Castles and Coprolites

Or maybe it is, but it certainly isn’t what I thought it was, a year or so ago. There’s been a lot of attention lately on tools like ChatGPT and Copilot, systems that generate text, answer questions, and increasingly have found their way into academic life. These are examples of what are termed large language models (LLMs), and the term AI in everyday use is usually referring to these LLMs. But as I have come to realise, they represent just one branch of ‘artificial intelligence'. AI has long played a quieter role to help researchers make sense of the vast and complex datasets produced by advanced imaging techniques, environmental modelling, and material analysis.  Since joining Durham in April this year , and working to develop applications of XR-CT (X-ray computed tomography) for heritage science , I’ve become increasingly aware of just how crucial AI is for making sense of this kind of data. XR-CT lets us look inside objects such as pottery, bones, sediments, without breaking t...

I’m excited to share some great work that is happening at Durham University, using X-ray computed tomography (XR-CT) to investigate the remarkable Melsonby hoard , which was discovered in North Yorkshire in 2021. The hoard includes a collection ironwork and copper alloy items, most of which are associated with horse harnesses and Iron Age vehicle parts. The hoard was sent to the University of Southampton’s μ-VIS X-Ray Imaging Centre for XR-CT analysis due to the exceptional size of one of the soil blocks recovered during excavation. Weighing approximately 250 kg, the block contained a dense concentration of artefacts including iron tyres and harness fittings, cemented in compacted soil. This posed a significant challenge for conventional scanning systems, and is rather beyond the scale of what we can scan in our NEMCAS XR-CT facility! Southampton’s μ-VIS centre operates the largest high-energy micro-focus CT scanner of any UK university, capable of imaging very large, dense materials....