SLAC deciphers Archimedes

The physicist Uwe Bergmann is gonna use the gadgets at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) to decipher Archimedes' notes - created in the 2nd century B.C. and copied in the 10th century A.D. - revealing how he used mechanical devices to derive various mathematical theorems.

• CNN
• Newsday

A monk in the 12th century vandalized Archimedes' notes and used them as a prayer book. Today, the X-rays should make the iron glow and make the text readable.