The future of computing is surely not OS X, or Windows, or even Linux. No, the future of the world of computing is quantum, when instead of creating a zero or one, you can get a shading of the two.
The excellent ScienceNews is reporting that the first programmable quantum computer has indeed been created, and has functioned at a 79% accuracy rate, far below the estimated 99% needed success rate for a useable computer.
Now, this is no simple computer. You can hardly upgrade its RAM.Listen to this: ” [the] quantum computer [is] on two beryllium ions chilled to just above absolute zero. These ions, trapped by a magnetic field on a gold-plated aluminum chip, formed the quantum bits, or qubits, analogous to the bits in regular computers represented by 0s and 1s. Short laser bursts manipulated the beryllium ions to perform the processing operations, while nearby magnesium ions kept the beryllium ions cool and still.”
The team estimated that with more powerful lasers, and more advanced tooling, they could boost the accuracy of the machine.
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Most exciting of all, the system that was built is scalable quickly, allowing the future to be seen. Assuming better equipment and ample funding, the computer can be made much larger, simply.
This is a very fun look into what will be coming. Imagine writing code for an application on a computer where you can have a shade of zero and one, instead of a strict one-zero dichotomy. Fascinating.
Developers, what would you build on the computer?
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