key benefits include:
Democratize access
By quickly translating thousands of tablets, AI makes their content much more accessible to researchers around the world, rather than just a handful of specialists.
Enabling deeper analysis
With more translated material available, scholars can discover broader cultural patterns, more accurately trace textual origins, and derive new social insights.
Concentrate expertise
Without initial translation tasks, experts can focus on refining AI output and consulting historical sources to add critically important cultural context. The combined human-AI approach increases the scientific potential.
Expansion into new domains
Looking ahead, researchers hope to broaden AI-assisted translation to other media:
- Ancient Hebrew – An early Hebrew script called Ugaritic could benefit from AI’s code-breaking skills
- Linear B – This syllabic script from ancient Crete represents another target for automated decoding
The future of AI-powered archaeology
The development of AI-powered archeology is still in its early stages, but it has the potential to revolutionize the field. AI can be used to decipher ancient tablets that are too damaged or fragile for humans to read. It can also be used to identify patterns in large data sets from tablets, which can help identify new connections between different civilizations.
As AI technology continues to develop, it is likely that AI will play an even greater role in archaeology. AI could be used to create virtual reconstructions of ancient cities, or to develop new tools for analyzing ancient artifacts. AI can also be used to create new learning tools that help people learn more about the past.
In summary
Through pattern recognition, predictive models and rapid analytics, AI finally provides the key to unlocking cuneiform writing – one of humanity’s oldest codes. What we learn from this revolutionary technique about our collective past promises to be fascinating indeed. Thanks to the collaboration between technology and scientists, ancient histories will unfold before us in wonderful new clarity.