In 1969, Margaret Hamilton's code guided Apollo 11 safely to the Moon. She proved that software was as hardware in pushing technological (and societal) boundaries. Fifty years later, in 2019, Google (to much debate) achieved something equally groundbreaking: it solved in 200 seconds what would take today's most powerful supercomputer 10,000 years.
Just as Hamilton's code had to handle the unknown challenges of space travel, quantum computing ventures into territory where traditional computing rules don't apply. This milestone, called "quantum supremacy," wasn't about building a better computer—it was about creating one that works in an entirely new way.
Hamilton's approach to software development was revolutionary. Similarly, quantum computing challenges everything we know about computation. Imagine trying to find one person in a city of millions. A regular computer, like those Hamilton worked with, would check each house one at a time. A quantum computer checks all houses simultaneously. That's the quantum advantage.
The term "quantum supremacy" comes from physicist John Preskill, who coined it in 2012. Like Hamilton's "software engineering"—a term she invented—it describes something entirely new. While Hamilton's computers (and ours) use bits that were either 1 or 0, quantum computers use quantum bits (qubits) that can be both 1 and 0 at the same time. Think of it like writing code that can execute all possible paths at once.
However, reaching quantum supremacy doesn't mean quantum computers are ready for practical use. Google's achievement is like Hamilton's early software work—it proves a concept that will take years to perfect. The current quantum computers are finicky, prone to errors, and require special conditions to operate, much like the early days of space computing.
Looking ahead, quantum supremacy isn't the finish line—it's the starting gun. Just as Hamilton's software engineering principles revolutionized computing, quantum computing promises to transform fields from drug discovery to climate modeling. Companies worldwide are racing to build better quantum computers, each breakthrough building on the last.
What does this mean for our future? Hamilton's work helped humans reach the Moon. Quantum computers might help us solve problems she could only dream about—creating new medicines, predicting weather patterns months in advance, or discovering new materials to fight climate change.
The quantum supremacy milestone, like Hamilton's Moon landing code, proves that impossible-seeming achievements are possible with enough innovation and determination. As Hamilton herself said, "There was no choice but to be pioneers." Today's quantum scientists are following in her footsteps, pushing the boundaries of what computers can do.
The race is on, and the next breakthrough could happen any day.
QuLearnLabs is supported by the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)
Comments