Квантово превъзходство: Как квантовата революция ще промени всичко?

by Michio Kaku, Мичио Каку (Автор)

Увлекателен разказ от автора на „Божественото уравнение“ за следващото голямо технологично постижение на човечеството – квантовия компютър. Изобретение, което би могло най-после да освети най-дълбоките тайни на науката, да създаде свръхмощен изкуствен интелект и да реши някои от най-големите проблеми на хората.

Автомобилните компании, медицинските изследователи и консултантските фирми вече залагат на квантовия компютър с надеждата с негова помощ да създават по-ефективни превозни средства, животоспасяващи нови лекарства, да променят индустриите така, че да настъпи революция в икономиката. Но това е само началото. Изчислителната мощ на квантовите компютри ще ни позволи най-после да създадем термоядрени реактори, източник на чиста, възобновяема енергия, без радиоактивни отпадъци и риск от прегряване. Щ ни помогне да разгадаем биологичните процеси, които създават натурални, евтини торове, за да успеем да изхранваме нарастващото население на Земята. И бихме могли да разгадаем невероятно сложното нагъване на протеините, което води до нелечими сега заболявания, като АЛС и болестите на Алцхаймер и Паркинсон, за да постигнем по-дълъг живот. Няма проблем пред човечеството, който да не може да бъде решен от квантовите компютри.

С присъщия за Каку и ентусиазъм „Квантово превъзходство“ е история за тази вълнуваща граница и надпревара за бъдещето на човечеството.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Physics, Technology, Business, Audiobook, History

336 pages, Paperback

First published May 2, 2023

About the author

(Arabic: ميشيو كاكو
Russian: Митио Каку
Chinese: 加來道雄)


Dr. Michio Kaku is an American theoretical physicist at the City College of New York , best-selling author, a futurist, and a communicator and popularizer of science. He has written several books about physics and related topics of science.

He has written two New York Times Best Sellers, Physics of the Impossible (2008) and Physics of the Future (2011).

Dr. Michio is the co-founder of string field theory (a branch of string theory), and continues Einstein’s search to unite the four fundamental forces of nature into one unified theory.

Kaku was a Visitor and Member (1973 and 1990) at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, and New York University. He currently holds the Henry Semat Chair and Professorship in theoretical physics at the City College of New York.

Reviews

[Irena Pasvinter · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars -- 3 stars is "liked it", and in this case I can't force myself to say I did. On the other hand, it had plenty of interesting information, some of which was new to me.

The underlying idea of this book is right up there in the title: quantum computers will change everything.

And then it goes like this, more or less.

Me: Why?

Author: Because quantum computers will be much more powerful than classical computers, millions times faster.

Me: And why is that? Why are they so quick and powerful?

Author: Because normal computers compute bit by bit with zeroes and ones while quantum computers work on quantum level, with quantum particles, using multiple states.

Me: What multiple states?

Author: Never mind. It's quantum magic. Quantum magic with quantum particles, I've told you so.

Me: Yes, but how exactly does it work? You explained pretty well how digital computers function. You told their history. Anyway, I've known this already. For example, in digital computers computation is based on Boolean algebra and bit math. Now I'd like to understand how quantum computation works.

Author: I said digital have bits, quantum have qubits. That's powerful.

Me: Yes, but how is the computation performed with qubits? Why is it so powerful? Why do particles have to be entangled?

Author: Digital computation is bit by bit, quantum is... Never mind. Let me tell you about different approaches used to build quantum computers by different companies and research projects.

Me, after a long while: This has been quite interesting. But I would still like to understand how quantum computation--

Author: Let me tell you how quantum computers will change EVERYTHING.

***Hundreds of pages later***

Me: When you say everything, you really do mean everything. You've been through practically all the hot scientific and engineering problems: understanding protein folding; performing simulations for computational chemistry; fighting aging, viruses, diseases; preventing global warming; fusion energy breakthrough; black holes; gene engineering; dangerous asteroids; and so on and so forth. It's always the same scenario: quantum computers with their huge computational power and/or effective big data processing to the rescue et voila -- everything changes. I do hope you might leave out dark energy, dark matter and strings theory. By the way, I still don't understand about the quantum computation.

The author proceeds to tell about dark matter, dark energy, strings theory, the theory of everything and the origin of the universe. Needless to say, all these questions will be promptly answered as soon as we apply quantum computers to the task.

Me: Very well. I get this: quantum computers will change EVERYTHING. You've described the EVERYTHINNG. It was pretty interesting, and some of this information was new to me.
But I still don't understand... Well, never mind. I've been spoilt by The Teaching Company science courses, which at least try to explain how things work, with the help of logic, not magic (nowadays TTC has been modestly rechristened as The Great Courses and coupled with the stream service Wondrium, which is probably going to swallow it in its entertaining dumbing down depths much sooner than Quantum computers will do their universally-changing magic). By the way, I don't recall another popular science book that would mention magic as frequently as "Quantum Supremacy" does: proteins are "doing their magic", catalysts are "doing their magic"... All right, I give up, quantum computers will do their magic and change everything.

[Aryaman Tummalapalli · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mediocre – I was hoping for explanations of the workings of quantum computers, but instead the vast majority of the book was simply a list of problems humanity faces, followed by the statement that quantum computers may one day solve them. I suppose I should have somewhat expected that from the subtitle.

[Mansoor · Rating 1 out of 5]

Michio Kaku is out of control.

Here he is on Stephen Hawking: "The hope is that one day the quantum theory will return the favor and find a way for quantum computers to cure this horrible disease."

