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com Wednesday, December 25, 2024

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NEWS IN NUMBERS
Roads closed following Number of children to People who got Percentage rise in UPI Men prosecuted for
heavy snowfall in be conferred Bal appointment letters in QR transactions at travelling in women
Himachal Pradesh Puraskar on Dec. 26 Aizawl Rozgar Mela retail stores only train coaches

177 17 126 33 304

At least 177 roads, President Droupadi Murmu will The Union Minister of per cent. UPI transactions at The Railway Protection
including three national on Thursday confer the Pradhan State for Fisheries, Animal retail stores have increased by Force prosecuted 304
highways, were closed in Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar to Husbandry and Dairying, 33% in semi-urban and rural men for travelling in
Himachal Pradesh following snowfall in 17 children from 14 States and Union and Panchayati Raj handed over the areas this year, reflecting the growing women-only train coaches in the Eastern
several districts, officials said on Tuesday. territories. The honourees — seven boys appointment letters for jobs in Assam adoption of digital payments. However, Railway zone in a six-day drive as part of
A second consecutive day of snowfall has and 10 girls — will receive a medal, Rifles (78), Department of Posts (11), SSB micro ATM and Aadhaar Enabled Payment ‘Operation Mahila Suraksha’, an official
led to an increase in tourist inflow amid certificate and a citation booklet as part of (1), ITBP (2) and MZU (33) to 126 people on Systems (AePS) cash withdrawals saw a said on Tuesday. PTI
hope on a white Christmas. PTI the recognition. PTI Monday. PTI decline in 2024. PTI COMPILED BY THE HINDU DATA TEAM

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What is quantum computing?

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What are qubits and how do they work in quantum computing? How does a quantum computer solve problems faster than
classical computers in specific tasks? Which challenges remain in building practical and scalable quantum computers?

manipulate qubits, analogous to how THE GIST

EXPLAINER classical computers use logic gates.
In the same year, researchers at Google
Tejasri Gururaj reported in a paper in Nature that their 쑽
53-qubit ‘Sycamore’ processor had Quantum computers rely on
The story so far: achieved quantum supremacy: when it two key principles of quantum
uantum computers are the talk can solve a problem that would take

Q
mechanics: superposition,
of computer town. Their classical computers an unreasonable where qubits can exist in
potential to solve complex amount of time. The paper claimed multiple states, and
problems much faster than Sycamore completed a task in 200 entanglement, where qubits
classical computers is an intriguing seconds that would have taken a are linked, allowing them to
proposition that stands to transform supercomputer 10,000 years. share information instantly.
several industries. A quantum computer Earlier this month, Google unveiled a
is based on the principles of quantum quantum chip called Willow, purportedly
쑽
mechanics, an area of physics that deals the world’s first quantum processor in Key milestones include Shor’s
with the smallest particles in the universe. which error-corrected qubits improve as algorithm, Google’s Sycamore
In 1982, Richard Feynman proposed the they scale. Quantum states are easily achieving quantum supremacy,
idea of developing a computer that could prone to errors due to interactions with and recent advancements such
simulate both quantum and classical Breaking boundaries: In 2019, IBM unveiled the world’s first circuit-based commercial quantum the environment, so quantum computers as the quantum chip Willow
physics but researchers realised classical computer, Q System One. IBM RESEARCH need error correction to hold information improving error correction.
computers, the computers of today, long enough to perform useful 쑽
would struggle with the complexity of information, a qubit can hold two. Quantum computers are technologically calculations with them.
quantum systems. Thus the idea of a Because of this, quantum computers can superior but this doesn’t automatically Willow, Google has said, can finish a High costs, keeping qubits
stable, and the need for
quantum computer was born. perform multiple computations mean they will be better than classical standard test in five minutes whereas the
large-scale qubits remain
simultaneously, with the measurement computers at all tasks. Over the years, same calculation could take today’s best
significant challenges, but
What are the basics of quantum revealing one of the possible outcomes of experts have developed specific tasks that supercomputers 10 trillion trillion years. initiatives like India’s National
computing? the computations. prove quantum computers are capable of Quantum Mission signal strong
Classical computers work on the The second fundamental principle greater feats. What are the present limitations? efforts to unlock their
principles of classical physics. Their upon which quantum computers are In 1994, Bell Labs computer scientist The advancements are flying thick and potential.
fundamental computing unit is the bit. based is called entanglement. This Peter Shor created the Shor’s algorithm. It fast but there are still many significant
Each bit represents one piece of phenomenon allows qubits to be could find the factors of large numbers in challenges to overcome before quantum
information with two possible values, 0 intrinsically linked no matter how far moments rather than the millions of years computers can become commonplace.
or 1. It’s possible to represent all types of apart they physically are. Measuring the required by classical computers. This has The chief concern is that building
information as a combination of 0s and 1s state of one of the qubits will immediately major implications for data security. quantum computers remains expensive
using the binary system. yield information about the state of the Current methods to secure data involve and complex. Keeping many qubits stable
Quantum computers rely on quantum other. Say you have a pair of gloves. Each locking the data and hiding the key in the is also difficult because of error rates and
bits, or qubits, to perform computations. glove is put in a separate box and sent to solution of a difficult mathematical decoherence (when a qubit loses
Unlike classical bits, qubits can exist in different locations, and you don’t know problem. superposition because of noise from its
the states 0, 1 or in a state that’s partly 0 which box has which. But once a box is Large-number factorisation is one such surroundings). The problems for which
and partly 1. ‘State’ refers to all the opened to reveal the left glove, you problem and classical computers require we really need quantum computers — like
possible values the qubit can have. instantly know the other box has the right enormous amounts of resources to solve discovering new drugs or cracking
The ability of qubits to be in two states glove. it. But using Shor’s algorithm, a quantum mysteries in astronomy — also require
is known as superposition. It’s one of two The instantaneous correlation between computer could quickly get the key and millions of qubits.
fundamental principles that animate qubits speeds up computations that open the locks. All said, their potential to be useful is
quantum computers. Imagine a spinning would take far longer with classical The state of quantum computing has clear. This is why India launched the
coin: while it’s spinning, it can be both computers. come a long way since. In 2019, for National Quantum Mission in 2023. The
heads or tails, and it isn’t until the coin Superposition and entanglement are example, IBM unveiled the world’s first government has set aside ₹6,000 crore for
collapses that you can see which it is. A exclusive to quantum mechanics and circuit-based commercial quantum the mission to be spent over eight years,
qubit is like a spinning coin that holds central to the potential that quantum computer, Q System One. Circuit-based among other things to develop quantum
both values simultaneously. computers have to offer. designs are believed to be the most computers.
When a qubit is measured, it collapses versatile for general quantum-computing Tejasri Gururaj is a freelance science writer
to one of the values, 0 or 1. This means How far have quantum computers applications. Q System One uses circuits and journalist with a master’s degree in
while a classical bit holds one unit of come? composed of quantum gates that physics

