“[I]t is necessary to welcome exile and take advantage of banishment.” Félix Pyat was a French revolutionary and former playwright who fled France after the “disastrous radical unrest” of June 13, 1849, due to fear of prosecution. While he was conflicted about his exile, he learned to embrace it because being exiled meant he and his fellow revolutionaries could express their ideas away from the repressive, anti-free press French government. He believes that perhaps they were “destined” to be exiled so they could better understand their cause. Read full article here
Research
Researcher uses AI to make texts that are thousands of years old readable
The Gilgamesh Epic, the oldest work of world literature, has been brought back to life by LMU researchers in the Electronic Babylonian Literature project. Using their new Fragmentarium tool, they have discovered hundreds of manuscripts, including the most recent tablet of the Gilgamesh Epic which dates from 130 BC – thousands of years after the earliest known version. This shows how highly valued the Epic was, even at a late period. With the public release of the Fragmentarium, anyone can now explore the thousands of cuneiform fragments and explore the ancient Babylonian literature. Read full article here
Merv
March 12, 2023
