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With the arrival of the digital age, a ray of hope emerged. Researchers like Brent Seales from the University of Kentucky began investigating the use of CT scan technology to digitally unroll these ancient scrolls. The goal was to find a way to read the texts without physically damaging them, a feat that seemed perpetually out of reach.
In 2022, the Vesuvius Challenge was launched to galvanize talent worldwide, fostering collaboration among enthusiasts to solve the problem of reading these ancient texts. Participants quickly gathered in online communities, sharing ideas, tools, and algorithms, pushing the limits of machine learning and computer vision.