[Scottsdale Public Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

If the reader is a bit suspicious of both the future of computing and AI and how it will affect our lives, Kaku’s effort is heads above the numerous books I’ve read on quantum computing work, separately, and the great potential when working together. Kaku produces great insights and explanations of how they work together. As a physicist, his investigation clears up many of the challenging technical issues that are glossed over by non-scientist authors. This is a huge differentiator.

Even better, because ultimately, all things tiny are quantum. Kaku dives into our future with genetic medicine which will revolutionize our healthcare.

Quantum Supremacy is definitely the best book on quantum computing, its expected integration to AI, and the startling results of this combination.

His understanding of these technologies with helpful examples and detail will give every reader a clearer picture of the future.

A great, great read. If you read and like this one, try Physics of the Impossible and The God Equation; the Quest for a Theory of Everything. – Tom L.

[Jenna ❤ ❀ ❤ · Rating 3 out of 5]

"When tediously computing the paths taken by a mouse in a maze, a digital computer has to painfully analyze each possible path, one after the other. A quantum computer, however, simultaneously analyzes all possible paths at the same time."

May/mā/
    verb
expressing possibility


Might/mīt/
    verb
used to express possibility or make a suggestion.

This book has a whole lot of speculation, a lot of 'mays' and 'mights'. 'Might' is used 178 times and 'may' a whopping 304.

It's about what quantum computers "might" be able to do in the future if we can build sophisticated enough ones to solve practical problems that require far too much data for digital computers.

Some of the problems and possible solutions Mr Kaku explores are:
•how to cure Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and ALS, as well as all the kinds of cancer there are

•how to build better batteries that can hold a lot more energy than they currently do

•how to create a reliable renewable energy that can supply the entire world with clean, cheap energy

•how to better predict the weather

•how to combat the worst of climate change

•how to uncover what dark matter and dark energy are

He discusses why our current supercomputers are unable to solve these problems and how quantum computers could. He breaks the problems down to their molecular levels to show how they could be solved with enough computational power.

I found some of this exciting but it was frustrating to know we don't really know if we'll ever solve these problems. I found it a little irritating how optimistic he is that we will suddenly create technology that will save us from climate change. 

Maybe I'm pessimistic but I think that if we rely on "mays" and "mights" rather than changing our behavior, we're going to be in an even bigger mess. Hopefully we can somehow manage to turn things around but we have no idea if we can. 

I find it unethical (or at least unwise) to act as though technology will save us just in the nick of time, like some god sweeping down out of the heavens, waving his arms, and wah-lah! All the problems disappear.

The first couple chapters are about the history of computers and I found that boring because it was stuff I already knew. I enjoyed much more learning how quantum computers work and the specifics of how they could solve many real-world problems. 

It's a fun book on one hand, but annoying on the other. All those "mights" and "mays" about drove me nuts.

Another thing that drove me nuts was how America-centric it is. He often talks about all the benefits for "the country" and how the citizens of "this entire country" will have such and such. 

Um.... what about the rest of the world? They don't have access to this technology? The rest of the world has plummeted into the Dark Ages? 

Unfortunately, this is my least favorite Michio Kaku book. It was disappointing because he's one of my favorite authors, but I'll still be looking forward to his next.

(Definitions from Oxford Languages)

[Rachel (TheShadesofOrange)]

3.0 Stars
I have previously loved several of this author's books but this one just felt underwhelming to me. It felt overly simplistic.

[Graeme Newell · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an aspiring science geek, I was thrilled to pick up Kaku's book. Last week he spoke at a local book store and it was a pleasure to see his infectious enthusiasm for all things science.

Kaku is known for his ability to distill complex scientific concepts into layman's terms. In this book he takes on the enormous task of explaining quantum computing - a topic that even some of the brightest minds find intimidating. And for the most part, he does a good job. His analogies are creative as he fleshes out the real-world implications of this bleeding edge science.

That being said, I must admit there were moments where the complexity of the subject matter outpaced Kaku's explanatory prowess. This isn't so much a criticism of Kaku's writing as it is a testament to the sheer complexity of quantum mechanics. Even though Kaku takes great pains to simplify and explain, there are sections of the book that may require a second or third reading to fully comprehend.

In a lot of ways, this book wasn’t so much about the essentials of quantum computing but the ramifications of the technology. He discusses the potential benefits, such as solving problems beyond the reach of classical computers, as well as the possible drawbacks, like the threat to current encryption methods.

A lot of these chapters became repetitious. The essence of each of these was that quantum computing would allow us to jettison the need for real-world testing. Modeling could now be done virtually, thus drastically cutting down on the expense and resources required to make breakthroughs.

He made this point over and over again for a variety of different scientific specialties. This caused the book to take on a more general tone. One after the other, he provided a general overview of each individual field’s promises and challenges. I just felt like he strayed too far from the primary topic.

The book's saving grace is that it is peppered with Kaku's signature storytelling and analogies, but even these feel forced and lack the usual spark. It's like listening to a brilliant lecturer who, for some reason, just isn't able to connect with his audience this time around.

If you're willing to grapple with some complex concepts and share in Kaku's enthusiasm for the future of quantum computing, then this book is certainly worth your time. It's a testament to Kaku's skill as a science communicator that he's able to make such a daunting topic accessible to the average reader. Even with its occasional complexities and repetitive last chapters, "Quantum Supremacy" is a good read. I learned a lot.

