What is Quantum Computing and why should we care?
Summary
TLDRIn this LinkedIn live video, GTH sharf provides an introduction to quantum computing for a general audience. He draws connections to quantum physics concepts like superposition and Schrodinger's cat to explain how quantum computing works. Sharf explains that quantum computing can solve problems exponentially faster than traditional computing by processing multiple possibilities simultaneously. However, quantum computing requires extremely specific physical environments to maintain the quantum state. Sharf aims to increase understanding of quantum computing and its potential applications, like accelerating artificial intelligence.
Takeaways
- 😀 The concept of quantum physics allows for the existence of multiple realities and infinite possibilities
- 👨🔬 Quantum computing offers exponential increases in computers' ability to solve problems compared to traditional computing
- 💡 Grover's algorithm shows quantum computing's potential - finding a name in a phone book of 100 million in just 10,000 operations
- 😺 Schrodinger's cat thought experiment demonstrates the concept of superposition in quantum physics
- 🌀 Superposition means multiple states can exist at once, enabling quantum computing's power
- ❄️ Extremely cold temperatures are required to enable qubits to enter superposition states
- 🚀 If combined with AI, quantum computing could massively accelerate its capabilities
- 🖥️ Traditional computing uses binary code of 1s and 0s, while quantum uses cubits allowing many more simultaneous states
- 🎥 Understanding quantum physics concepts through sci-fi like Star Trek can be informative and engaging
- 💪 There are still challenges in stabilizing qubits to reliably harness the potential of quantum computing
Q & A
What are some examples of quantum computing mentioned in pop culture?
-The video mentions Star Trek, Quantum Leap, and Avengers: Endgame as examples of quantum computing being referenced in pop culture.
How does quantum computing provide an exponential increase in computing power compared to traditional computing?
-Quantum computing utilizes quantum bits (qubits) which can represent multiple states simultaneously, unlike traditional binary bits which can only represent 1s or 0s. This allows quantum computers to process exponentially more information.
What is superposition in quantum physics?
-Superposition refers to how qubits can represent multiple states at once. This allows quantum computers to analyze many possibilities simultaneously.
What is Schrodinger's cat and how does it relate to quantum computing?
-Schrodinger's cat is a thought experiment that illustrates superposition in quantum physics. The cat in the box exists in multiple states (alive and dead) until observed, like a qubit exists in multiple states until measured.
What are some challenges facing practical quantum computing?
-Key challenges include maintaining the delicate quantum states required, lack of stability, and the extreme conditions like absolute zero temperature needed.
How might quantum computing impact artificial intelligence?
-Quantum computing could exponentially increase the speed at which AI can process data and conduct tasks. This could greatly accelerate AI capabilities.
What is Grover's algorithm?
-Grover's algorithm is a quantum algorithm for searching databases rapidly. It illustrates how quantum computing could search huge datasets faster than classical computers.
What are cubits?
-Qubits are the quantum version of classical binary bits. While bits can represent 0 or 1, qubits can represent 0, 1 or a superposition of both states.
How is quantum computing different from classical computing?
-Classical computing uses binary bits and sequential processing. Quantum computing utilizes qubits and parallel processing of multiple states to achieve exponential speedups.
What fields might benefit from quantum computing?
-Fields like artificial intelligence, drug discovery, financial modeling, cryptography, and chemistry could see transformative changes from quantum computing.
Outlines
😄 Introducing Quantum Computing and Science Fiction References
The host introduces the topic of quantum computing, explaining his interest due to being a science fiction fan. He references various sci-fi shows involving parallel realities like Star Trek and Quantum Leap. He aims to explain what quantum computing is, why it matters, and how it exponentially increases computing power.
🖖 Explaining Quantum Physics Concepts through Star Trek
The host uses a Star Trek episode with parallel realities to explain concepts like quantum states, superpositions, and the idea that we experience just one reality out of many possibilities. He also recommends the German show Dark which dives deep into quantum realities.
