Classical Computing Networks Vs. Quantum Computing Networks
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/362/6412/308
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/10/181018141107.htm
Sciencemag.org is one of the largest and most reputable peer reviewed journals in the world. The study talked about in this article was submitted and published by Science, therefore we can also assume the study and its authors are reputable sources. Sciencedaily.com is a science news aggregator that posts links and summaries of the latest scientific advances. This is where I originally came across the study and the link to the journal where it was published.
The article listed above is about a study done by a research team from IBM, the University of Waterloo, and the Technical University of Munich that demonstrated a proof of the advantages of quantum computing over classical computing for the first time. The paper showed that certain complex mathematical problems can only be solve with quantum computing.
A classical computer, in its basal form, is a complex network. Transistors are nodes and the electrical pathways connecting them are edges, and while some networks move money or cars along its edges, a computer passes electricity and information. In classical computers, the transistors act as switches, holding values of either 1 or 0, however, the end result is that the network, as a whole, is able to store and compute data beyond the capabilities of a human. On the other hand, quantum computers are able to hold values of 1, 0, both, or anything in-between. Also, the nodes, or qubits, of a quantum computer can be connected to any other qubit regardless of distance and can share information instantaneously.
After reading the article I realized just how intricate and complex such a network, or any network, could be.
The majority of what we focus on in class are the connections in-between nodes and the travel patterns between them, but we usually don’t consider that the nodes themselves may have their own individual characteristics to consider. For example, imagine a network of houses, we often discuss how far away they are from one another and how many people are traveling to each house but we rarely ask questions about the buildings themselves, like how many stories they have. If a house were a node in a classical computer network with 2 stories with a person living on one of the floors, then a quantum computer network node could have a person on the first floor, second floor, or on both floors at the same time. The rules of common sense don’t apply to this network.
Also, these nodes, or qubits, in the quantum computing network have the special property of non-locality and are able to affect and be affected by other qubits at any distance, instantaneous. In this weird quantum world, two nodes can still be so closely connected that it seems like they are the same node. Going back to the house analogy, two houses can be so closely connected that they are part of the same building.
These characteristics add layers of complexity to networks that I hadn’t considered before reading the article. I realize now that networks can be so much more than just simple ball-and-stick figures. The possible levels of sheer mind-boggling complexity that can be attributed to a network only forces me to appreciate the field more, and it’s amazing to see that we can use such a complex network system to solve problems previously thought impossible. In fact, the problem used in the study was a networks problem, as shown below. We are creating astoundingly complex network to solve astoundingly complex networks. The more I learn about networks the more I realize the depth of the field.