[Jonah Ableman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Despite its title, Michio Kaku’s ‘Quantum Supremacy’ is about literally everything except quantum computing. If that sounds like a good thing to you, let me assure you - it’s not. The author talks about the basic histories of an absurd number of issues that plague humanity, but refuses to go past the surface level for any of them. The book consists of a single pattern repeated:

[A few pages explaining a problem facing humanity (ie Global Warming, Cancer, Clean Energy, Dying??), and why we haven’t solved it]

“[insert problem here] may be solved by quantum computing!”

[optional cliche segue into the next problem]

Rinse and repeat for 300 pages. It’s presented like a student who was told to write a 300 page essay on how quantum computing could fix the world the night before it was due, and they just gave Wikipedia standard summaries of a ton of problems that “could be solved by quantum computing!”

Additionally, it’s incredibly confusing who this book is targeted to. The author glosses over terms potentially confusing to an uninformed reader such as neural networks, quarks, and superconductivity without batting an eye, yet takes the time to explain to you that plasma is in fact the fourth state of matter after solid, liquid, and gas (wow!). It’s entirely inconsistent, not that it really matters, as if you do find yourself understanding a majority of the content, there’s likely not a lot of new information in this book for you.

As if this all wasn’t bad enough on its own, the absolute cherry on top is the final chapter - a self-indulgent fictional passage that had me properly cackling as I read it, and can only be properly described as a quantum computing enthusiasts wet dream. The inclusion of this passage was bizarre as it was laughably entertaining.

All that aside, it’s not like reading this book was worthless to me, and there were certainly some interesting tidbits I found and learned throughout my time with it, but it was the kind of information that didn’t need to be in a full-length novel.

Edit: Actually upon further investigation it seems not only is the book shit in general, it’s also factually inaccurate in a number of places, so the one potential pro has been nixed. 0 stars?

[Vincent Russo · Rating 1 out of 5]

After seeing a clip of Kaku on Rogan claiming that quantum computers would somehow make ChatGPT "more truthful", I knew this book was going to be embarrassingly bad. And, well, yeah, this book is incredibly dangerous and misleading to the quantum computing community. I think the majority of my own thoughts are aligned with those on Scott Aaronson's blog post:
https://scottaaronson.blog/?p=7321

[Nick · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't believe how much I hated this. It is literally a list of problems, and then a variation of the sentence "who knows, quantum computers can probably solve this". I finished solely out of respect for the author, but YIKES, no thank you. Just a slog to finish. Read the opening, read the last chapter, and you've read it, you've read the whole book.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

A drinking game: take a shot every time you hear "For example"

[Sarah DeLone · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quantum computers are the future. I read it but you don’t have to.

I understand quantum mechanics as much as the next guy who’s taken 2.5 semesters of it and found it very interesting to see the application of this seemingly impossible physics. However, I have absolutely no clue how silicon computers work which left me at a loss connecting the two. Kaku does a good deal explaining Turing machines but there’s still stuff missing.

I enjoyed the discussions on the quantum mechanics as well as the application of quantum computers on the medical research field (because that’s my line of work). I felt like there was a lot of talk about what science/applications could be advanced and not enough about what science we have or what exactly is holding us back from quantum computers being common even just in fields discussed (environment, health research).

[Juan Consuegra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy buena lectura, no solo por la explicación clara sobre que es la computación cuántica, sino sobre todo por los problemas que seguramente va a solucionar en la siguiente Generacion. Es una gran esperanza - y hoy realidad en varios aspectos - para la humanidad.

[Donovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deep dive into the speculative world of quantum and A.I. possibilities, it’s as hopeful as it is imaginative.

[Sena · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book gives a fun overview of the history of quantum physics and the major hot topics in science. The only thing it doesn't explain is how quantum computers actually work. Sure, it talks about qubits and superposition and quantum entanglement, but it doesn't really give a solid intuition as to how quantum computers make use of these properties.

Moreover, a huge chunk of the book is devoted to all the amazing problems quantum computing could solve. It's quite amusing. First, the problems are explained (and they are pretty interesting, especially if you happen to want an overview of what scientists are working on these days). At the end of each chapter, there's a paragraph that goes, more or less, "And quantum computers would be a great help in tackling this problem, due to their superior compute power and their ability to process large amounts of data much faster than traditional computers."

At one point, when reading about fusion reactors, I had really forgotten all about the fact that this was a book about quantum computers. The paragraph about quantum computing being very necessary for the development of fusion reactors hit me out of nowhere (due to their superior compute power), and I must admit, I giggled a little.

So yes, the explanation about how quantum computers actually works is pretty handwave-y, but the book is still entertaining and I learned many new things, so I will make the usual effort to summarize what goes on in it. I'm even going to add some footnotes, otherwise it might get painfully long.

* Research in quantum computing is rapidly progressing and we have recently achieved quantum supremacy, i.e., when quantum computers can efficiently solve problems which would take a very long time for traditional computers to solve. This may be both a blessing and a curse. With the help of quantum computers we can tackle all sorts of problems (more on that later), but we should also be aware that they can be used to create all sorts of trouble, such as breaking the 128-bit AES encryption, which is how we encrypt digital data. NIST expects this to happen by 2029, which could spell disaster if we do not take precautions. Think, a hacker armed with a quantum computer, breaking into Wall Street, or the bitcoin blockchain. (Which brings to mind the question: should I sell my bitcoin?)