😺 Explaining Superpositions through Schrodinger's Cat
The host explains the concept of superpositions through the Schrodinger's Cat thought experiment. The metaphor involves a cat in a box with a mechanism triggered by radioactive decay that has an equal chance of releasing poison, killing the cat. From outside the box, the cat has a superposition of both alive and dead states.
👨💻 Linking Superpositions to Faster Computing
The host links the concept of superpositions, where multiple states can exist at once, to exponentially faster computing. Traditional binary computing has speed limits, but quantum computing can see all possibilities at once. He gives the example of Grover's algorithm for fast searching.
🤯 Challenges of Building Quantum Computers
In concluding remarks, the host explains challenges with stability of maintaining quantum states and the extreme conditions like absolute zero temperature needed. But progress is being made in overcoming barriers to build quantum computers.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Quantum Computing
💡Superposition
💡Qubit
💡Artificial Intelligence
💡Exponential Processing Power
💡Quantum Algorithm
💡Quantum State
💡Quantum Physics
💡Qubits
💡Absolute Zero
Highlights
Quantum Computing is linked to quantum physics and is exponentially more powerful than traditional computing
The concept of superposition in quantum physics allows multiple possibilities to exist at once
Schrödinger's cat thought experiment illustrates superposition and the idea that different realities can occur at the same time
Qubits allow for multiple possibilities compared to the binary states of regular computing
Quantum computing allows computers to see all possibilities at once and select the best option
Grover's algorithm shows how quantum computing could search large datasets incredibly fast
Practical quantum computing requires extremely precise physical conditions like absolute zero temperatures
Maintaining the delicate quantum state is a key challenge limiting stability and scalability of quantum computers
Popular culture references like Star Trek illustrate ideas of alternate realities related to quantum physics
The TV show Dark provides a good example of quantum realities in science fiction
Quantum computing could massively accelerate artificial intelligence capabilities
Understanding quantum computing concepts helps appreciate the scale of technological change
It's hard to be an expert in emerging technologies, the goal is gaining conceptual understanding
Breaking down complex topics makes broader concepts more accessible
Quantum computing is an exciting frontier, though current practical applications are limited
Transcripts
[Music]
hello and welcome to LinkedIn live with
me GTH sharf I am glad you could be here
on this Tuesday January 2 6 January 30th
I've lost track of time because it's
been a busy month and the days are
flying by um I'm glad you could be here
for this ambitious
short uh probably part of a series
introduction to Quantum Computing which
has gathered more theme in terms of
being in the new cycle along with
artificial intelligence and I wanted to
tackle this because this is very
interesting to me quantum
Computing mainly because of my history
with science fiction I've been a science
fiction fan for those that followed me
long long live and prosper for for a
number of years since it was a young
young kid going to Star Trek conventions
meeting Star Trek actors including John
Delany q and in that space of Science
Fiction there's these in these episodes
esec especially in Star Trek with
different realities and then there were
other shows that had the word Quantum in
it like quantum Quantum Leap with Scott
bacula if you're a Quantum Leap fan
please let me know give me a like send
me a message because that was a great
great show so as a science fiction buff
you the the the word Quantum is is
sometimes used in these episodes and
films and and somewhat is part of
endgame with Avengers so recent
relatively
recent um contemporary films and so
there's this this concept around what
this is but what is it what is quantum
Quantum Computing why should we care it
is very very very difficult to explain
Quantum Computing it is easier to maybe
talk about what it can do for us it's
ultimately in long story short it just
just exponentially increases the
abilities for computers algorithms uh
problem solving devices to to solve
problems which is
potentially really good for all kinds of
uses especially when we talk about
artificial intelligence and I mean
exponentially but that might not be
enough like how does it exponentially
increase the ability for computers to
solve problems more than what we already
have and so I'm going to try and Tackle
this in a very short LinkedIn live and
then adds layers to this I'm hoping to
make this an ond demand program so we're
going to get into this but we're going
to get into to this my way or the
highway because it's just the way I
operate um because I already mentioned
some popular culture references as we
talk about Quantum Computing because
it's interesting to go into those
actually to break down why Quantum
