Quantum computing is poised to change the world, promising to solve vastly difficult problems instantly.
According to Fortune, IBM recently opened up cloud access to a small quantum computing system that has allowed the public to run more than 275,000 experiments to date. Meanwhile Microsoft is giving prizes to students who use and apply quantum computing.
But what is it?
Quantum computing is the intersection of computer science and physics.
Computer science makes things happen with simple strings of bits. Bits can be on or off. Lots of bits end up making applications. Computer science is like doing a line dance. It's like methodically tracing a corn maze.
Meanwhile, quantum physics is like being at a manic rave. Quantum particles can be off and on at the same time. They can be two places at once. Two particles can be tied together even if they aren't even near each other. Quantum particles wouldn't have to trace the maze; they would spread out and know the maze in one instant.
