Google has introduced an experimental personalized research assistant tool called NotebookLM. This tool can take written text, interpret it, and translate it into speech. So as a test we fed into a recent QCR article titled AWS Describes an Error Correction Experiment Performed with Cat Qubits and asked it to create a podcast discussion out of the material. If you click on the picture above you can listen to the 11 minute podcast and see how it interpreted the Cat Qubit story we published last week. Quantum researchers will note that some of the explanations are not completely precise. For one thing, it pronounces QUBITS as KWIBITS. But one should remember that no humans were involved in creating this. All we did was to feed in the QCR story and the tool did the rest. Enjoy!
Transcript
(0:00) Hey everyone, so get this I was reading this thing on Quantum Computing Report, right and they were talking about AWS
(0:08) AWS yeah AWS they’re doing some pretty cool research with get this something called cat qubits
(0:14) Cat qubits. Okay. I’ll bite cat qubits.
That’s a new one. What are those all about? Yeah, so apparently, it’s all about tackling errors
(0:23) Errors. Yeah, those errors that just seem to pop up everywhere and quantum calculations.
Oh, right errors
(0:29) Yeah, those are kind of big deal in quantum computing, aren’t they? Yeah, it’s like the universe just loves messing with our quantum systems
(0:35) Yeah, for sure, but AWS seems to be on to something here
(0:38) So I thought it would be awesome to you know, like take a deep dive into this whole cat qubit thing
(0:44) What do you think I’m in let’s unravel this quantum mystery. Awesome
(0:48) So I guess the first question is why is it so hard to make these quantum computers reliable in the first place?
(0:54) I mean classical computers have errors too, don’t they you’re right
(0:57) They do but it’s like comparing a gentle breeze to a hurricane in the quantum world
(1:03) Even the tiniest disturbance can throw everything off (1:06) temperature changes vibrations
(1:08) Stray electromagnetic fields you name it qubits are sensitive to it. And that’s where those errors come in, right?
(1:14) Those bit flips and phase flips.
I always get those mixed up. Can you give us a quick refresher?
(1:18) Sure
(1:19) imagine you have a coin heads representing one and tails representing zero a
(1:24) Bit flip is like someone sneaking up and flipping your coin without you noticing your information literally gets flipped
(1:30) Okay, so it’s like a straight-up change in the value like from a 1 to a 0 exactly now a phase flip is a bit trickier
(1:37) It’s like someone messing with the weight distribution of your coin making it biased towards heads or tails
(1:43) The information is still there, but it’s been subtly altered
(1:47) Ah, okay
(1:48) So it’s more like a shift in the way the information is encoded not the information itself
(1:52) Exactly, and these errors can quickly snowball leading to completely wrong results
(1:57) That’s why error correction is so crucial in quantum computing
(2:00) We need ways to detect and fix these errors before they spiral out of control and that brings us back to these mysterious
(2:07) Cat qubits precisely now imagine instead of scoring information in a single qubit
(2:12) We use a collective state of multiple particles
(2:15) Like spreading the information across a whole bunch of qubits instead of just one you got it
(2:20) And that’s the basic idea behind cat qubits instead of a single point of failure. We have a more robust system
(2:26) So it’s like we’re building in redundancy from the ground up makes sense
(2:30) So, how did AWS test this out? They didn’t actually use cats.
Did they ha ha no cats involved
(2:35) Yeah, they used a chip with nine superconducting transmon qubits nine
(2:41) Wow, yeah, five of those were designated as data qubits. Those are the ones holding the information we want to process
(2:47) Okay, the important stuff right and the other four those acted as ancilla qubits and still equip it
(2:54) So those are the helpers right? You got it
(2:55) They’re like the error correction squad constantly monitoring the data qubits for any signs of those pesky bit flips or fhase flips
(3:02) They do this by interacting with the data qubits in very specific ways
(3:06) Allowing us to indirectly detect if an error has occurred. Uh-huh
(3:09) So they’re like the guardians of good data
(3:11) You could say that and the cool thing is they can do this without actually disturbing the delicate quantum information
(3:18) Stored in the data qubits.
