'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
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'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
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Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#2[deleted]
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#3I'm nitpicking just a little, but isn't discovery always about something unprecedented? Otherwise it's not that different from the rest of the scientific work people do.
As a disclosure, I'm a physicist, having worked on quantum computing during my PhD. I think it's really cool, though long qubit lifetime doesn't take you far, the devil is in the details, for example good (reliable, low noise and tunable) qubit-qubit interaction (how in this case?), and reproducible devices (not at all in this case, every diamond will be different).
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#4There's something really awesome and science-fiction-like about the idea that when we finally build super-awesome AIs (like Iain M Banks' "Minds"), who then either destroy us or become our best pals in the whole universe, their brains will be built of diamond.
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#5There's something really awesome and science-fiction-like about the idea that when we finally build super-awesome AIs (like Iain M Banks' "Minds"), who then either destroy us or become our best pals in the whole universe, their brains will be built of diamond.
The bar is set pretty low so far. All the diamond has to do is factorize 21.
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#6"For qubits, they can hold a value of “1” or “0” as well as both values at the same time. Described as superposition,"...
Am a bit frustrated reading that same description for years and still having no clue what it really means. Both values at the same time... huh? What is the physical property that is existing in two states at once? And how does that feature translate into speedier computation? Is it so hard to understand that it can't be explained to a layman in a bit more depth?
Would appreciate any references since everything i've managed to find is either way too technical, or too vacuous.
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#7"For qubits, they can hold a value of “1” or “0” as well as both values at the same time. Described as superposition,"... Am a bit frustrated reading that same description for years and still having no clue what it really means. Both values at the same time... huh? What is the physical property that is existing in two states at once? And how does that feature translate into speedier computation? Is it so hard to unde…
In Search of Schrodinger's Cat by John Gribbin (http://www.amazon.com/Search-Schrodingers-Cat-John-Gribbin/d...) is a good starting point for the layman. Some things like the Higgs Boson are abstruse, but superpositions aren't extremely complex.
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#8"For qubits, they can hold a value of “1” or “0” as well as both values at the same time. Described as superposition,"... Am a bit frustrated reading that same description for years and still having no clue what it really means. Both values at the same time... huh? What is the physical property that is existing in two states at once? And how does that feature translate into speedier computation? Is it so hard to unde…
In Search of Schrodinger's Cat by John Gribbin ( http://www.amazon.com/Search-Schrodingers-Cat-John-Gribbin/d... ) is a good starting point for the layman. Some things like the Higgs Boson are abstruse, but superpositions aren't extremely complex.
Schrödinger's Kittens and the Search for Reality the follow up book is also excellent
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#9Apart from the fairly wonderful applications in computing, it will be interesting to see what it does for the enhancement of synthetic diamond technology. I am not going to invest my pension in De Beers, unless they're going large in the synthetic diamond business.
Re: 'Unprecedented' discovery could propel quantum computers to reality
#10"For qubits, they can hold a value of “1” or “0” as well as both values at the same time. Described as superposition,"... Am a bit frustrated reading that same description for years and still having no clue what it really means. Both values at the same time... huh? What is the physical property that is existing in two states at once? And how does that feature translate into speedier computation? Is it so hard to unde…
Think of a qbit as a 2D vector. You can express it as a(1,0)+b(0,1), where (1,0) is the "1" state and (0,1) is the "0" state. In quantum mechanics a and b are complex numbers. When you measure the qbit the quantum state by magic collapses to (1,0) with probability a^2 or to (0,1) with probability b^2. The power of quantum computers come from the fact that transformations or your qbits act on the superpositioned state, not the collapsed state.
So in principle you operate on all possible classical states of your qbits simultaneously when operating on the superposition. This magic doesn't grant you unlimited powers however, since you need to look at the state to get an answer and there you only measure one definite state. The trick to quantum algorithms is then to make the "right" answer as probable as possible.