Why are activists opposing

and State Assembly elections many of THE GIST
which are not specifically mentioned in
the Conduct of Election Rules, instead,
they are mentioned in the handbooks and 쑽

EC’s election rule amendment? manuals published by the Election

Commission from time to time”.
He said that given the controversy
about voter turnout in recent Lok Sabha
The Centre amended the
Conduct of Election Rules on
December 20 to restrict public
access to certain
How has the Election Commission defended its decision to limit access to election documents? and Assembly polls, access to the election-related documents,
Presiding Officers’ diaries which contain following a recommendation
detailed data about voter turnout and the from the Election Commission.
Sreeparna Chakrabarty through a notification issued by the considering the serious issue of violation number of tokens they distribute to voters
Ministry of Law and Justice on December of secrecy of vote and potential misuse of who are in the queue at the hour 쑽
The story so far: 20. Rule 93(2)(a) of the 1961 Conduct of CCTV footage of inside the polling station scheduled for closing of polling are not The amendment has sparked
he Centre on December 20 Election Rules had earlier stated that “all using artificial intelligence by a single mentioned specifically in the Conduct of controversy, with the

T amended the Conduct of

Election Rules to restrict access
for the public to a section of
poll documents. This was done by the
Union Law Ministry following a
other papers relating to the election shall
be open to public inspection” but after
the amendment, it reads, “all other
papers as specified in these rules relating
to the election shall be open to public
person, the rule has been amended. The
EC argues that sharing of CCTV footage
may have serious repercussions,
especially in sensitive areas where secrecy
is important. All election papers and
Election Rules. “The amendment seeks to
prevent access to such documents and
many other reports and returns that are
filed by various election officials”.
Opposition and transparency
activists accusing the EC of
undermining transparency, the
right to information, and
electoral freedom.
recommendation from the Election inspection.” documents are otherwise available for What does the Opposition say?
Commission (EC). While the EC said the public inspection.” The Congress claimed that a change in
amendment aims to restrict access to Why has the amendment been rules regarding the conduct of elections
electronic data, the Opposition and brought in now? Why are the transparency activists vindicated their assertions regarding the
transparency activists have been up in The move comes after a recent direction protesting? rapidly eroding integrity of the electoral
arms, branding it as an attack on the right to the EC by the Punjab and Haryana High According to transparency activist Anjali process managed by the EC.
to information and electoral freedom. Court to share all documents related to Bharadwaj, Rule 93 is akin to the Right to The Congress moved the Supreme
the Haryana Assembly election, including Information Act as far as elections are Court against the amendments on
What is the Conduct of Election treating CCTV footage also as permissible concerned and, any change hurts the Tuesday.
Rules? under Rule 93(2) of the Conduct of citizen’s right to know about the process. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge
The Conduct of Election Rules,1961, is a Election Rules, to petitioner Mahmoud Venkatesh Nayak, Director has said it was part of a “systematic
set of rules which provide for provisions Pracha. Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative conspiracy to destroy the institutional
on how to conduct the elections as per According to a senior official of the EC, explained further that “upon initial integrity of the EC”, while the Samajwadi
the Representation of People Act. “The rule mentioned election papers. The examination, the amendment appears to Party and the Left parties accused the EC
election papers and documents does not be aimed at restricting citizen-voters’ of “undermining multi-party democracy”
What is the amendment? specifically refer to electronic records. In right to access a large number of by taking “unilateral” decisions without
This amendment was brought into effect order to remove this ambiguity and documents created during Parliamentary consulting all political parties.
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