Here’s how AI is helping historians better understand our past

Welcome back to What’s Next in Tech. In this edition, find out how historians are using AI to reveal previously hidden patterns of the past. Then, learn about the deep-sea “potatoes” that could become a key source of the metals we need to build climate technology, and understand how Russia killed its tech industry.

Sign up for The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter that demystifies the latest AI breakthroughs and cuts through the hype.

The historians of tomorrow are using computer science to analyze how people lived centuries ago.

Historians have started using machine learning to examine historical documents, including astronomical tables like those produced in Venice and other early modern cities.

Proponents claim that the application of modern computer science to the past helps draw connections across a broader swath of the historical record than would otherwise be possible, correcting distortions that come from analyzing history one document at a time.?

But it introduces distortions of its own, including the risk that machine learning will slip bias or outright falsifications into the historical record.

All this adds up to a question for historians and others who, it’s often argued, understand the present by examining history: With machines set to play a greater role in the future, how much should we cede to them of the past? Read the story.

These deep-sea “potatoes” could be the future of mining for renewable energy

There’s been growing buzz about mining in the deep ocean. Proponents say certain spots on the ocean floor could be a key source of some of the metals we need to build batteries and other technology that’s crucial for addressing climate change.?

But whether commercial efforts should go ahead is a source of growing controversy: there’s a lot of uncertainty about how they might affect ecosystems, and a lot of politics at play.

A UN group just finished up meetings last week to try to sort all this out, and there could be some key actions on deep-sea mining this summer. MIT Technology Review's climate reporter explains why potato-sized lumps called polymetallic nodules found on the seabed could help to solve the shortage of the essential metals we need to make more EV batteries. Read the story.

This story comes from The Spark, our weekly newsletter explaining the tech that could combat the climate crisis. Sign up to receive in your inbox every Wednesday.

How Russia killed its tech industry

In the months after the invasion of Ukraine, Russia saw a mass exodus of IT workers. According to government figures, about 100,000 IT specialists left Russia in 2022, or some 10% of the tech workforce—a number that is likely an underestimate.

It has now been over a year since the invasion began. The tech workers who left everything behind to flee Russia warn that the country is well on its way to becoming a village: cut off from the global tech industry, research, funding, scientific exchanges, and critical components. It’s an accelerating trend that started well before the war. Read the story.

The best way to stay ahead of what’s next in emerging technology is with an MIT Technology Review subscription. Get insider access to insights like these today.

Get ahead with our most-discussed stories:

1. The complex math of counterfactuals could help Spotify pick your next favorite song — A new kind of machine-learning model is set to improve automated decision making in finance, health care, ad targeting, and more.
2. A Roomba recorded a woman on the toilet. How did screenshots end up on Facebook? — Data from our devices—from electric vehicles to robot vacuums—can be used to train artificial intelligence. That creates a global data supply chain… and some privacy risks.
3. Texas is trying out new tactics to restrict access to abortion pills online — These tactics, along with a Texas judge’s ruling against the FDA approval of mifepristone, are all part of a broader strategy to restrict access to abortion pills.

Images: Beth Hoeckel; ROV KIEL 6000, GEOMAR via Wikipedia; Stephanie Arnett/MITTR