In our tech talk, Colin and I discussed the quantum computer and its theoretical impacts. In essence, the quantum computer is a computer that relies on the phenomenon of superposition (the ability of particles to be in several different states) to perform many tasks at once, opposed to how modern computers can only perform one task at a time. This allows it to solve problems several times quicker than a modern computer. There are many applications for quantum computers, such as solving incredibly complex math problems (such as optimization problems), more efficient machine learning, security breaking, etc. These properties could lead to a similar situation in 1984: telescreens could be invented and be powered by extremely efficient machine learning allowing the screen to understand speech/movement and possibly other factors, “vaporization” could become a real thing as computers would be powerful enough to scan the entire web and locate information associated with anything, break any security protecting that information, and delete it, and other possibilities.
In our facilitation, we had a brief introduction followed by a video, a review game, and some discussion questions. The video was a 7 minute clip which gave a thorough explanation of how quantum computers work and some applications. After the video, we played the review game (a Kahoot), which we realized was a bit challenging, however there wasn’t much we could do given the topic is inherently complicated. We then asked the class to answer these questions independently:
1: If you had the ability to buy a quantum computer (assume you could afford it), would you? Why or why not?
2: Why do you think it might be a good idea to tread carefully in the area of quantum computers?
3: How might quantum computers impact society?
These questions helped the class think about how quantum computers could directly affect them and society. While the development of the quantum computer would introduce major changes to technology, it would also introduce major changes to society.
Colin and I believe that our activity choices were good and they all served a purpose; the video explained what a quantum computer is, how it works, and some applications (a foundation was necessary), the review game was fun and helped to see who understood the video the best (good job Ari), and the discussion questions were to see how the class thought quantum computers would affect society, linking it back to 1984. The main thing Colin and I wish we could’ve done better on is our explanation, granted our topic is beyond the scope of many and something that we didn’t entirely understand. While the video was complicated, we believe it gave an idea of how powerful quantum computers are and allowed the class to answer the discussion questions really well. We originally planned to include a short text that focused on the applications of quantum computers, which we believe would have given the class more insight on what a quantum computer could really do. We believe this would have allowed everyone to better interpret how quantum computers could affect society, so we would have also included this too. One insight I gained was that quantum computers have a lot of cons associated with them. Although the discussion was mostly intended to highlight problems associated with quantum computers, there were some things that came to mind during the discussion I hadn’t previously thought of. In response to question 2, Grace said that quantum computers could pose a security threat, so it would be a good idea to control how many are produced and who has access to them. In response to question 3, Jake said that they could allow for even stronger security for those who have quantum computers. This made me think about how much of an advantage those with quantum computers would have, as they would have nearly uncrackable security and an incredibly powerful machine, while those who don’t have one would be at risk at all times and basically defenseless, and wouldn’t be able to compete with the technology that those who have access to quantum computers have. Putting this in the context of 1984, if the government were to have quantum computers, it would automatically make them hundreds of times more powerful, as we would have no way to hide from them and would be forced to give up trying to secure our data because nothing we could do would protect us.
Annotated Bibliography:
Nutshell, Kurzgesagt – In a. “Quantum Computers Explained – Limits of Human Technology.” YouTube, YouTube, 8 Dec. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhHMJCUmq28.
This video is a 7 minute long clip from the youtuber Kurzgesagt, a well known channel with over 8 million subscribers who is known for explaining complex topics extremely thoroughly in usually 10 minutes or less. The channel released a video 4 days ago discussing the process of creating their videos, which entailed thorough research reliable using books/papers and having professionals check over the information. In their video, they did admit that they personally do have biases but try their best to overcome them (usually by presenting both sides of the story). In terms of reliability, as previously stated, they do get all of their information from trusted sources, however do not have a source list on all of their videos (which they stated they plan on adding to all their videos). Overall, I believe Kurzgesagt is a trustworthy and relatively unbiased source of information, especially regarding the video we used as there are almost no opinions and almost fully consists of facts.
“D-Wave Systems.” The D-Wave 2000Q™ System | D-Wave Systems, www.dwavesys.com/quantum-computing/applications.
This source is directly from one of the leaders in quantum computer research and discusses some of the applications of quantum computers. Therefore, I believe it’s rational to trust this source. The only problem with this source is it obviously doesn’t include any theoretical cons of quantum computers, but gives useful information about the positive applications of quantum computers.
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