Quantum Computing: The Key to Unlocking a New Era of Discovery
When it comes to technological advancement, we often focus on that which has already hit the market, as opposed to that which is in development. This is understandable; there’s nothing more exciting than something that has shifted from an ephemeral, vaporous form that we can barely touch to something tangible we can truly interact with. Having said that, I sometimes feel we miss the bigger picture by only focusing on the here and now. There are various forms of technology that are around the corner, and while they haven’t fully manifested in the marketplace, they are structured in such a way that once they do, they may change everything. These technologies represent a shift not only in terms of what we can calculate and measure, but also what we can create.
One of the main technologies that I’m specifically thinking of is the sort of thing that feels like it walked off of a science fiction set, and it’s called quantum computing. We’re now at a point where quantum computing is evolving in such a way that it may soon be useful in an immediate and practical sense. I’m not saying that it wasn’t useful before, but it didn’t really have the scale or efficiency needed to make a meaningful impact.
You see, a quantum computer’s power is limited by the number of qubits it has, and until recently, most quantum machines didn’t have very many. Things are changing, though, and we’re starting to build quantum computers that are more efficient and contain more qubits than ever before. This is exciting because the more qubits a quantum computer has, the more it can do.
I’m just going to stop for a moment to explain what a qubit is as simply as I can. Normal computers use binary code, which we just call ones and zeros. Quantum computers, on the other hand, use things called qubits. You can think of a qubit however you like, but I like to think of them as a Rubik’s cube. Each one of these Rubik’s cubes, instead of having different colors on it, has a shifting number of ones and zeros.
This means that each qubit isn’t a 1 or 0 but rather both. This also means that some qubits have more ones, and some qubits have more zeros. However, this is also changeable. Another thing to keep in mind is that quantum computers are not inherently better or faster than regular computers. They’re different, and it’s this difference that’s valuable. To try and explain how this difference is valuable, I’m going to use another analogy.
Regular computers are like calculators; we can use them to add, subtract, and do a whole host of mathematical functions really fast. Quantum computers, however, are like sonar. We can use them to measure using frequencies and waves. To take this analogy a little bit further, we can then look at the patterns created by those waves in order to draw maps which would have previously been impossible.
The reason why this is so important is that the natural world is subject to quantum mechanics; it’s actually more or less based on them. This means that we can use quantum computers for designing, measuring, and creating things that are inspired by the natural world. Of course, we can use regular computers to do that as well, but they aren’t going to do it as fast or as accurately as a quantum computer.
Having said all this, do I think we’re about to enter a future where the average person’s home computer is a quantum computer? Absolutely not. This is because regular computers and quantum computers each have their own strengths and weaknesses and are useful for different sorts of things. Honestly, having a quantum computer in your house makes as much sense as using a jet engine for making toast.
The thing that I really want to stress as important is that there’s a whole field of manufacturing, science, and discovery that we haven’t been able to do that much about because we just didn’t have the tools. With the way quantum computing is currently developing and accelerating, it seems like this is going to change. This is going to transform everything from healthcare to national security, and it’s create new opportunities within the global economy. Quantum computing, as strange, complicated, and sci-fi as it sounds, is right on the edge of becoming ordinary, and that’s kind of an amazing thing.
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