That’s pretty slick
(3:21) So they set these cat qubits loose had their error correction crew on standby. What happened next?
(3:26) Well, they really put these cat qubits through the ringer
(3:28) They ran multiple tests even intentionally introducing errors to see how well the system could handle them
(3:33) Talk about a stress test. They even tested two different error correction codes distance three and distance five
(3:39) Think of these as different levels of security for our quantum information higher the distance tougher to crack you got it
(3:46) So what was the verdict did these cat qubits live up to all the hype?
(3:50) Well for the distance three code, they saw an average error rate of one point seven five percent and with distance five
(3:56) It dropped to one point six five percent.
Hmm one point six five percent. Not bad
(4:01) But is that good like really good? It’s a start in the quantum world
(4:05) Those tiny improvements are actually huge steps and get this they managed to keep the error correction going for 2.8
(4:12) microseconds per cycle
(4:13) 2.8 microseconds that sounds incredibly short it is but in the quantum realm that’s like an eternity
(4:20) It gives us more time to manipulate and process information before those pesky errors creep in so more breathing room for our quantum calculations
(4:27) But does this mean we’re about to have perfectly reliable quantum computers not quite perfectly reliable just yet
(4:33) We’re talking about a field where even atoms have a mind of their own
(4:37) But hey, it’s progress, right? (4:39) Right, definitely, but this AWS research does make it seem like these cat qubits could really be a game-changer
(4:45) So what does this all mean for actually having practical everyday quantum computers?
(4:50) Are we talking like a few years down the road or is it still way out there? Ah
(4:54) the million-dollar question
(4:57) It’s tough to say for sure
(4:59) Quantum research is like navigating uncharted territory
(5:02) You never know when you might stumble upon a groundbreaking discovery or hit a roadblock. So no firm dates yet
(5:08) Fair enough, but it’s not like researchers are putting all their eggs in the cat qubit basket, right?
(5:13) What are some of the other approaches they’re exploring for this whole error correction challenge? Oh, absolutely not
(5:19) There’s a whole smorgasbord of brilliant ideas out there
(5:22) It’s like a quantum science fair with everyone showing off their coolest projects
(5:27) Some teams are laser focused on building more stable qubits from the get-go tackling those errors at their source
(5:34) Okay, so like strengthening the foundation before you start building the skyscraper exactly
(5:38) It’s all about finding those materials and techniques that can withstand the delicate dance of the quantum world makes sense
(5:45) What else have they got up their sleeves? Well, there’s a lot of buzz around these things called topological qubits
(5:50) They’re like the superheroes of the quantum realm
(5:54) Theoretically immune to certain types of errors immune now, that’s what I’m talking about.
How do they pull that off?
(5:59) It’s all about the way information is encoded within their very structure (6:04) Imagine a pretzel you can twist and turn it even tie it in knots, but the hole in the middle remains the same
6:09) Okay, I’m kind of seeing it
(6:11) So the information is like that hole no matter what kind of quantum shenanigans are happening around it. It stays protected. You got it
(6:18) It’s a completely different approach to encoding information and it could be a game-changer for error correction.
That’s amazing
(6:24) It seems like there’s this incredible energy in the field right now with everyone racing towards the same goal from all these different angles
(6:31) It makes you wonder what the winning combination will be, you know, that’s the beauty of it, isn’t it?
(6:36) It’s like a giant puzzle and we’re all trying to find those missing pieces
(6:39) And even if we don’t have all the answers just yet
(6:42) Just think of all the incredible spinoffs that come from this kind of research
(6:46) I mean pushing the boundaries of science like this has to have some pretty awesome side effects, right? Absolutely
(6:52) It’s like that saying it’s about the journey not just the destination when you’re exploring the unknown
(6:57) You’re bound to stumble upon things. You never even imagined. It’s like those accidental discoveries that end up changing the world precisely
(7:04) We’ve seen it time and time again throughout history
(7:07) take penicillin, for example a serendipitous discovery that revolutionized medicine or the microwave oven who knew a
(7:14) Radar experiment would lead to that.
