Explain how quantum computers compute like I am 10

[adolf hamster]

so if you put a cat in a box, with a cesium atom used to trigger a small vial of poison that will kill the cat at a random point in time, then you close the lid.

because the cat could be alive, or could be dead, but you don't know it exists as both alive and dead at the same time. only when you open the box do you find out that the cat is neither alive nor dead nor both, but is infact in the 4th possible state- bloody furious.

whilst in the 3rd state the cat can communicate with cats in paralell universes and even switch places with them. all of these cats combined intellegence coupled with their strong desire to claw the @#!* out of the person who put them in the box in the first place leads to an unprecedented power of computing, which if properly channeled can be used to predict the weather, simulate protein folding etc. tasks that normally require lots of computing power.

the reason we won't see desktop versions nor any rapid development is because the cat sanctuary people aren't stupid and won't give nasa cats any more.

 

[RxR]

If the OP had only asked for the info in the title (versus the other questions) he would likely have his answer by now. With a bit of revision and mapping it could take maybe 2 hours or less.

I don't see much use for it for a 10yo, however.

 

[NVP]

so if you put a cat in a box, with a cesium atom used to trigger a small vial of poison that will kill the cat at a random point in time, then you close the lid.

because the cat could be alive, or could be dead, but you don't know it exists as both alive and dead at the same time. only when you open the box do you find out that the cat is neither alive nor dead nor both, but is infact in the 4th possible state- bloody furious.

whilst in the 3rd state the cat can communicate with cats in paralell universes and even switch places with them. all of these cats combined intellegence coupled with their strong desire to claw the @#!* out of the person who put them in the box in the first place leads to an unprecedented power of computing, which if properly channeled can be used to predict the weather, simulate protein folding etc. tasks that normally require lots of computing power.

the reason we won't see desktop versions nor any rapid development is because the cat sanctuary people aren't stupid and won't give nasa cats any more.

 

[RxR]

There have also been claims by German technologists for quite some time that Only ternary (electronic) computing will survive quantum computing. A quick Google search turns them and their apps up if they are of interest.

 

[GGizmo]

So far with the evolution of games quality programming going downhill, I doubt we'll see anything useful from this for at least 20+ years.

It sounds abit like virtual reality. It first appeared in the 1980s, but its really taken at least 30 years before it become practical for everyone to use.

 

[doodah]

I recently watched a video about the delayed choice experiment (more complex double slit experiment), fascinating but somewhat confusing for muggins .

 

[Energize]

For one thing you get from copper/electrons where the friction builds up heat and slows the electrons down I think, however that's a minor thing in the whole physics side.

They will allow us/NSA to crack encryption very fast also analyze the weather and other phenomena.

So far though no one has come up with a mathematical solution that would allow quantum computers to break classical encryption, linear quantum cryptanalysis only reduces the strength of the encryption by 1 bit which is useless.

Then of course on the flip side there is quantum encryption which would allow completely unbreakable encryption.

 

[jsmoke]

So far though no one has come up with a mathematical solution that would allow quantum computers to break classical encryption, linear quantum cryptanalysis only reduces the strength of the encryption by 1 bit which is useless.

Then of course on the flip side there is quantum encryption which would allow completely unbreakable encryption.

I'll take your word for it but a Google search for 'breaking encryption with quantum computers' shows many results that suggest QC's will do this with ease, such as 'IBM warns of instant breaking of encryption by quantum computers ...'.

 

[morbid42]

Like, its concerning theres a 10 year old registered on the forum, like

 

[ianh]

Schrödinger's Cat as mentioned by a few above is a great example of "Quantum mechanics for Dummys" - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrödinger's_cat

 

[explicit4u]

So far though no one has come up with a mathematical solution that would allow quantum computers to break classical encryption, linear quantum cryptanalysis only reduces the strength of the encryption by 1 bit which is useless.

Then of course on the flip side there is quantum encryption which would allow completely unbreakable encryption.

Stupid question but what stops another quantum computer or a more powerful one breaking it just as fast?

 

[Energize]

I'll take your word for it but a Google search for 'breaking encryption with quantum computers' shows many results that suggest QC's will do this with ease, such as 'IBM warns of instant breaking of encryption by quantum computers ...'.

Yeah actual science doesn't make great news headlines...

