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Hi Scott, Shtetl-Optimized's tagline is famously "Quantum computers would not solve hard search problems instantaneously by simply trying all the possible solu
by DC-3 8y ago
Hi Scott,
Shtetl-Optimized's tagline is famously "Quantum computers would not solve hard search problems
instantaneously by simply trying all the possible solutions at once". What phrase do you think should replace 'trying all the possible solutions at once' in the public conciousness as a succinct description of the mechanisms of a quantum computer? Or is this topic simply too complex to be distilled into a neat synopsis while retaining accuracy?
- tomahunt 8y agoExactly the question I would love answered. Edit: this seems roughly answered to a question by user r4um
- mrfusion 8y agoI don’t see where it’s answered?
- ScottAaronson 8y agoA quantum computer is a device that exploits constructive and destructive interference among exponentially many amplitudes, which are numbers that are closely related to probabilities but can be positive, negative, or even complex. If you feel that sentence wasn't clear enough, and it would take at least a few more paragraphs to flesh it out ... well, duh, what did you expect? :-D For a SLIGHTLY longer account, see my attempt to explain quantum computing in 35 seconds or fewer, which Maclean's magazine challenged me and others to do in response to Justin Trudeau's quantum computing explanation: https://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/?p=2694 https://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/?p=2694 When I did a piece for the New York Times, I managed to get an explanation that I was reasonably happy with into ~6 paragraphs: https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/06/science/scott-aaronson-quantum-computing-promises-new-insights.html https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/06/science/scott-aaronson-qu... Given that quantum mechanics is, famously, one of the most counterintuitive things that humanity ever discovered, I don't think it's that big of an ask for people to read 6 paragraphs about QC before they decide they basically know what it's about. :-)
- ahelwer 8y agoMy favorite quote of yours is that quantum computers "have a profile of abilities so strange that no sci-fi writer would have had the imagination to invent it" - it's a great quote to inspire people to dig deeper into the (literally beyond classical imagination) concepts of quantum mechanics!
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- stcredzero 8y agoHere's my attempt at a two sentence over-over-over simplification that at least gets people away from the "magic bit-sting that contains your answer." (It also harkens back to an old Einstein quote, so may be attractive to science writers.) Quantum computing is a technique that lets you sample a problem's answer-space using "loaded dice," such that the problem's correct answers correspond with probability spikes in your dice throws. Right now, we only know how to usefully "load" those dice for certain problems, and it's pretty hard to do.
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- bariswheel 8y agoDo you mean all the possible solutions to a problem when you say 'answer space' ?
- tadhgds 8y agoThat's how I would interpret it, yes
- thecrazyone 8y agoWow, that was nice and succinct.
- ejanus 8y ago
- raverbashing 8y agoI'll just point to this https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/the-talk-3 https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/the-talk-3 which was posted as an answer to a similar question I had on a previous discussion about a blog post of his.
- gkfasdfasdf 8y agoThat was fantastic and enlightening, thank you.
- bariswheel 8y agoDitto, fun read thanks for sharing.