23-Oct-2019: Google achieves quantum supremacy
Researchers at Google claim their quantum computer has solved a problem that would take even the very best conventional machine thousands of years to crack.
The milestone, known as quantum supremacy, represents a long-sought stride towards realising the immense promise of quantum computers, devices that exploit the properties of quantum physics to speed up certain calculations.
A quantum processor consisting of 54 superconducting quantum bits, or qubits, was able to perform a random sampling calculation – essentially verifying that a set of numbers is randomly distributed – exponentially faster than any standard computer.
Google’s Sycamore device did it in just 3 minutes and 20 seconds, although one of the qubits had to be turned off as it wasn’t working properly.
IBM has already pushed back on that claim, insisting that with some clever classical programming, its machine can solve the problem in 2.5 days. Indeed, IBM, which has its own 53-qubit quantum computer, prefers a higher threshold for quantum supremacy, which explains its argument that Google has not yet reached the milestone. Even if we accept IBM’s claims at face value, Google’s quantum computer is still a big step forward.
It doesn’t mean quantum computers are ready to tackle real-world problems though – that remains decades away. Instead, it is a proof of concept. Researchers are looking forward to the next milestone: proof that we have sufficient control over the qubits that we can overcome the small errors they accumulate during calculations.
We are now in a phase we call noisy intermediate-scale quantum computing, or NISQ. To get beyond that, we need to start doing error correction. The nice thing is that we can see from this paper that the architecture of the Google chip is already optimised for that.
18-Jul-2019: Algorithm named after Ramanujan by Israel
Scientists from Technion — Israel Institute of Technology have developed a concept they have named the Ramanujan Machine, after the Indian mathematician. It is not really a machine but an algorithm, and performs a very unconventional function.
With most computer programs, humans input a problem and expect the algorithm to work out a solution. With the Ramanujan Machine, it works the other way round. Feed in a constant, say the well-known pi, and the algorithm will come up with a equation involving an infinite series whose value, it will propose, is exactly pi. Over to humans now: let someone prove that this proposed equation is correct.
The algorithm reflects the way Srinivasa Ramanujan worked during his brief life (1887-1920). With very little formal training, he engaged with the most celebrated mathematicians of the time, particularly during his stay in England (1914-19), where he eventually became a Fellow of the Royal Society and earned a research degree from Cambridge.
Throughout his life, Ramanujan came up with novel equations and identities —including equations leading to the value of pi — and it was usually left to formally trained mathematicians to prove these. In 1987, two Canadian brothers proved all 17 of Ramanujan’s series for 1/pi; two years earlier, an American mathematician and programmer had used one of these formulas to calculate pi up to over 17 million digits, which was a world record at the time.
Conjectures are a major step in the process of making new discoveries in any branch of science, particularly mathematics. Equations defining the fundamental mathematical constants, including pi, are invariably elegant. New conjectures in mathematics, however, have been scarce and sporadic, the researchers note in their paper, which is currently on a pre-print server. The idea is to enhance and accelerate the process of discovery.
The paper gives examples for previously unknown equations produced by the algorithm, including for values of the constants pi and e. The Ramanujan Machine proposed these conjecture formulas by matching numerical values, without providing proofs. It has to be remembered, however, that these are infinite series, and a human can only enter a finite number of terms to test the value of the series. The question is, therefore, whether the series will fail after a point. The researchers feel this is unlikely, because they tested hundreds of digits.
Until proven, it remains a conjecture. By the same token, until proven wrong, a conjecture remains one. It is quite possible that the algorithm will come up with conjectures that may take years to prove — a famous example of a human conjecture is Fermat’s Last Theorem, proposed in 1637 and proved only in 1994.
The researchers have set up a website, ramanujanmachine.com. Users can suggest proofs for algorithms or propose new algorithms, which will be named after them.
23-Feb-2019: A public DNS server to be launched to protect users from malware
The government will soon launch a public domain name system (DNS) server that could protect users from any malware or phishing with enhanced security features as well as faster response time.
The new DNS server will be ready in next three months, and experts will be doing a proof of concept (PoC) starting next week. The new system would be completely secure and always available with faster response.
DNS is a system that translates domain names to Internet Protocol or IP addresses that allows browsers to load websites sought. This (DNS) is an important tool that requires to be fool-proof, and has a major role in browsing the Internet.
The Narendra Modi government is eyeing a new and robust platform in the wake of critical digital services being delivered online requiring enhanced security to discourage cyber-attacks and a quicker site loading time.
If a user inadvertently accesses a malicious or phishing site, the new public system would immediately open up a page or popup to alert the user of such potential threat so that the suspicious resource could be avoided.
The new DNS will be placed across the country to minimise outage and would be available round the clock. Users can simply use it by typing the IP number into the Internet browser. The Centre has also launched a new email platform for all government employees including those in states and Union Territories.
The new platform is an upgraded version with enhanced in-built security features compared to the earlier created by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and has a capability to host as many as 5 million users that can be scaled up further if needed.
Since an email is an official document and after the government’s email policy, a secure and advanced platform was much needed that could also increase workforce productivity. The policy lays down norms for the email services with an aim to ensure secure access and usage of government's email services by users.
It has two-factor authentication, highly secure and user-friendly. If a user is permanently located within the country, no foreign IP would be allowed to access the platform. The government has put up a server in Delhi, and for disaster recovery, it has deployed another in Hyderabad.
The new email system has advanced calendar options and can transfer large files, and can also schedule email sending to a later date or time.