Technology Review reports that since 2004 Microsoft has had a quantum computing project lead by Michael Freedman who proved the Poincaré conjecture in dimension four.
He was drawn into physics in 1988 after a colleague discovered a connection between some of the math describing the topology of knots and a theory explaining certain quantum phenomena. “It was a beautiful thing,” says Freedman. He immediately saw that this connection could allow a machine governed by that same quantum physics to solve problems too hard for conventional computers. Ignorant that the concept of quantum computing already existed, he had independently reinvented it.
Unsurprisingly, this effort centers around a "topological qubit" which is theorized to be more stable and scalable than other qubits. The topological qubit has been proven and at least one team has announced that they have found evidence of the Majorana fermion it depends upon. That appears, however, to be controversial.
A number of other teams, including one at Bell Labs, are working on the same or similar things.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 16 2014, @12:39PM
Microsoft Quantum Computing: You never know in advance whether it will work. ;-)
(Score: 3, Funny) by MrGuy on Thursday October 16 2014, @02:27PM
Microsoft Quantum Computing: If you're sure it doesn't work, it's your fault for looking at it.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday October 16 2014, @06:29PM
Microsoft Quantum Computing: Blue Screens so fast they look red.
(Score: 2) by arslan on Thursday October 16 2014, @10:14PM
Actually it is in a state of blue screen and non-blue screen at the same time. It will collapse to a state of blue screen the moment one is observed in the universe, which would be anytime now given there are still so many Windows on classical computers around.. what about the non-blue screen state that is observed in classical computers you ask, well... oh look sharks with mounted lasers!
(Score: 2) by davester666 on Thursday October 16 2014, @06:55PM
Microsoft Quantum Computing: It simultaneously works and doesn't work. And costs you a fortune.
(Score: 2) by MrGuy on Thursday October 16 2014, @07:25PM
Obligatory:
http://xkcd.com/45/ [xkcd.com]
(Score: 2) by WillR on Thursday October 16 2014, @03:55PM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 16 2014, @04:05PM
Didn't Ballmer already prove this? The chair can be anywhere and everywhere at the same fucking time!!1
(Score: 2) by Thexalon on Thursday October 16 2014, @01:23PM
Unfortunately, Michael Freedman's position suddenly seems very uncertain.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 16 2014, @03:03PM
The team is "led" by someone, not "lead" by someone. Get it right -- it's not hard!
(Score: 2) by hoochiecoochieman on Thursday October 16 2014, @03:25PM
It may be blue.
Or it may not.
(Score: 2) by MrGuy on Thursday October 16 2014, @07:28PM
Think of it as being simultaneously in a superposition of working and non-working states.