* How did we get here? Through a very long history, starting from the world's oldest computer Antikythera, a nifty set of gears that calculated the motion of celestial bodies. Then came Charles Babbage ("Father of the Computer") who designed the first mechanical computer and Ada Lovelace, the world's first programmer, followed by Alan Turing and his Turing Machine (**). On the hardware side, Turing was involved in the Colossus project in WW2, which is said to be the first digital computer. Colossus used vacuum tubes to send electrical signals (1s and 0s). Modern computers use transistors for this. Since their invention, they have shrunk incredibly in size and today are the width of a handful of atoms. If we try to go any smaller, we start observing weird quantum effects of electrons jumping about and short-circuiting chips. We seem to be at the limit of Moore's Law with digital computers.

* Speaking of quantum, let's talk some physics. (Honestly, this section was the highlight of the book for me, so maybe I'll detail it a bit more than necessary). Back in the 1900s, we thought we could explain everything using Newton and Maxwell's equations. It is especially important to note that we thought physics was deterministic, that the universe worked like a clock. Then came along Planck, who introduced the concept of energy coming in tiny discrete packets, called quanta(***). Following Planck, Einstein explained the photoelectric effect (when light hits a metal, it forms an electric current. This is how solar panels work.), using quantum theory. He claimed that light energy could occur in discrete packets (photons), and that they could knock electrons out of metal, creating the current. This also lead to the dual nature of light, that it can be a particle that can knock electrons off of metal, and also be an electromagnetic wave. Turns out, electrons also have this property (demonstrated by Louis de Broglie using his double slit experiment.)

* Schrödinger who found the wave equation for electrons (since they can act like a wave, they must follow some equation). The wave equation explains the orbitals of atoms. Electrons don't exactly orbit the atom like planets in our solar system, they are waves which form resonances of frequencies (but also, they still have particle-like properties). Max Born interprets this, saying that matter consists of particles, but the probability of finding the particle is given by the wave. In particular, when we make a measurement, we "collapse" the wave which gives us the probability of finding the electron in a given state. This brings to mind the infamous cat of Schrödinger's, which is both dead and alive inside the box (in a "superposition" of the two states) until we open the box and make the observation (when the wave "collapses" and the cat's fate is revealed.) Superposition is also at the core of quantum computing. Qubits, which replace the traditional bits (0 or 1), are simultaneous mixtures of the two states and the probability of the state would be described by the wave function. Eventually, to read out the result of the computation we would "collapse the wave" resulting in the classic 0s and 1s.

In quantum theory, before you look at a tree, it can exist in all possible states, such as firewood, lumber, ash, toothpicks, a house, or sawdust. However, when you actually look at the tree, all the waves representing these states miraculously collapse into one object, the ordinary tree.

* Now, this puts a lot of power in the observer ("consciousness determines existence"), which brings to mind good old solipsism.

* There's also the interpretation of quantum theory that states that there are many worlds out there, where all the quantum states exist simultaneously in each one, and there is no wave collapse really. This was proposed by Hugh Everett, who is the father of the frontman of Eels. I happen to love Eels and as I was reading the chapter, I remembered the frontman talking about his genius but troubled physicist father. If there are many worlds, they sure are all small.

* These wave electrons have one more property that is important for the concept of quantum computers: "entanglement". When two electrons are coherent with each other (vibrating with the same frequency but with a phase shift), they will remain coherent even if they are separated by some distance. This is how quantum computers work so efficiently, since the electrons are communicating via entanglement. This is the part where Michio Kaku becomes a bit hand-wavy unfortunately. He likens the ordinary digital computer to a room full of accountants performing each their own calculations. The quantum computer has the accountants collaborating in their computations via entanglement. I'll let you take his word for it, because I could have used a bit more explanation here.

* Today (I'm writing this summary in 2024) there are several designs for quantum computers, each with their own strengths and challenges. One common challenge seems to be that the quantum computers have to be kept in extremely cold temperatures, for the atoms to stay in coherence. Ideally the temperature should be absolute zero, but since this is impossible to reach, errors creep into the calculations. A solution is to back up each qubit by several qubits (a thousand qubits for each qubit suffices) to create redundancy and to reduce errors.

And that was the very factual first 100 pages. The rest of the book dives into all the different problems that quantum computers could address.

* A hot topic in biochemistry currently is understanding (and eventually editing) the human genome. Using quantum computing, we can perform very accurate simulations of molecules, allowing us to understand the interactions of genes, enzymes, proteins, etc; and eventually decode the roles of specific genes and perhaps even edit them.

* Slightly unrelatedly, the origin of life is a big mystery. Many scientists believe that conditions on Earth were simply not ideal for a long enough time for DNA to develop and evolve into full fledged life-forms. Some believe that DNA came from outer-space precisely because of this. Well, there is also the theory that quantum mechanics, with all its strange properties, provides an explanation that life began on Earth after all. There are infinitely many paths that a particle can take from A to B, some of them very unlikely, but possible. The same goes for the evolution of life, which may have been one such very unlikely-but-possible path in the course of events. (I'm competing with Kaku for hand-waviness here).

* Another big mystery is photosynthesis. When photons hit a leaf, instead of being scattered and lost, they are turned into energy via the vibrations they create with almost 100% efficiency. This amount of efficiency is yet another unlikely-but-possible event that could be explained by quantum mechanics. Actually, another active area of research is to improve upon photosynthesis itself and create a more efficient artificial leaf. Also, we can improve fertilizers. Using quantum computing, we would simulate many candidate fertilizer production processes and find one that is more efficient, less energy intensive, and less pollutive.

* We can approach the battery problem in a similar way: with quantum computers, we would simulate different chemicals and find alternatives to the standard lithium-ion batteries that can efficiently store more energy. We can also optimize the shapes of vehicles for better aerodynamicity, which is a field my PhD supervisor was very fond of, even without all this quantum computing business (never thought I'd give such a shout-out in a book review on quantum computing, but here we are).

