With technological demand in full swing, engineers are tasked with keeping up the progressive pace.
One of the powerful steps into the world of tomorrow is the quantum computer. The derives from its baffling power to calculate quantum mechanics as they would be observed in nature, as opposed to how they would work under assumptions. Cause you know what they say about assumptions. Makes an "ass" out of "u" and "umptions".
Experts from Harvard and the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia have begun the design of a computer that can use highly complex algorithms to compute the quantum mechanics, according to Charles Petit of Science News. The head of the Harvard group, Alán Aspuru-Guzik, had been working on algorithms of this power, but never had the kind of technology to test his theories. Collaborating with the University of Queensland allowed him to work with actual hardware to program and test. On principle, the quantum computer would be, "about the size of a fingernail," according to a physicist at University of Queensland, Andrew G. White. For the sake of ease, they spread it out over a square meter of the lab. Smaller isn't all better, sometime you just need to be able to twist and crank with your bare hands.
The revolutionary breakthrough that this team has accomplished is the alteration of the binary system. A classical computer will use a "1" or a "0" for its codes. The new quantum system will incorporate both "1" and "0" as well as numerous combination of the two, such as: 1+0, 01, or 0-1. According to Science Daily, these quantum computing factors, or qubits, will expand the processing power far beyond that of conventional computers. With this computer in use, physicists are able to record the data of the entangled photons of a hydrogen atom at 20 quantum measurements for highly precise data.
Using the Schrödinger's cat theory, University of Washington professor Boris Blinov states that quantum systems will be able to create a parallel example of molecular nature. With two correlating cats in separate boxes given the same situation, you need only observe one of them to know what would be happening to the other. These types of algorithms would allow physicists to create mock-ups of natural occurrences and compute their respective outcomes.
This kind of power has other "real world" uses outside of the science community. We could use this processing power to quickly eliminate passwords that would otherwise need years of brute computing, says Matt Buchanan of Gizmodo. He goes on to explain that companies that run search engines, like Google or Yahoo, would benefit from the boost in processing power.
Unfortunately, the quantum computer is still but a dot on the horizon. There are still issues regarding the capabilities of this computer and just how reliable they can be. When computers first switched from tubes to transistors, there was a backlash of failures from the relatively new hardware. Following that trend, it will be a long time until anyone will sit down with a quantum laptop.
~Sept
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Chris: Where to begin? First, I like your ambition to take on a technical subject that most students wouldn't touch. And you included some good links that provide a solid core to your post. The thing you need to avoid is what strikes me as pretentious writing. For example, I'm not sure what your lead means. How about: "Faced with unquenchable demand for advanced technology, computer engineers are struggling to keep pace. Fortunately, it appears the quantum computer may come to the rescue." The joke about assumption is lame; better to skip the jokes. Once you get rolling here things improve. When you're breaking down in writing something as complicated as this topic, you need to be very careful. What you've done here is pretty good. Nipick; How about changing the color scheme at the top. White type on a lime green background is unreadable. Score: 8.
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