Quantum Computing for Everyone by Chris Bernhardt | (PDF) Free Download

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An accessible introduction to an exciting new area in computation, explaining such topics as qubits, entanglement, and quantum teleportation for the general reader.Quantum computing is a beautiful fusion of quantum physics and computer science, incorporating some of the most stunning ideas from twentieth-century physics into an entirely new way of thinking about computation. In this book, Chris Bernhardt offers an introduction to quantum computing that is accessible to anyone who is comfortable with high school mathematics. He explains qubits, entanglement, quantum teleportation, quantum algorithms, and other quantum-related topics as clearly as possible for the general reader. Bernhardt, a mathematician himself, simplifies the mathematics as much as he can and provides elementary examples that illustrate both how the math works and what it means. Bernhardt introduces the basic unit of quantum computing, the qubit, and explains how the qubit can be measured; discusses entanglement—which, he says, is easier to describe mathematically than verbally—and what it means when two qubits are entangled (citing Einstein’s characterization of what happens when the measurement of one entangled qubit affects the second as “spooky action at a distance”); and introduces quantum cryptography. He recaps standard topics in classical computing—bits, gates, and logic—and describes Edward Fredkin’s ingenious billiard ball computer. He defines quantum gates, considers the speed of quantum algorithms, and describes the building of quantum computers. By the end of the book, readers understand that quantum computing and classical computing are not two distinct disciplines, and that quantum computing is the fundamental form of computing. The basic unit of computation is the qubit, not the bit.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐The book is interesting. Gives a general introduction to the basic concepts and math used in quantum computing. The math could be a bit challenging for some readers.

⭐Quanting computing for everyone provides a readable introduction to the mathematical structure of computing with qubits. The author does a fine job of introducing a challenging subject to the reader, and by using only real coefficients for quantum states, does a novel job of smoothing over the complexities of phase. The level is around the same as the author’s other work “Turing’s Vision”, and is approachable but has its challenges and there are certain parts where the uninitiated will have to gloss over and perhaps return or just try to absorb the big picture concept.The book is split into 9 chapters and the first 6 are the most readable. The first chapter where the author describes spin includes a practical experiment anyone can do with polarized filters that displays the remarkable consequences of quantum mechanics and measurement. The author then gets into linear algebra and its use in formalizing the structure of quantum mechanics. I think the author does a great job of guiding the reader through a deep subject with concrete examples of how was switches basis, what it means and row and column space. The author then goes back to quantum mechanics and discusses qubits and how spin 1/2 particles can encode qubits. The author gets into privacy experiments with the infamous Alice, Bob and Eve to illustrate how encryption scenarios are described. The author then tackles the profound issues of entanglement and measurement. In particular the author introduces the reader to tensor product spaces and the construction of entangled states that cannot be a combination of individual particle basis states. The author is able to introduce Bell’s inequality and non-locality which is a feat in itself as it is a remarkable result and the author does it with just using real coefficients for a 3 particle system. The author then moves on to basic circuit logic and the construction of universal gates. Boolean logic is of course discussed as well as how one can build functions from logic gates. The author introduces concepts like reversible computation and brings up that one can compute with analog machines set up in appropriate initial conditions and the concept of computation flows far outside of traditional computer science and into the realm of physics. The material starts to get challenging when he starts to describe quantum gates and computation. Though the material is self contained it is not the easiest to follow as ideas start to build through layers of logic. Finally the author gets into how one can use quantum algorithms to solve NP problems for efficiently than is currently possible through classical algorithms. He discusses the wave of innovation in ideas in quantum computing in the 80s and introduces Shor’s algorithm but at a high level given how involved some of the properties are.Overall Quantum Computing for Everyone is readable but challenging. I think a variety of readers can get something out of the book. I think it unlikely that one has the ability to use this book to become well acquainted with the subject but it can be used to get a sense of the ideas and it can be used by those well versed to get some intuitive communication about ideas they already know. Definitely worth trying to go through for those interested in the subject and could be read as supplemental to a text book for those looking for both substance and intuition.

⭐This is a nice introduction to the basics of quantum computing. What it covers it covers thoroughly and well. But it does leave a lot out. It is at best a first few bites. Great for beginners. A bit of a rush to finish at the end. Where descriptions get a bit scrappy.I have serious reservations on leaving out complex numbers and phase. And hence talk of orthogonal rather than unitary matrices. But I see why he did it.The measurement rule is not synonymous with the Copenhagen interpretation. The measurement rule stands on its own as an experimental fact and operating principle requiring some explanation … or not. The Copenhagen interpretation is a pseudo philosophical spray of words attempting to deny that there is a problem. It is not widely accepted any more, quite the contrary.Quantum computing is a way of computing functions more quickly. Everything computable on a quantum computer is computable on a classical computer. Just not as quickly. Wild talk of quantum computing being the new general model of computation is basically nonsense.

⭐It’s a good to great book on the subject. The author obviously knows the subject very well. Unfortunately I’m not a polymath and 90% of the book is math proofs. It’s pretty awesome to see the math behind many quantum mechanic/computing subjects, but I’m just not smart enough to comprehend most of it. The author absolutely explains most of it, but it’s quickly gets so advanced that I just couldn’t follow it (confession, I was only a B/C/D student in math in high school and only got to Algebra II/Trig (although I did ace Calculus in college). It covers a few quantum topics such as entanglement, teleportation, BB84, algorithms (in general), circuits, and annealing especially well. I learned more about annealing from this book than I had from the other 10 quantum books I have read recently. His circuit coverage from the very basics to how they are used in quantum computation are extraordinarily good. No one else comes close. But many other quantum subjects are not covered as thoroughly or are missing completely. This should not be your first or only book on quantum mechanics and/or computing. Author only barely covers actual quantum computers and only focuses on a few types. I’m better for having read it, but really wished I had the math background (or really interest) to commit myself to understanding it all. And it is really a lot of math.

