--- title: Indiana Jones inched archaeology forward, but tech is bringing the big leaps - The Hustle description: Archaeology may not be like the movies, but it’s getting more advanced by the minute. image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/43427626-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-indy_20230628220428.webp --- # Indiana Jones inched archaeology forward, but tech is bringing the big leaps ![Ben Berkley](https://53.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/53/assets/hubspot.com/web-team/WBZ/HubSpot%20Media/Blog%202021/Images/Nav/Optimized/TheHustle_Icon_Dark.svg) [Ben Berkley](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/ben-berkley) Published: June 30, 2023 Updated: October 11, 2023 As the final (?) *Indiana Jones* installment hits theaters this evening, archaeologists are still processing their complex relationship to their field’s de facto mascot. ![Indiana Jones](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/43427626-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-indy_20230628220428.webp?width=595&height=400&name=43427626-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-indy_20230628220428.webp) On one hand, Harrison Ford’s character spotlighted archaeology, drawing in a new generation of history fiends. - The Archaeological Institute of America once gave Ford an award for “stimulating the public’s interest in archaeological exploration,” [per](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/indiana-jones-harrison-ford-movie-impact-archeology?loggedin=true&rnd=1687815499226) *National Geographic*. On the other, the franchise evoked a warped view of the business; Dr. Jones’ methods and morality are questionable, at best, by today’s standards. - Actual field work — careful, tedious, minimal Nazi punching — just doesn’t square with the whip-toting dramatization. **One thing everyone can agree on** Archaeology is ready for its latest post-film boom, and its next crusade is being led, and sped, forward by technological advancements: - The preservation of Baiae, an ancient sunken city known as the “[Las Vegas of the Roman Empire](https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20180104-ancient-romes-sinful-city-at-the-bottom-of-the-sea),” is on AI’s watch, [per](https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/12/29/1064745/underwater-internet-ai-roman-ruins/) *MIT Technology Review*. A complex underwater monitoring network captures environmental data, processes it, and transmits real-time analysis to the surface. - Researchers at Sweden’s Lund University plan to use machine learning to determine the age of long-dead organisms. Today, ~50% of all published ancient genomes are unreliably dated, [per](https://www.verdict.co.uk/ai-archaeology-italy/) *Verdict*; the Swedish team believes its new model will more accurately date remains. - Australian researchers are using AI to analyze ancient rock art — and helping them find it, too. [Per](https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2023/03/21/artificial-intelligence-ancient-rock-art-australia-andrea-jalandoni) *The Art Newspaper*, the model has been 89% accurate at delineating faded, barely-there paint from bare rock surfaces. - Archaeologists employed similar tricks to discover North America’s largest cave paintings in Alabama, [per](https://news.artnet.com/art-world/alabama-cave-art-2108498) *Artnet News*. 3D photogrammetry tech identified faint works of art that had previously eluded the human eye. **BTW:** Photogrammetry, which builds intricate 3D models from photos, alone could rapidly accelerate discovery. *Artnet News* [detailed](https://news.artnet.com/art-world/temple-of-isis-egypt-ancient-graffiti-photogrammetry-2282967) one team capturing 2k years of ancient graffiti in an Egyptian temple, “achieving work that usually takes years in a matter of days.” Topics: [Science And Research](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/tag/science-and-research) ## Follow us on social media prev next - ![Cooling the planet is as easy as putting an umbrella on an asteroid and blocking out the sun](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/474334103-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-umbrella_20230806234611.webp) ### Cooling the planet is as easy as putting an umbrella on an asteroid and blocking out the sun - ![Life on (not actually) Mars](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1923740441-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-mars_20230705230940.webp) ### Life on (not actually) Mars - ![The legacy of this late Nobel-winning chemist deserves a plug](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/123054790-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-goodenough_20230626225558.webp) ### The legacy of this late Nobel-winning chemist deserves a plug - ![Is egg freezing ready for a high-tech upgrade?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1187929335-19-News-Brief_2023-04-17T235314.313Z.webp) ### Is egg freezing ready for a high-tech upgrade? - ![Earth’s deepest problems are being confronted on the surface](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1414776598-httpsthe-hustle.hubspot.comhubfsDaily20Newsletter20ImagesMarch2029202023new_paint.webp) ### Earth’s deepest problems are being confronted on the surface - ![A woman is suing Jack Daniel’s over whiskey fungus](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/996124604-png-2.webp) ### A woman is suing Jack Daniel’s over whiskey fungus - ![Is it possible to get younger?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/70915391-HS-News-Brief_2023-01-25T233104.264Z.webp) ### Is it possible to get younger? - ![The Doomsday Clock, explained](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/554482097-HS-News-Brief_2023-01-25T004815.627Z.webp) ### The Doomsday Clock, explained - ![Virgin Orbit’s rocket to nowhere](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1599451141-HS-News-Brief_2023-01-11T013116.794Z.webp) ### Virgin Orbit’s rocket to nowhere - ![Why the nuclear fusion breakthrough matters](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1256541586-HS-News-Brief_2022-12-14T012142.109Z.webp) ### Why the nuclear fusion breakthrough matters Pop up for Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Get the 5-minute news brief keeping 2.5M+ innovators in the loop. 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