Stupid question but what stops another quantum computer or a more powerful one breaking it just as fast?

Nah it's not a stupid question, it's quite nuanced really.

With standard encryption algorithms like AES, if you try every encryption key possible you will eventually "break" the encryption, there is only one mathematically valid result possible, if you use the wrong key to try to decrypt it you will get garbage and if you use the right key you will get real data.

With a simple form of encryption called a "one time pad" invented in the 19th century, if you use a perfectly randomly generated encryption key from a quantum source it is impossible to "brute force" because every encryption key produces an equally valid mathematical result when combined with the encrypted data. For example if you encrypt a phone number, every encryption key would produce a phone number of the exact same size and there is no way to tell what was actually encrypted, it's basically the same as generating every possible combination of bits.

 

[DampDog]

Tonight on bbc4 21:00
The secrets of quantum physics, Einstein's nightmare.

 

[Minusorange]

https://www.ibm.com/quantum-computing/technology/experience

Why not just jump in at the deep end and have a play with a quantum computer on IBM's cloud ?

 

[englishpremier]

Yeah actual science doesn't make great news headlines...



Nah it's not a stupid question, it's quite nuanced really.

With standard encryption algorithms like AES, if you try every encryption key possible you will eventually "break" the encryption, there is only one mathematically valid result possible, if you use the wrong key to try to decrypt it you will get garbage and if you use the right key you will get real data.

With a simple form of encryption called a "one time pad" invented in the 19th century, if you use a perfectly randomly generated encryption key from a quantum source it is impossible to "brute force" because every encryption encryption key produces an equally valid mathematical result when combined with the encrypted data. For example if you encrypt a phone number, every encryption key would produce a phone number of the exact same size and there is no way to tell what was actually encrypted, it's basically the same as generating every possible combination of bits.

I don't see how a quantum computer is going break AES or passwords. Sure it could try more combinations at once than a traditional computer bit for bit, but presume that the drive destroys the data or equivalent after 3 wrong tries, or a website locks you out. Then how does it help?

Also isn't a in superposition only like 1 bit squared. Since Google and IBMs computers only have around 50Qubits, doesn't that equate to a convention CPU with 2,500 transistors?

 

[NVP]

Google smashing it: "our chip, which we call Sycamore, performed a computation in 200 seconds that would take the world’s fastest supercomputer 10,000 years"

Quantum computing: It sounds futuristic because until recently, it was. But today we’re marking a major milestone in quantum computing research that opens up new possibilities for this technology.

Unlike classical computing, which runs everything from your cell phone to a supercomputer, quantum computing is based on the properties of quantum mechanics. As a result, quantum computers could potentially solve problems that would be too difficult or even impossible for classical computers—like designing better batteries, figuring out what molecules might make effective medicines or minimizing emissions from the creation of fertilizer. They could also help improve existing advanced technologies like machine learning.

Today, the scientific journal Nature has published the results of Google’s efforts to build a quantum computer that can perform a task no classical computer can; this is known in the field as “quantum supremacy.” In practical terms, our chip, which we call Sycamore, performed a computation in 200 seconds that would take the world’s fastest supercomputer 10,000 years.

Clicky

 

[RxR]

Good promo video. Though it wont improve search results I suspect. More errors = more views = more money?

 

[touch]

but presume that the drive destroys the data or equivalent after 3 wrong tries, or a website locks you out. Then how does it help?

That's not possible in a lot of cases. For example, you type your credit card details into a website to purchase something. The data is transmitted over https (encrypted). That data could be intercepted and then whoever intercepted it has that encrypted data - they can have as many goes at trying to decrypt it as they like.

 

[SPG]

I presume this is yet another new type of language or is all the clever stuff done in the compiler ?

 

[Energize]

I don't see how a quantum computer is going break AES or passwords. Sure it could try more combinations at once than a traditional computer bit for bit, but presume that the drive destroys the data or equivalent after 3 wrong tries, or a website locks you out. Then how does it help?

Also isn't a in superposition only like 1 bit squared. Since Google and IBMs computers only have around 50Qubits, doesn't that equate to a convention CPU with 2,500 transistors?

As I said, currently there is only linear quantum cryptanalysis which cannot break modern encryption.

Locking you out isn't really relevant for forensics, the data from the drive will be copied and analysed away from the original device.