⭐In less than 200 pages of delightfully lucid mathematical prose, Chris Bernhardt has crafted a truly masterful introduction to the otherwise forbidding field of quantum computation for anyone with high-school math who is prepared to put in the hours to master the finer points. As he modestly says, the last twenty years have brought great advances in the clarity of some of the required elements here, plus agreement on what needs to be said and what can safely be left for a later run through the topic. I tackled a 700-page “introductory” text on all this twenty years ago and was frankly defeated by half of it, despite a career that involved deep dives into quantum theory and computer science. Now, to my great relief, the key ideas seem smooth and logical.Bernhardt makes it easy from the start by limiting his scope to what he can explain without complex numbers, which I thought was flunking out until I saw how much he managed to say without loss of rigor within that limit. Inevitably, there was a sacrifice, and he had to stop short of explaining quantum Fourier transforms and Shor’s algorithm, which is a pity, but for most readers the trade-off will probably be good. I was delighted anew with just how elegantly Dirac algebra copes with all the hard work that comes with entangled states, and greatly relieved that Bernhardt spelled out all his derivations fully, so that one could read his text line by line with full understanding, rather than having to go off and make cryptic notes, or, worse, do fiddly exercises, before taking up the book again.Even more impressively, Bernhardt has managed to infuse what could otherwise have been a rather dull plod, to be fair, with his own excitement at the amazing new horizons opened up by the emergence of quantum computing as a new paradigm. As he says, and as we should expect from the parallel situation in physics almost a century ago, computation is quantum computation, and classical computation is only a special and limited case of it. Once we develop the technology, we shall doubtless see our present computers as clunky calculators that could never simulate reality except in the most superficial way. We shall simulate chemical reactions and biochemical processes so accurately that a new world of artificial life will be born, which makes a nice final frontier for us.On the practical side, I would have welcomed a smoother integration of the Bell inequalities into the narrative to flesh out the later discussion of quantum teleportation and encryption, and a fuller discussion of how Fredkin gates and billiard-ball computers relate to deeper discussions in physics, but this would likely go too far. I would have welcomed complex numbers too, if only to allow the text to explain Shor’s algorithm properly, but again this would burst the author’s self-imposed bounds. More trivially, I found about half a dozen typos, though none were bad enough to trip up a careful reader. In summary, this book is an excellent example of how to introduce tricky stuff to new readers – but it’s certainly not for everyone!

⭐The Amazon sales Note says “Bernhardt introduces the basic unit of quantum computing, the qubit, and explains how the qubit can be measured; discusses entanglement-which, he says, is easier to describe mathematically than verbally-and what it means when two qubits are entangled”This typifies the style of the book. Explanations are mostly mathematical with few explanations of the processes involved.Take parallel processing for example. I searched in vain for what types of operations could and could not be processed simultaneously on a qubit register, a fundamental benefit of quantum computing. The answer to what types of operations are possible is given in terms of matrix mathematics, not what it means in practice. Nor is there an explanation of key issues such as, what is entangled with what and why, how it works, how the operations are applied to each individual qubit, and how such parallelism is implemented. How does parallelism work with multiple inputs such as an “addition”. Does the same operation have to be applied simultaneously to every single qubit in the register or can different operations be applied simultaneously to individual (different) qubits in the register. A block diagram showing the connections between the input data, the program data and the output data registers and the data flow between them would have been helpful, but was sadly lacking. There was also no answer to the question about limitations of what types of operations are possible or do you have to use different hardware (combinations of gates) for each type of problem to be solved?And that’s just one topic out of many.

⭐I have two minor criticisms of the book: I think the editing could be improved slightly (so I hope there is a second edition) and I do think there might have been some value in touching on the use of complex numbers at the end.However, nits aside, I like this book. The author is absolutely correct in saying that some straightforward maths illuminates the subject in a way that text could not do. While the maths may look daunting it really isn’t. The mathematical approach clearly explained a number of concepts that I’ve never felt happy with before. Having finished the book I have now found it much easier to approach some of the other literature in the area.

⭐Found the math introduced too early and without developing intuitions before. Don’t understand why so much is needed (compared to other books) so soon, and why leaving out the complex numbers if the math is there anyway. Also felt initial analogies not obvious and some sentences are confusing and have referential ambiguities. Not happy with the purchase, unfortunately.New notes: really didn’t like the book. The title is misleading – should be the algebra of quantum computing, and it’s not for everyone. And it doesn’t even include the complex numbers part of it. Also: uses terms/expressions without explaining, jumps steps in the demonstrations, has just very brief overviews of Shor and Grover. A really annoying and frustrating read, even for someone with a CompSci background who doesn’t fear maths.

⭐For eveyone? Probably not, by the writer makes a HUGE effort to make the topic accessible without ditching the essential minimum content.I found this book really helpful. Before reading it I had no idea how quantum computing could work. Now I have at least the basic understanding.I, for one, am very grateful for this book.

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