* A large section of the book is devoted to all the wonders we could uncover by putting quantum computers to work in the healthcare industry. We would iterate much faster in antibiotics and vaccine research. We could even develop an early warning system for cancer by analyzing bodily fluids (smart toilets!) for suspicious cancer cells, enzymes, genes, etc. The gimmick with quantum computers here is that they can sift through all the vast number of molecules in your urine and detect the suspicious combination.

* Another chapter I found cool and concerning was regarding our sun. The sun obviously releases solar flares from time to time - that's how we get auroras. What I did not know was that it can be a catastrophic event. In 1859 we apparently had a very big solar flare called the Carrington event. It caused telegraph wires to catch on fire. It is said that if such an event were to happen again it would cause global blackouts and paralyze our civilization, setting us back possibly 150 years. Now, this book claims that we might be able to foresee such an event using quantum computers by simulating the sun, etc., (I am waving my hands wildly at the moment), though how one prepares against such a catastrophe, I do not know.

* At the very end of the book, there is a section called quantum puzzles, which asks some sensational questions. I found the question of "did God have a choice?" the most interesting (and dramatic). Quantum behavior is strange; being in many states at once, tunneling, the dual nature of lights and particles, etc. Could it have been any different? Is there a universe design that works that is an alternative to ours? Well, if the microworld were to obey Newtonian physics, everything would collapse. It seems that the current "design" is, strange as it may be, remarkable in its stability. Food for thought.


Footnotes:

**) Alan Turing posed the critical question "Is there a mathematical limit to what a mechanical computer can perform?", which was a play on Gödel's incompleteness theorems. So he came up with the Turing machine, an infinitely long tape containing 0s and 1s, and a set of operations to manipulate the tape; and used it to prove Gödel right ("there exist true statements that cannot be computed in a finite amount of time by a Turing machine, given a set of axioms").

***) One phenomenon that could not be explained by Newton and Maxwell was the energy emitted from a hot object, as the calculations lead to the conclusion that the amount of emitted energy is infinite at high frequencies (this is impossible.) Dramatically, this is called the "Rayleigh–Jeans catastrophe." Then comes Max Planck who finds the correction by making an assumption: say that the energy emitted from an atom comes in tiny discrete packs of energy (as opposed to the traditional view that said energy is continuous). A quantum of energy is equal to h, Planck's constant, which is 6.626 x 10^-34 Joule seconds.

[Porter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t know why I every so often after some time has passed keep giving these Michio Kaku books a chance again. They are just so misleading about the present state of science. This book isn’t about Quantum Computing very much but instead the effect greater computing power generally will have on technology. He doesn’t discuss how QC works very much or the different theories behind it. One thing I really don’t like is he doesn’t distinguish between well established science and wildly speculative theories. It is more a broad survey of technological advances over the last century which really doesn’t provide any new information if you are decently knowledgeable of trends in physics and astronomy over the last 100 years or so. His explanations are pretty lacking and are not very high level or detailed. Sagan and Asimov are two authors that I really like who don’t dumb things down nor oversimplify them to the point of bordering on being wrong like Kaku does.

[Gabby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Idk I’m starting to get irritated reading about artificial intelligence bc humans haven’t weeded out natural stupidity yet

[Nancy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a complete disappointment. Kaku used the phrase "quantum computing" to excess without ever connecting with what the device really is or how they work. He constantly extolled the virtues of QC with no evidence or explanation of HOW those virtues might come to be. I was was shocked when I turned a page to find that the book had ended. This was the most bla, bla, bla science book that I have read...and in the end felt cheated.

[Markus Elsner · Rating 1 out of 5]

Probably one of the worst science books I ever read (stopped after about 60%). You learn nothing about how quantum computers work. Most of the book just lists challenges that humanity faces, explains them very superficially, and then states that quantum computers will magically maybe, potentially solve them or something.

[Jung · Rating 2 out of 5]

Understand quantum computers and what they have to do with your future

If you’ve ever read a comic book or watched The Big Bang Theory, you’ve probably heard a little quantum terminology such as parallel universe and Schrödinger’s cat. But many people think that quantum physics is beyond their realm of understanding and consequently not worth the effort to learn about.

If you’re one of those people, get ready to change your mind. Not only is it possible and easy to understand the practical implications of quantum physics in our world, but it’s also important. The quantum realm isn’t just a subject for comic books. In fact, it’s being explored right now.

The future of computing – and therefore the world – is quantum. Given the possibilities for humanity in terms of fuel, medicine, and economics, advancements in quantum computing are something everyone should be paying attention to.

In this book, we’ll take a look at the state of quantum computers as they exist today – including their power and their limitations. We’ll also take a quick trip through the history of computing that led us to this point. And finally, we’ll talk about the potential impact of quantum computers on society, medicine, and the world at large.

-

Goodbye silicon

In 2019, Google created a quantum computer called Sycamore. It could solve, in just 200 seconds, a complex mathematical problem that would take our current fastest supercomputer 10,000 years to solve. In digital computing, the basic unit of information is a bit whereas in quantum computing, it’s a qubit. Sycamore runs on 53 qubits and, at that time, that made it the most powerful computer in the world.

But just two years later, the Quantum Innovation Institute in China claimed that their quantum computer was 100 trillion times faster than supercomputers. It ran on 113 qubits.

On November 16 of that same year, the IBM Eagle was revealed which beat them both with 127 qubits. A year later IBM launched Osprey at 433 qubits.