Computing is just a massive massive
level up to anything we know in modern
Computing that includes supercomputers
that are used for blockchain your own
laptop your phone anything that is used
as an electronic
device Quantum Computing is just a
massive massive uh leap up so how do we
want to start this conversation do I
want to explain what quantum physics is
quantum states are superpositions cubits
there's just it's a m it's it's tied to
quantum physics so it's Einstein it's if
you've seen Oppenheimer there all a lot
of those scientists are part of bringing
the concept of quantum physics into the
space where we have a an area of science
dedicated to it but how does that relate
to Computing so you could go into this
in many different ways I am not a
Quantum physicist I I also do not work
directly in Quantum Computing but I want
to understand this on a broader term so
we can understand as CPAs lawyers all
those that are LinkedIn what this really
means so that's the way I'm going to
look at it my brother in fact though did
go to Harvard did his PhD in a adjac
adjacent subject area to quantum physics
so I I should maybe bring him on here as
a guest I haven't figured out exactly
how to do the guest feature of restream
but maybe one time I I'll have him on
there but sometimes when I've had him on
there he's very smart intelligent he
goes really quickly into the deep stuff
and I'm lost within like 30 seconds of
our of our conversation but we'll see if
that might make a good interview so what
do I got here what do I have as a
picture here this is from Star Trek the
next generation an episode called
parallels and I I told you I'm a Star
Trek fan now why am I talking about this
when you came here to listen to Quantum
Computing well this is an episode in
when Lieutenant Warf beams back up to
the Enterprise and thinks he's on the
Enterprise goes to his dorm his room on
the Enterprise and realizes something is
different he's actually in a
relationship with Deanna Troy which he
wasn't in before and he's in a different
reality and he doesn't understand what's
happened and the reality just keeps sh
shifting and shifting keeps going into
different scenarios and what they do in
this episode they actually break down
quantum physics they basically say
that Lieutenant Warf is basically
hopping between the infinite
possibilities that exist within his life
and that he's just going in between them
um again we've seen this in popular
culture sliding doors as an example but
in this case he just keeps going through
the idea is that you potentially have
infinite possibilities every choice that
we make we can make make any of the
choices I could have chosen to do
LinkedIn live I could have chosen not to
do LinkedIn live I could have chosen to
do some work go for a walk like there's
multiple possibilities for every
decision that we make and in quantum
physics the idea is that we make all
those choices and the one that we
experience is the one that we're living
in it doesn't mean the other ones didn't
happen so in this episode of of star
trck next Generations all those
possibilities that Lieutenant Warf has
ever could have ever experienced sort of
come together and that's why you're
seeing all these different Enterprises
and anyway we're going to get into this
this Quantum States super positions then
we'll tie it back into to what it means
for I I'm excited about this stuff I
love science fiction and this is
actually not science fiction this is a
reality I'm going to recommend a show if
you really want to get
into Quantum realities and and and some
of the ways in which science fiction is
using them this is one of the best shows
I've ever seen loved it it's called it's
a German show and it is amazing it is it
just takes you on a ride that you have
no idea where it's going um and I don't
I don't want to I'm kind of giving it
away it had something to do with some
Quantum realities but it does actually
explain some things that are really good
sometimes you can watch a popular
culture show or television show or
podcast and it's about one thing but
you're also learning about something
else so any show that you've uh watched
or any podcast that you read about you
know different realities and timelines
you're also touching quantum physics now
in this show dark they talk about
schoener's cat you might have heard of
this before shoener cat and this is a
concept that's important in quantum
physics that explains why Quant Quantum
Computing is so much more powerful than
the Computing that we have right now
it's just difficult to contain which is
why we don't have it um it's it's
difficult to
actually sort of hold and and control
it's this power that it's it's hard to
hard to wrap our hands around it and so
this is a cubit as a artificial
intelligence image but let's get into
stringer's cat if you've heard of this
before okay so this is a really
interesting concept and it explains a
little bit it's also quite a morbid way
of looking at this idea that different
states of reality can occur at the same
time but it is what it is tro ER and
Einstein got together and had this
conversation and stroer flushed it out
um in more
