Most efforts to prevent their spread have focused on finding new antibiotics or improving hygiene, but Bill Keevil of the University of Southampton, UK, believes that the natural antibacterial properties of copper could be a simple and effective way to combat them.

FORBES: Copper May Be the Key to Defeating MRSA

Now, a team of researches from the University of Oxford and the University of Southampton in the UK has developed what they are calling the "Reflectance Transformation Imaging system, " which uses 76 lights to illuminate different sections of the ancient artifacts, one at a time, while an image is taken.

ENGADGET: Alt-week 27.10.12: ancient texts, super-Earths and special-ops mice