When a quantum computer can outperform a digital computer at a specific task, it’s known as quantum supremacy. Clearly, this point has already been reached. What’s more, we’ve only just scratched the surface of what’s possible.

There are several different ways in which quantum computing functions. Most inventors are using entangled atoms – more on that shortly – but a few researchers have found a way to send information on light beams using a clunky mirror-based setup. The race is on to be the first to optimize this technology. But we’re still many years away from a functioning quantum computer that can solve real-world problems in fields ranging from medicine to fuel to cybersecurity.

Even so, the age of silicon appears to be coming to an end. Moore’s Law, first postulated in 1965, suggests that the number of transistors that can be built into a microchip doubles every 18 months. Effectively, that means computer power also doubles every 18 months. But if we continue primarily using silicon, this law will stop being true in the very near future.

You see, digital computers are reaching their capacity to be able to solve large-scale problems – or at least to be able to solve them quickly enough to be useful. But quantum computers can take us into a new era with their insanely fast speeds and ability to simultaneously analyze multiple paths and problems to create the best solution.

So what is it that makes quantum computers so powerful? Well, two key factors contribute to this power.

The first is superposition, or the ability of an atom to exist in multiple states at the same time. This is how quantum computers can solve problems so quickly – by analyzing all paths at the same time to determine the path of least action.

The second factor is known as entanglement. This is when two atoms establish interaction with each other, sharing information, and keep that connection even when they’re separated at a great distance.

Now, you’re probably already wondering, How do I get my hands on one of these quantum computers? Why isn’t all technology already based on quantum computing? Well, the problem is that there’s one primary challenge, and it has to do with something called coherence.

For quantum computers to work, a system has to be completely stable. Atoms are fragile and the least disturbance disrupts them. So quantum computers as they currently exist have to be framed in systems that keep them at absolute zero temperatures.

There’s hope, though. Mother nature achieves coherence at regular temperatures in a little process called photosynthesis. So scientists are studying how coherence is achieved in nature in the hope of finding a way to recreate the process in a computer.

But before we talk about the practical applications of quantum computers, let’s take a quick look back at how we got here.

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Two thousand years of computers

In 1901, off the coast of a Greek island called Antikythera, researchers discovered the remains of a first-century trading ship. On that ship, they found Roman artifacts that they speculate were being sent as a gift to Julius Caesar.

Among those artifacts was a strange hunk of bronze. It was clearly man-made but impossible to identify at the moment of its discovery. In fact, this piece of metal kept researchers confused for decades. In the 1970s, X-ray imaging was used to investigate the artifact, but it wasn’t until CT scans were published in 2006 that researchers started to recognize the implications of the device.

What’s now known as the Antikythera Mechanism provided a highly complex simulation of the universe as it was known at the time. The device could make predictions about events like eclipses, and it could even calibrate in anticipation of changes in speed due to the elliptical orbit of the Earth.

Simulation is the goal of quantum computing. When we can simulate the world around us down to the quantum level, we can begin to analyze some of the many problems that have plagued us since the beginning of time.

No device came close to the technical advancement of the Antikythera device – let alone built on it – until the 1800s. It was then that Charles Babbage invented the first digital computer. Ada Lovelace, daughter of Lord Byron, figured out how to feed the computer information to get it to perform complicated mathematical tasks that were essential in industries such as construction or navigation. She was essentially the first programmer.

By 1900, things were gathering pace, Max Planck challenged Newtonian physics and created what’s now called Planck’s Constant, representing the size of quantum energy. This constant would become the foundation of quantum mechanics and quantum theory.

Then, in 1926, Erwin Schrödinger built on this by creating a wave equation using Planck’s Constant. Rather than seeing electrons as particles, Schrödinger suggested they exist as a wave. In other words, an electron exists in many places at once until the moment it’s measured – which is when the wave would collapse into a particle.

To illustrate this idea, the analogy of Schrödinger’s cat was created. While the cat is in the box, the cat can be considered to be both dead, alive, and all states in between – until it’s observed. At that point, all the states of the cat collapse into the measurable one.

Ten years later, in 1936, Alan Turning described what would eventually become the Turing machine – the basis for all modern computing. His machine helped break the previously uncrackable codes used by the Nazis during WWII. As a result, the war was shortened by two years and an estimated 14 million lives were saved.

In 1948, Richard Feynman finalized his path integral formulation. Prior to that, scientists had observed in photosynthesis that quantum particles tend to follow the path of least action. But how did the particles “know” what that path was? Feynman answered that question. He postulated that because electrons exist in waves, they’re able to experience all paths at once.

This idea led Feynman to create his path integral formulation. Isaac Newton had invented calculus to solve problems that involved motion. The path integral formulation solved those same problems in a much simpler way and it paved the way for yet more quantum discoveries.

If the description of the path integral formulation sounds familiar, that’s probably because we’ve already talked about how quantum computers can experience and analyze all possibilities simultaneously before choosing the best solution. Everything these scientists and inventors of the past created has led to the development of what we know as quantum science today.

One more name needs to be added to this esteemed list, that of Hugh Everett. For a long time, scientists argued about the wave theory and the idea that a wave collapsed into a single reality when measured. This was a huge problem to overcome until Everett proposed that maybe the wave doesn’t actually collapse; maybe all versions of the reality experienced by the wave exist simultaneously.

So, if you enjoy the multiverse of comic books or any other fiction that explores parallel dimensions, Everett is the man to thank.