detail summatively the concept is in any
state you can have multiple
possibilities but
because we can't see into those
possibilities it's hard to understand
that they could exist that's the concept
of quantum physics so shoener posited an
experiment didn't didn't I don't think
he actually did the experiment because
it would be be very sad is involves the
death of a cat and in this the concept
is and this is the picture from Sergeant
J cat you put a cat in a box cat in the
Box this cat is in the
box and there's a flask of poison that
is in the box with the cat the cat will
die once this flask uh Falls or cracks
open there is is a mechanism to release
the poison inside the box that is going
to be released through the decay of
radioactive isotopes the Decay as the
Isotopes Decay will cause as you seen
this picture the little Hammer to hit
the flask and kill the cat now you might
be saying what does this have to do with
Quantum Computing well what's happening
is for the Observer we cannot see Inside
the Box the Isotopes as they're breaking
down are this is the sort of the
metaphor for Quantum
realities at any state since we don't
know if the cat is alive or not unless
we reveal the box the cat is both to us
the cat is both alive and not alive it's
only when we open the box that we see if
the cat if the Poison's been released or
not and this is a concept called
superposition the the concept that in in
a in a moment all these realities could
be a possibility the reality that we
experience is the one that we
see and this is used as a metaphor and
again somewhat of a morbid and terrible
metaphor because this P poor cat which
is again a theoretical cat um is being
used to explain this this idea of
superpositions and Quantum
realities so what do this have to with
Quantum Computing I I really love this
stuff I just I think this is really cool
now this is where it gets crazy okay I'm
not here to explain this chart but I I
will try to explain it with strojan RIS
cat so the concept
here is that if you have some sort of
device that allows there to be multiple
things that exist at once then you have
more than just two possibilities right
either yes or no it happens or it
doesn't you have all these things that
can happen um that create another option
for
processing another ability to um quickly
look at information and this is again
very very like sort of high level layman
terms a Quantum physicist be like wait a
minute he's not using the the
terminology I want us to get a starter
than this and so in singer's cat you
have two possibilities the cat is alive
or dead right and that's the way we
would look at it open the box cat is
dead cat is alive if you're coming into
this LinkedIn live halfway
you know you're going to be a little bit
shocked about this cat that may have
died or not but it's stringer's cat look
it up but in shent cat in in the
experiment where we don't know both
States exists at once it creates this
called superos another option that
allows more possibilities to exist which
allows things to happen quicker in terms
of decisions options Alternatives and
the ability to process information so a
traditional computer is uses binary code
right ones and zeros flips on ones and
zeros extremely quickly now and they're
going getting quicker and quicker but it
has to go through ones and zeros to go
through an analysis an algorithm of of
problem solving and it does it very
quick in modern Computing but what if it
could do something do those things all
at the same time it didn't have to turn
on one and zero it's just everything is
happening all at once the computer sees
all the possibilities at once and
selects the one that makes sense for us
that would accelerate the ability for
programs computers to to solve
information that is so we the
traditional computer chip works on ones
and zeros the Cubit which I always think
about cubert that's totally different
from cubits cubert is a 1980s arcade
character as far as I know no I do know
that it creates now this is the
mathematical sort of equations but it
creates sort of the possibilities of all
all things and that allows there to be a
much much much I mean I can't even say
how many muches it's exponentially
higher in terms of processing and
there's several experiments that kind of
explain what this represents in terms of
how fast something uh goes in terms of
comparing modern Computing to the
Computing that we have and I'm trying to
just because there's so much information
here I'm just wanty to make sure I get
this correct in terms
of the um the speed at which this can
happen because basically what we're
seeing and there's a there's a problem
yeah see there's there's Cal I have
Caltech I have some notes Here calex
Richard Fineman remarked that nobody
understands quantum mechanics so this is
quantum mechanics that you're looking at
here um and so it is hard to explain but
coming to the end of this it is the idea
that basically this can start solving
problems s that are very difficult to
solve it can also do things that we're
currently doing a lot faster and I'm
trying to give you the the metaphor I
had it in my notes here but I had so
