#72 – Scott Aaronson: Quantum Computing
February 17, 2020
1 hr 34 min
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Episode 72 · February 17, 2020
#72 – Scott Aaronson: Quantum Computing
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#72 – Scott Aaronson: Quantum Computing
Summary
<p>Scott Aaronson is a professor at UT Austin, director of its Quantum Information Center, and previously a professor at MIT. His research interests center around the capabilities and limits of quantum computers and computational complexity theory more generally.</p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This conversation is part of the Artificial Intelligence podcast.</span> If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/ai">https://lexfridman.com/ai</a> or connect with @lexfridman on <a href="https://twitter.com/lexfridman">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman/">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://medium.com/@lexfridman">Medium</a>, or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/lexfridman">YouTube</a> where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/artificial-intelligence/id1434243584">Apple Podcasts</a>, follow on <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/2MAi0BvDc6GTFvKFPXnkCL">Spotify</a>, or support it on <a href="https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman">Patreon</a>.</p>
<p>This episode is presented by Cash App. Download it (<a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/cash-app/id711923939">App Store</a>, <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.squareup.cash&hl=en_US">Google Play</a>), use code “LexPodcast”. </p>
<p>This episode is also supported by the Techmeme Ride Home podcast. Get it on <a href="https://apple.co/2vIbh1k">Apple Podcasts</a>, on its <a href="https://news.techmeme.com/180306/podcast">website</a>, or find it by searching “Ride Home” in your podcast app.</p>
<p>Here’s the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.</p>
<p>00:00 – Introduction<br />
05:07 – Role of philosophy in science<br />
29:27 – What is a quantum computer?<br />
41:12 – Quantum decoherence (noise in quantum information)<br />
49:22 – Quantum computer engineering challenges<br />
51:00 – Moore’s Law<br />
56:33 – Quantum supremacy<br />
1:12:18 – Using quantum computers to break cryptography<br />
1:17:11 – Practical application of quantum computers<br />
1:22:18 – Quantum machine learning, questionable claims, and cautious optimism<br />
1:30:53 – Meaning of life</p>