NOVA’s “the Fabric of the Cosmos: Quantum Leap” with Brian Greene “Quantum Leap” not only explores how much the quantum atom has changed our view of the rules that govern our universe, but also how much is has, or will, benefit society. How did science arrive at the quantum atom, and what benefit did (or will) we gain from each of the developments that led us to the quantum atom?
After the analytical evidence was gathered by Sir Joseph John Thomson from the scientists before him to create the Plum Pudding Model, many scientists sought to empirically disprove the model in hopes of finding a better explanation. After the results of the gold foil experiment, Ernest Rutherford dropped the Plum Pudding Model in favour of the Nuclear Model, with …show more content…
Consequently, once we measure one of the particles’ property, we instantly know the corresponding property of the other, no measurement necessary! If we measure the spin of one electron, for example, and find it to be clockwise, we can be certain that the spin of the entangled electron to be counter clockwise. In measuring the quantum state of one particle, you effectively change the state of the other, with no physical forces acting upon the second particle. This may be spooky, but it could also have been decided from the start (entanglement is not real). If a bottle was separated from its cap, and both items put into a case, if my case contains a cap, I know the other case contains a bottle (logically). However, the act of opening a case decides the contents of the other, and changes your view of the contents of the other case; this argument keeps encircling itself with no definitive answer… for now. It appears that entanglement was indeed real, that particles somehow communicated their state to their entangled partner. John F. Clauser created a machine to measure quantum entanglement, using photon pairs moving in opposite directions and polarization detectors. The correlations in polarization were so far from normal, that there was no way the photons acted independently from each other, and this only further strengthened …show more content…
Binary code, the language of computers, uses bits to convey information. A bit can either be a one or a zero. A quantum bit however, is an amalgamation of both a zero and a one, until it completes a set of instructions. Imagine a problem that requires a certain number of bits in a certain order; while the conventional bit computer sifts through as many possible combinations one by one until it arrives at an answer, the qubit computer would try many possible combinations at once until it arrives at an answer. Just like the electron that spins clockwise and counter clockwise until it is measured, a qubit is both a one and a zero until it completes its ordering. All the qubit computer needs are parts that act quantumly; the physical circuits of this quantum computer, made with superconductors and nanotechnology, can run in two directions simultaneously. If these computers catch on, will we finally be able to accurately predict weather months in advance in just a few seconds? Will we be able to determine location and severity of natural disaster with enough time for evacuation? Could authorities plan the safest possible hostage rescue within seconds of assessing the situation? A regular computer would be astronomically large, but a qubit computer could use a few atoms for its
After the analytical evidence was gathered by Sir Joseph John Thomson from the scientists before him to create the Plum Pudding Model, many scientists sought to empirically disprove the model in hopes of finding a better explanation. After the results of the gold foil experiment, Ernest Rutherford dropped the Plum Pudding Model in favour of the Nuclear Model, with …show more content…
Consequently, once we measure one of the particles’ property, we instantly know the corresponding property of the other, no measurement necessary! If we measure the spin of one electron, for example, and find it to be clockwise, we can be certain that the spin of the entangled electron to be counter clockwise. In measuring the quantum state of one particle, you effectively change the state of the other, with no physical forces acting upon the second particle. This may be spooky, but it could also have been decided from the start (entanglement is not real). If a bottle was separated from its cap, and both items put into a case, if my case contains a cap, I know the other case contains a bottle (logically). However, the act of opening a case decides the contents of the other, and changes your view of the contents of the other case; this argument keeps encircling itself with no definitive answer… for now. It appears that entanglement was indeed real, that particles somehow communicated their state to their entangled partner. John F. Clauser created a machine to measure quantum entanglement, using photon pairs moving in opposite directions and polarization detectors. The correlations in polarization were so far from normal, that there was no way the photons acted independently from each other, and this only further strengthened …show more content…
Binary code, the language of computers, uses bits to convey information. A bit can either be a one or a zero. A quantum bit however, is an amalgamation of both a zero and a one, until it completes a set of instructions. Imagine a problem that requires a certain number of bits in a certain order; while the conventional bit computer sifts through as many possible combinations one by one until it arrives at an answer, the qubit computer would try many possible combinations at once until it arrives at an answer. Just like the electron that spins clockwise and counter clockwise until it is measured, a qubit is both a one and a zero until it completes its ordering. All the qubit computer needs are parts that act quantumly; the physical circuits of this quantum computer, made with superconductors and nanotechnology, can run in two directions simultaneously. If these computers catch on, will we finally be able to accurately predict weather months in advance in just a few seconds? Will we be able to determine location and severity of natural disaster with enough time for evacuation? Could authorities plan the safest possible hostage rescue within seconds of assessing the situation? A regular computer would be astronomically large, but a qubit computer could use a few atoms for its