'Incredible moment in history:' Particle accelerator and AI offer first peek inside 2,000-year-old Herculaneum scroll

A photograph of the Herculaneum scroll, PHerc. 172, which was buried by Mount Vesuvius' eruption 2,000 years.

A Herculaneum scroll buried by Mount Vesuvius' eruption almost 2,000 years ago is finally legible, now that researchers have used artificial intelligence (AI) and a particle accelerator to peer inside the charred artifact.

While the majority of the ancient Greek text is still undeciphered, researchers have identified the words for "foolish" (ἀδιάληπτος), "fear" (φοβ), "disgust" (διατροπή) and "life" (βίου). The team hopes to put these words into context as they analyze the rest of the scroll's contents.