I can’t imagine life without a microwave now
(7:19) So while we’re all waiting for these super powerful world-changing quantum computers to become a reality
(7:25) We’re already reaping the benefits of the journey
(7:28) Exactly, and who knows what other groundbreaking technologies might emerge from this quest for quantum supremacy?
(7:35) Okay
(7:35) So we’ve covered a lot of ground here from the nitty-gritty of cat qubits to the broader
(7:40) Landscape of error correction and the mind-blowing potential of quantum computing and let’s not forget those topological
(7:47) Pretzels right those two, but now I want to turn it over to you our listeners (7:51) You’re clearly as fascinated by this world as we are and I’m sure you have your own thoughts on all of this
(7:56) So let’s talk timelines
(7:57) When can we realistically expect to see these like truly reliable fault-tolerant quantum computers making headlines five years?
(8:05) 50 what’s your gut feel if only I had a quantum crystal ball?
(8:10) Predicting the future in a field this revolutionary is next to impossible
(8:14) It’s like trying to guess the winning lottery numbers. You might get lucky, but the odds aren’t exactly in your favor
(8:21) Okay, so no putting you on the spot for a specific date (8:24) but assuming we get there and it seems like a question of when not if at this point what kind of impact could these
(8:31) Fault-tolerant quantum computers have I mean we’re talking about a whole new realm of computing power here, right? It’s not just about more power
(8:37) It’s about a fundamentally different way of processing information
(8:41) Imagine a world where we can design life-saving drugs with pinpoint accuracy create entirely new materials with properties
(8:47) we haven’t even dreamed of model complex systems like financial markets or climate change with
(8:53) unprecedented precision it’s like stepping into a sci-fi movie and
(8:57) You mentioned AI earlier
(8:59) I keep hearing whispers about this whole quantum AI thing how it could be this massive game-changer
(9:04) Quantum AI has the potential to be absolutely revolutionary
(9:08) Think about it. Our current AI is fundamentally limited by the capabilities of classical computers, but quantum AI
(9:16) That could unlock a whole new level of intelligence with the ability to tackle problems that are simply
(9:21) Insurmountable for even the most powerful computers today
(9:25) So we’re not just talking about faster calculations, but a whole new way for machines to think and learn exactly
(9:31) It’s like comparing a bicycle to a spaceship both can get you from point A to point B
(9:36) But the possibilities are on completely different scales mind-blowing and to think we’re probably just scratching the surface of what’s possible with quantum computing
(9:43) That’s what makes this field so incredibly exciting
(9:46) We’re standing at the very edge of a technological frontier and the view from here is nothing short of breathtaking
(9:52) It’s both exhilarating and a little bit terrifying isn’t it to think of all the possibilities and challenges that lie ahead?
(9:59) Absolutely, but even if we don’t see these world-altering quantum computers in our lifetime
(10:04) It’s crucial to remember that the journey itself is incredibly valuable, right?
(10:08) It’s about all those amazing discoveries
(10:10) We make along the way all those unexpected
(10:12) Breakthroughs that push the boundaries of human knowledge and ingenuity and those ripples can have far-reaching impacts often in fields
(10:20) We least expect precisely the pursuit of knowledge is an adventure and every step
(10:25) We take brings us closer to unlocking the secrets of the universe
(10:28) Beautifully said well
(10:30) I think we’ve thoroughly explored the fascinating world of cat qubits error correction and the tantalizing promise of fault
(10:38) Tolerant quantum computing it’s been an absolute pleasure joining you on this deep dive the pleasure was all ours and to everyone listening
(10:45) Thank you for joining us on this incredible journey into the quantum realm
(10:48) Keep those questions coming and who knows maybe one of you will be the ones to make the next big breakthrough until next time
October 5, 2024
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