Interestingly they did not apparently consider sharpening as a possible use. And their foundational guess is
> Given their shape, the most ergonomic way of moving [small glass and stone pieces] during gameplay is to push them along the lines of the board, rather than picking them up and placing them as one would with taller, pawn-like pieces
I'm not entirely sure the mystery is cracked but I hope they had fun.
The main issue with that is that there are so many other ancient games of similar formats. There was very little doubt it was a game, the question was what the rules are.
(I have very limited experience sharpening knives on blocks but my limited understanding is that that's not how it works anyway.)
Sure, it could be they were playing a previously unknown game instead of one of the more established proposed games but I did quote the part I did specifically.
So maybe it's a game and maybe these are something like the rules could've been? Not cracked. "AI" involvement is being used for credibility in the titling and especially the headline when what you actually have is a semi-plausible simulation of something.
Sure, nobody knows for sure what it was. That's true of most of what we take for granted about history. The headline was hyperbolic but that's just par for the course.
To be clear, this was NOT researchers using ChatGPT or some other LLM to just get a made-up answer. They used a dedicated "AI" in the traditional sense, one called Ludii that is designed specifically for the task for mathematically analyzing games.
If you read the actual article someone linked above, it's a fascinating use of techonology. They didn't go "hey AI what were the rules?" and have it hallucinate rules.
rome had surprisingly advanced sewage for the time — cloaca maxima is still partially in use. but most ancient cities just dumped waste in streets or rivers, which is why disease was so rampant. the sanitation/health connection wasn't understood until the 1800s. entire civilizations rose and fell while literally living in their own filth
efvie | 9 hours ago
Interestingly they did not apparently consider sharpening as a possible use. And their foundational guess is
> Given their shape, the most ergonomic way of moving [small glass and stone pieces] during gameplay is to push them along the lines of the board, rather than picking them up and placing them as one would with taller, pawn-like pieces
I'm not entirely sure the mystery is cracked but I hope they had fun.
Jimmni | 7 hours ago
Could you expand on what you mean by "shrapening as a possible use?"
efvie | 7 hours ago
Sharpening a blade or tool. The lines keep it aligned.
Jimmni | 6 hours ago
The main issue with that is that there are so many other ancient games of similar formats. There was very little doubt it was a game, the question was what the rules are.
(I have very limited experience sharpening knives on blocks but my limited understanding is that that's not how it works anyway.)
efvie | 6 hours ago
Sure, it could be they were playing a previously unknown game instead of one of the more established proposed games but I did quote the part I did specifically.
So maybe it's a game and maybe these are something like the rules could've been? Not cracked. "AI" involvement is being used for credibility in the titling and especially the headline when what you actually have is a semi-plausible simulation of something.
Jimmni | 6 hours ago
Sure, nobody knows for sure what it was. That's true of most of what we take for granted about history. The headline was hyperbolic but that's just par for the course.
parisidiot | 6 hours ago
i don't know that limestone is going to sharpen anything very much... whetstones are usually quartz, no?
AppendixN | 2 hours ago
To be clear, this was NOT researchers using ChatGPT or some other LLM to just get a made-up answer. They used a dedicated "AI" in the traditional sense, one called Ludii that is designed specifically for the task for mathematically analyzing games.
Here's a link to it: https://ludii.games/
1hs5gr7g2r2d2a | 11 hours ago
Now, can we actually see what the game was and how it was played though?
slanderpanther | 10 hours ago
The source is an Antiquity magazine article linked in the story and it goes into greater detail without all the horrible ads on the page.
Ludus Coriovalli: using artificial intelligence-driven simulations to identify rules for an ancient board game
Gravini | 10 hours ago
It's in the embedded video.
GDelscribe | 8 hours ago
"Uses ai to crack mystery" press x to doubt
Jimmni | 7 hours ago
If you read the actual article someone linked above, it's a fascinating use of techonology. They didn't go "hey AI what were the rules?" and have it hallucinate rules.
KnotSoSalty | 5 hours ago
It was identified as a game board back in 1984 by Rieche.
So what AI has done is make up a possible rule set, for an object that was possibly a game board.
Not exactly groundbreaking.
Give an 8 year old the same board and some pieces and they’ll come up with a game too.
IntrepidButton1872 | 43 minutes ago
rome had surprisingly advanced sewage for the time — cloaca maxima is still partially in use. but most ancient cities just dumped waste in streets or rivers, which is why disease was so rampant. the sanitation/health connection wasn't understood until the 1800s. entire civilizations rose and fell while literally living in their own filth