Improving Google’s PageRank using Quantum Models
https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/ne7pa8/physicists-designed-a-quantum-graph-search-technique-that-matches-google
One way researchers attempt to improve the PageRank algorithm implemented by Google is by tweaking the random walk process used. Breaking down the entires searchable internet into a series of nodes and links results in a lot of geometrically ugly structures that are difficult to traverse. This network has no definite structure so randomly walking between nodes is a relatively efficient way to travel the web. A modification on the Random Walk process using Quantum physics models was able to match and even beat the PageRank algorithm in speed in tests. Scientists exploit the implicit randomness present in quantum physics to preserve randomness but also invoke a notion of interference between particles, or nodes in this case.
In class we study the PageRank algorithms that determine what we see and what is hidden in a Google search. As the Internet continues to grow, the speed of the current PageRank system may become an issue and this Quantum approach may be a promising avenue to increasing speed and efficiency.