many notes that I might have misplaced
this particular note on yes I found it
kudos to me I appreciate this this is
called Grover's algorithm and it's a
it's a Quantum search and algorithm it's
the idea that could you find a in a
phone book of a 100 million
names
um in a phone book of 100 just 10,000
operations so the concept is can you
take all this
[Music]
um information that you have and find a
particular uh type of information in a
certain amount of moves almost like
chests and current Computing can only
can It can go very very fast but because
it has a turn on ones and zeros ones and
zeros it's limited in terms of speed it
just cannot operate as fast as it can so
there's a limit there's a speed limit to
how fast a um traditional Computing ones
and zeros um bits of data can solve
solve a problem now it's pretty fast but
we would we wouldn't necessarily notice
a difference but when it comes to
solving like problems in an exponential
way umec for artificial intelligence for
cryptography for the human genome for
for all kinds of things that we want
there to be just a amazingly fast way of
looking at all possibilities this is
definitely applicable in quantum physics
because we're looking at you know
unified field theor things like that but
there's more practical applications this
can accelerate many many things in which
computers maybe not to to our point but
in the background are a little bit slow
and the big one for us is that if
quantum Computing links to artificial
intelligence which I've talked about
which would exponentially increase the
speed of which artificial intelligence
is able to look at Big Data um and then
you combine that with AGI and we're in a
whole different world of technology now
what are the challenges with Quantum
Computing as I come to an end this is
just the first of many things I'll I'll
talk about with with Quantum Computing
so hopefully this is if you get take
away anything from this watch Star Trek
the Next Generation Quantum Leap and
dark especially parallels with
Lieutenant Warf one of the best episodes
uh but this concept of multiple things
happening at once really is the the core
that's what they call superposition of
quantum Computing the challenge why
don't we have Quantum Computing if it's
you know the concept is explainable
somewhat with fers cat well it takes a
lot of a very very specific physical
environment to get a cubit which does
exist in a super position like stro or's
cat to actually function talking about
absolute zero you got to you got to
bring these um electrons down to an a
state of absolute zeros for it gets into
like a lot of quantum physics which I
didn't want to get
into and so that's not as practical as
our modern Computing just works with a
like my laptop works with a little fan
that's that's cooling down my computer
it's not sending my computer down to
absolute zero which is the lowest
temperature you can get in the known
universe uh you have to have tremendous
amount of technological abilities to do
that so what's the practicality so
there's that piece the other piece in
the quantum state in the superposition
there's an un there's a and this is
where all these physicists have come
together because they're using quantum
physics to try to understand a know
Universe solve problems wasn't
necessarily attached to Computing until
in to the 80s is that there's a a lack
of stability in the quantum state and
that makes it hard sometimes to keep
everything in the physical environment
in the space that you need the Cubit to
work and sometimes doesn't allow the
Cubit to work in the way that we'd want
to to see all these options that are
sticking points but they are beginning
to be chipped away all right I think
that's good 20 minutes of quantum
Computing and I'm exhausted this is like
a workout I feel like I've been on a
treadmill at at at you know Max 10 speed
I'm exhausted but that's fun I you know
part of Technology with all the
technological changes that are happening
is that it's difficult to be an expert
like that as I mentioned that that um
professor said nobody really understands
quantum physics quantum mechanics um
it's very difficult uh even for the
experts to wrap their head around in a
way that they can explain and I'm not
here to be an expert I'm here to just
understand what is this going to be used
for and how can I understand this on a
bigger picture level so I can at least
have access to to understanding how it
works and that's what I like to do uh
when when it comes to um professional
development professional education is
take these sort of bigger Concepts break
it down anyway hopefully you found this
interesting I'm going to talk more about
this maybe I'll do another part two or
maybe I'll do another one of these and
find the way I get into it but thank you
for watching I believe we'll have
another LinkedIn live next week because
I'm on a roll and maybe it'll be about
Quantum Computing maybe it'll be about
artificial intelligence maybe it'll be
about the Pascal cakam trade which I'm
still not over anyway thanks for
watching everyone until next week take
[Music]
care
[Music]
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