So, when can I play video games on my quantum computer?

“I’m sorry. My responses are limited. You must ask the right questions.”

-Dr. Alfred Lanning, I, Robot

Well, maybe you could, one day. But it won’t help you beat your friends at DotA or stream Netflix faster.

The things quantum computers can do are so much cooler.

A big myth of quantum (a word which is sometimes synonymous with ‘magic’ nowadays) computers is that they bend the rules of space-time to spit out an answer due to effects like ‘superposition’ and ‘entanglement’ with ‘spooky action at a distance’. No matter how bizarre these concepts may seem, they all are based in hard science. Top academics, research universities, and high tech companies across the world are dedicating their lives and grant funds to figuring out the power of quantum computing.

What can a quantum computer do that a classical computer can’t?

“That, detective, is the right question. Program terminated.”

-Dr. Alfred Lanning, I, Robot

You should think of a quantum computer as analogous to the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) complementing the Central Processing Unit (CPU) in your PC. The GPU improves your video performance by being optimally designed for displaying your 3D graphics as quickly as possible through its use of special geometry and shading calculators that remove the mathematical load off the CPU. It’s a…