The Wired article begins by stating how Richard Feynman predicted a computer that would perfectly mimic nature. This wouldn’t be a close approximation like what digital computers do with mathematical shortcuts. What Feynman meant was an exact replication.

Now, finally, groups at Harvard and the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia, have designed and built a computer that hews closely to these specs. It is a quantum computer, as Feynman forecast. And it is the first quantum computer to simulate and calculate the behavior of a molecular, quantum system.

[…]

Quantum computing’s power stems from the curiosity that a qubit — a bit of quantum information — is not limited to holding a single discrete binary number, 1 or 0, as is the bit of standard computing. Qubits exist in a limbo of uncertainty, simultaneously 1 and 0. Until the computation is done and a detector measures the value, that very ambiguity allows greater speed and flexibility as a quantum computer searches multiple permutations at once for a final result.

That’s not even the really cool part.

“Every time you add an electron or other object to a quantum problem, the complexity of the problem doubles,” says James Whitfield, a graduate student at Harvard and second author on the paper. “The great thing,” he added, “is that every time you add a qubit to the computer, its power doubles too.” In formal language, the power of a quantum computer scales exponentially with its size (as in number of qubits) in exact step with the size of quantum problems. In fact, says his professor, Aspuru-Guzik, a computer of “only” 150 qubits or so would have more computing power than all the supercomputers in the world today, combined.

You know what that sounds like to us? A Mother Box. That’s right Mister Miracle’s favorite get out of jail free card. A tool of the New Gods and Darkseid. A thing made of “Element X” that spins Boom Tubes(your basic short-cut through the universe wormhole) at your command.

Boom Tubes, people! Science is doing its damndest to catch up to our imaginations. All we have to do is let it.

And get more kids into scientific fields, of course.

Just give us time, Mister Miracle.

(via Wired)