Computing with Quantum Cats: From Colossus to Qubits

John Gribbin

Black Swan, 2015 - Computers - 295 pages

Pioneering study of the science behind quantum computing and what the new quantum reality will mean for mankind.
The quantum computer is no longer the stuff of science fiction. Pioneering physicists are on the brink of unlocking a new quantum universe which provides a better representation of reality than our everyday experiences and common sense ever could. The birth of quantum computers -- which, like Schrodinger's famous 'dead and alive' cat, rely on entities like electrons, photons or atoms existing in two states at the same time -- is set to turn the computing world on its head.
In his fascinating study of this cutting-edge technology, John Gribbin updates his previous views on the nature of quantum reality, arguing for a universe of many parallel worlds where 'everything is real'. Looking back to Alan Turing's work on the Enigma machine and the first electronic computer, Gribbin explains how quantum theory developed to make quantum computers work in practice as well as in principle. He takes us beyond the arena of theoretical physics to explore their practical applications -- from machines which learn through 'intuition' and trial and error to unhackable laptops and smartphones. And he investigates the potential for this extraordinary science to create a world where communication occurs faster than light and teleportation is possible."

What people are saying

LibraryThing Review

User Review  - fpagan - LibraryThing

Computing (focusing on Alan Turing and John von Neumann), quanta (Richard Feynman and John Bell), and quantum computing (David Deutsch), mostly simplified and demathematized to a quite general level ...

About the author

John Gribbin gained a PhD from the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge (then under the leadership of Fred Hoyle), before working as a science journalist for Nature and later New Scientist. He is the 'go to' man for quantum physics and author of many bestselling popular science books, including Erwin Schr dinger and the Quantum Revolution, In Search of Schr dinger's Cat, In Search of the Multiverse, Science: A History and The Universe: A Biography. He is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Sussex and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

He blogs at http://johngribbinscience.wordpress.com

Bibliographic information

• Title: Computing with Quantum Cats: From Colossus to Qubits; Black Swan
• Author: John Gribbin
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Black Swan, 2015
• ISBN: 0552779318, 9780552779319
• Length: 295 pages
• Subjects: Computers / Computer Science; Science / General; Science / Physics / Quantum Theory