OK, so while the many worlds theory does make for good entertainment, it’s serious subject matter for quantum physicists and continues to be explored today. So let’s get back to understanding what the value of all of these quantum developments might be in the near future.

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Good and evil in progress

In 1918, Fritz Haber won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for inventing a process which used intense heat and pressure to convert nitrogen into nitrate fertilizer. As a result, a green revolution started, which produced enough food to grow the human species into the 8 billion population size that it is today.

But Fritz Haber is also known by another name: the father of chemical warfare. His inventions were responsible for millions of deaths throughout World War I, the Russian Revolution, and the Holocaust.

Today, that crude and resource-eating process of nitrogen-fixing first invented by Haber is being challenged by quantum scientists. 

Thanks to two breakthroughs, we now better understand the building blocks of life.

In 1952, Stanley Miller created an experiment that used many of the elements thought to have existed on prehistoric earth, along with a jolt of electricity, and was able to spontaneously produce amino acids. We now know, through simulations using the elements found in gas clouds in space, that it’s likely that amino acids exist in space and may have been brought here in meteorite dust.

The second breakthrough was that of Francis Crick and James Watson. In his 1944 book entitled What is Life? Schrödinger described the characteristics of an unknown molecule that would explain the development of life as we know it. Crick and Watson took his idea further and identified the double-helix shape of what we now know to be DNA.

Thanks to all of these inventions and discoveries, we understand the pieces and processes needed to produce the energy that sustains life. But there are still many obstacles to overcome. Just like Haber’s crude process for nitrogen-fixing, many of our attempts at coming up with clean energy are actually sourced through unsustainable means, and our efforts at discovery are still done largely by trial and error.

Quantum computers have the potential to be able to solve problems like nitrogen-fixing and harnessing the power of sunlight. Hopefully, it won’t be long before quantum computing can deliver a second green revolution.

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When cancer loses

On December 23, 1971, President Richard Nixon signed into effect the National Cancer Act, declaring war on cancer – cancer won. The problem with cancer is that it comes from far too many different variables to easily identify and stop it.

Cancer isn’t a foreign invader; it’s created by our own healthy cells. Once we reach adulthood, some cells are programmed to die as others divide. In the case of cancer, healthy cells forget to die off and instead reproduce at an alarming rate.

There are many diseases caused by our bodies harming themselves as opposed to foreign invaders. Take COVID-19, for instance. The deaths associated with COVID-19 weren’t as a result of the symptoms of the virus, but rather the cytokine storm created by the immune system going off the rails.

Another example of the body turning against itself is in autoimmune diseases which happen when the body receives misinformation about an otherwise healthy particle and begins to attack itself.

Alzheimer’s and other neurological disorders may be a result of something called prions, which are improperly folded proteins. No one knows why a protein misfolds, but when it does, it can send that information to other proteins, spreading the disorder.

Technological advancements have improved our quality and length of life. From sanitation to antibiotics and vaccines to better nutrition, we’ve taken the human race from lifespans of approximately 30 years to 70 years and improved the overall quality of those lifespans, too. But we’ve done all of this largely by trial and error. When it comes to things like cancer and Alzheimer's where there are so many factors at play we may never be able to find answers on our own, quantum computers may save us.

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Our planet and beyond

Let’s now switch our focus to climate change and space.

Earth is warming up as a result of human behavior. This warming is creating a variety of problems. One of those is the release of the greenhouse gas methane due to the melting of polar ice caps. As it’s released, it contributes to yet more global warming.

Another consequence of climate change is that the polar vortex, which has always been quite stable, is becoming unstable. This area of cold air and low pressure at the poles is always there but is stronger in winter. In recent decades, it’s been expanding, pushing colder, more unpredictable weather further south.

The consequences of climate change range from mildly inconvenient to catastrophic, and the fact is that we can no longer prevent disaster, we can only mitigate it.

Unfortunately, we’re also reaching a limit on what digital computers can do as far as predicting weather patterns and assessing climate change. Quantum computers, on the other hand, can theoretically provide virtual weather reports that could alter the future of humanity. Their ability to simultaneously assess many paths means they can more quickly generate accurate predictions about short- and long-term weather situations.

Beyond our climate, there’s another important application of quantum computers, and that’s the ability to understand the stars.

Back in 1859, the biggest solar flare in recorded history hit Earth. It resulted in intensely beautiful Northern Lights – but it also resulted in telegraph wires setting alight.

Today, if that same storm were to hit, it would potentially set us back 150 years, not only disrupting our satellite and radio communications but also completely destroying power grids.

The big problem is that we don’t understand how stars work or what causes different intensities in solar storms, so we have no means of predicting and preparing for them. With their ability to simulate the universe, quantum computers could help us better understand our sun and not be caught off guard by unexpected solar flares.

These computers can also help us bottle the power of the sun. The current state of fusion reactors is moving forward. In December 2022, a fusion reaction greater than the amount of energy it took to create that reaction was achieved.

But we’re still at least several decades away from commercializing fusion and powering our world with it. The problem is that we have to figure all of this out by trial and error. And the expense involved in failing is prohibitive. Quantum computers can help us more quickly find our best path forward, simulating all possibilities and showing us the right one.

When we can better understand our planet and our universe, we can not only improve the life and longevity of our planet, we can truly become an interplanetary species.

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Quantum computers exist and are rapidly improving. Not only are there functioning computers cracking codes and performing complex equations at unheard-of speeds, but there are also different forms of them. Quantum computers are the natural progression in a short, rapid series of discoveries and inventions by people like Erwin Schrodinger, Richard Feynman, and Hugh Everett. The possibilities for things like a second green revolution and a cure for cancer all hinge on our ability to take quantum computers to the next level.

