Quantum Computers: Where We Are and Where We’re Going

Published on July 02, 2018

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact: Cosette Ratliff, Supervising Librarian, 510-747-7716

Quantum Computers: Where We Are and Where We’re Going

Social Science, a partnership of the Alameda Free Library and Wonderfest, is proud to present Dr. Norman Yao, Associate Professor of Physics at UC Berkeley, at the Main Library, 1550 Oak Street, on Sunday, July 29, at 2:00 pm.

In recent years, there has been a dramatic worldwide increase in scientific research toward — as well as financial investment in — the development of a quantum computer: a computational machine whose inner workings are governed by the laws of quantum mechanics. These tremendous efforts are motivated, in part, by the promise that quantum computers can perform tasks unthinkable for a classical computer. For example, to factor a 300 digit number on a 1THz quantum computer would take approximately 1 second. The same task on a 1THz classical computer would take nearly 150,000 years!

UC Berkeley’s Norman Yao will present a broad overview on the status of current efforts toward building a quantum computer. Then, he will give a vision for the first types of algorithms and simulations that might naturally be performed on a near-term quantum computer.

Everyone is welcome to this free event and no registration is necessary. Bring your thinking caps!

More information on Dr. Yao may be found athttp://physics.berkeley.edu/people/faculty/norman-yao. More information on Wonderfest may be found at www.wonderfest.org.