the Russian developer of electronics and robotics “Khamster robotics”, introduced the first domestic mini PC processor “Baikal” and operating system “Alt Linux”. On the one hand, this event aroused considerable interest from technical experts, and other government agencies to whom it is daunting task to switch to Russian software. However, even back in 2010, Steve jobs made the revolutionary statement that the personal computer is dead. Then it was supported by many authoritative publications and experts in the field of IT, in a voice announced the death of the PC. Indeed, according to Gartner, this market segment is rapidly declining for the seventh consecutive year. Compared to 2011 sales volume of desktop computers fell by 30%, reaching in 2018 only 259 million units – a figure that is comparable to the distant 2006. Users increasingly demand the combination of functionality, design and performance. So, according to experts, against the background of General decline in sales of devices only 2-in-1 ultra-thin laptops will show a positive growth in the near future.
However, you cannot deny that over the last decade the personal computer has evolved greatly. Laptops, tablets and smartphones have superseded it as the base unit for work, casual gaming and web surfing, but a desktop computer is indispensable to perform specialized functions. Thanks to more powerful processor and options for customization of the PC is better suited to working with graphics, run “heavy” games out there, carrying out complex calculations and other functions “workstation”.
Breakthrough in quantum technologies has proved once again that the computer isn’t going to give up and completely give in to their mobile counterparts. Google quantum processor, presented in September of last year, just three and a half minutes to cope with the task, which have the most advanced supercomputer would have left about ten thousand years. About what this means for the average consumer and in what direction will develop the technology, said the experts.
“Quantum computer, no matter what skeptics already exists. Albeit this is not the most productive computing device, but the quantum superiority was demonstrated. Google created a superconducting quantum simulator for the selected algorithm showed much better performance than the most powerful classical computer. Experimental research on the creation of a quantum computer is conducted in many research centers around the world. Huge financial resources invested in this area, and basic prohibitions on creating twhat kind of cars not only in achieving a certain technological level”, – said General Director of concern “Automatics” of the state Corporation “rostec” Vladimir Kabanov.
the Term “quantum advantage” is the ability of quantum computing to solve problems inaccessible to classical computers, regardless of use and practical applicability of these results. To perform its calculations, a quantum computer uses complicated phenomena of quantum mechanics – quantum entanglement and superposition, explained the head of the laboratory of cryptography JSC “SPC “Kryptonite” (included in “X holding”) Vasily Shishkin.
“the Potential superiority of quantum computer over classical is that the quantum computer operates not ordinary bats, and quantum qubits. Unlike bits, which in each moment can only be in one of two States – 0 or 1, qubits take both these values with a certain probability. This phenomenon is called quantum superposition”, – said Shishkin. Due to their characteristics, the qubits can carry much more information, which drastically increases the computational power of a quantum computer.
However, the expert said, the development of such devices raises a number of practical difficulties: “as soon As the user reads the value of a qubit, it loses its quantum properties and turns into an ordinary bit with one constant value. Therefore, the input data is written in the form of a system of qubits, and the calculation without measuring their values. Once the values of the qubits are read, calculations stop.”
in addition, when you create a quantum computer it is necessary to consider the phenomenon of quantum entanglement. “This means that the qubits should be in a dependent state. For example, if the measurement of one qubit we get the value 1, then the result of the measurement of all associated qubit will give 0. The main current technological problem is that systems of coupled qubits is very unstable and quickly lead to errors. And the more qubits, the shorter the period of stable operation”, – said the expert.
This feature explains why in the existing quantum computers are so few qubits. However, each year this number is increasing: for example, in the first quantum computer, tested IBM in 2001, there were only seven qubits, and submitted to Google in 2019 quantum processor Sycamore – 53.
Indeed, the last three years there is double the annual increase in the number of qubits in quantum computers, so the technology has great promise, says Sergey Chirkin, Dean of the faculties of artificial intelligence and Big Data Analytics GeekUniversity, educational portal GeekBrains: “In quantum computing is expected to at least annual small breakthroughs, which ultimately should lead to the fact that a significant part of the computation for artificial intelligence will be run on quantum computers. This can happen in the next ten years, provided that investment in research will grow and will increase the number of developers of quantum computers. Technology of this level will usually be available everywhere: access to a quantum computer, you can get as part of the cloud service.”
Technology, a quantum computer will require improvement, says the co-founder of the company “Crown”, doctor of physical Sciences Ivan Atkin. “Separate scientific breakthroughs happen regularly, but this is the beginning of a journey – the scientists just realized that this is possible. In the next five years this quantum breakthrough is definitely not happening, the first success will be only in ten years. Thus, the technology of artificial intelligence was established more than 50 years ago, but the real use began recently. While the AI is much more simple technology than a quantum computer,” predicts scientist.
Evolution of computer demonstration: breakthrough for its time, a development first introduced in specialized areas and then you get a wide domestic distribution. So, the first prototypes of the computer, which appeared in 1940-ies, were used exclusively for military and scientific purposes. They occupied entire rooms, weighed tens of tons and could carry up to several thousand operations per second. The era of the personal computer began only in 1980-ies due to the “Mac” Steve jobs. The device was worth two and a half thousand dollars, weighed a little less than ten pounds and could be operated even by a child. By the time jobs announced the death of the PC in 2010, it became an integral part of the lives of most people. Probably eventually the same thing will happen with a quantum computer. However, according to experts, the ordinary consumer should not expect personal quantum devices at least the next ten years.
in the meantime, all work in this area are of exploratory character and the results needed in the first place scientific and technological community, says the rector of Innopolis University, Advisor of the Russian quantum center Alexander Tormasov. “The industry is just beginning to be interested in quantum technologies. The Russian quantum center, we are discussing the creation of operating systems for work with quantum computers. Also in the next ten years the market can reach the quantum devices to measure time with high accuracy. This will be the impetus for further technological development, the�� as we will be able to receive a satellite positioning system, which will increase the scale of recognition with 100 meters to 30 centimeters. Then we from space to see the steps of the person”, – concluded the expert.