[Max · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a strange book, maybe a bit too optimistic about the powers of quantum computing. There's even a chapter in which we follow someone from 2050 who experiences *all* of the advances the book predicts... smh

[Wendelle]

clear and informative peppered with flights of fancy, in the classic Kaku style

[Vijay Krishnamoorthy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this one as an audio book.

I have to say the book covers a wide range of options and topics - ranging from how quantum computers “could” help model climate change, the conditions of the Big Bang, nuclear fusion, cancer response etc.

I found the range of topics covered to be interesting but overall the explanation of how quantum computing actually works, and what it would take to scale it very lacking. Too speculative yet for me … but maybe it will end up being visionary. I also did not not like the audio narrator.

I would give this one a miss

[Beauregard Bottomley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Science speculation run amok.

[Suhasa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super interesting read!

(Read via Blinkist)

[Tomoka Ohmori · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I want to have a honeymoon on the moon” is the best way to conclude this book. So much concise & enlightening explanations for quantum computers and their potentials, yet it leaves impression that it’s too well. Still, it was an intriguing book to read!

[Andrea Wenger · Rating 5 out of 5]

The growth of technology is slowing due to the physical limitations of silicon chips. Quantum computing promises a revolution in computing power. In the not-so-distant future, it could change our daily lives in unimaginable ways, and solve major challenges like climate change, the global food crisis, and deadly diseases.

Michio Kaku is a brilliant and enthusiastic science communicator. In an easy-to-read style, this book paints an exciting and optimistic view of what the future could hold.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does an excellent job of explaining the basics of Quantum Mechanics in laymen's terms. The second half of the book, which shows how quantum computers could be applied to major problems (medicine etc) is a bit repetitive.

[Jim Beatty · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a theory only a mother can love. It is like putting an aardvark, a platypus, and a whale together with Scotch tape and calling it nature's finest creation.

[D'ale lui Damian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Supremația cuantică. Cum va schimba totul revoluția computerelor cuantice. Michio Kaku

O carte pe care iubitorii de fizică sau știință o să o placă, e descriere a evoluției cuantice în fizică, cuantică ce influențează pozitiv (sau negativ, depinde cum o folosești) viața oamenilor .

Se caută sa se dezvolte computere cuantice, computere ce pot analiza într-un timp extrem de scurt simultan toate "căile" optime, spre deosebire de cele din ziua de zi, care caută "calea" nu simultan, ci după ce o descopera pe prima, trece la a doua etc.

Tot ele reprezintă un factor de risc pentru companii, deoarece cu ajutorul computerelor cuantice se pot sparge serverele companiilor. Cel ce va detine astfel de computer, va putea eficientiza profitul, scadea costurile etc.

M-a dus cu gândul la "Inteligența artificială", dar parcurgând capitole face o referire si la aceasta.

Calculatorul cuantic poate testa reactiile chimice fără a folosi substanțe, ar obtine rezultate intr-un timp scurt, nu ar mai fi nevoie de cobai...ar putea înțelege si sugera cum să stopam cancerul de san, boala Alzheimer, am putea avea o mini unealtă, am ingerao si si-ar face treaba, adica ar opera problemele organismului nostru, ar modifica cromozomi etc

In 1901 în apropierea de Mareea Egee a fost descoperită o "placa" ce avea sa schimbe cursul istoriei, un calculator analogic ce putea trasa traiectoria planetelor, precum si fazele lunii. Se pare ca sr fi fost creată spre ai fi oferită lui Iulius Cezar

Dacă computerele din lumea întreagă s-ar opri, lumea ar intra în haos.

Epoca siliconului este spre final, deoarece nu or să mai poată fi folosite în cadrul microcipurilor, se vor topi.
Puterea calculatorului se dubleaza la fiecare 18 ani, impact mare in timp scurt-legea lui Moor

Confruntarea dintre Einstein si Nills Bor privind mecanica cuantică, implicarea fizicienilor in al Doilea Război Mondial.
Tranzistorul, piesa care a revolutionat mecanica cuantică.

Richard Faiman in secolul XX a deschis calea spre era cuantică, spre nanotehnologie.

Sunt enumerati oameni de știință, teoreme si ecuatii ale acestora Ecuatia lui Shrondinger, Integralele Faimen, Ecuatia lui Platon, masina cuantica Turing.

Tot parcurgând cartea incepeti să înțelegeti de unde a pornit ideea de universe paralele, oamenii de stiinta crezând existenta simultană a acestora.

Studierea fotosintezei ca proces cuantic...
Fritz Haber, laureat al Premiului Nobel pt Fizică in 1918, cel care a reușit să ajute la "hrănirea" planetei datorită îngrășămintele obținute, si totodată să ducă la decimarea ei prin invenția de explozibili (păcură + îngrășămintele), explozibile folosite in Primul Razboi Mondial de către Germania.
El este cunoscut sub numele de părintele Razboiul Chimic. Desi a murit înainte de Al Doilea Război Mondial, gazul Zipler a fost un gaz creat de el, dar perfecționat .

Celulele Stem, de care sunt sigură ca ati auzit, se doresc a fi folosite pentru a ajuta anumite organe să reîntinerească, un japonez își atribuie sau urmează acest merit...
Au reușit să întinereasca pielea unei femei de 53 de ani, să o duca la 23 de ani, dar sunt si anumite efecte negative pe care oamenii de știință vor să învețe să le înlăture.