Science fiction has been playing around with the idea of parallel worlds for a long time now. In the 20th century, writers such as Frederik Pohl, Michael Moorcock and Philip K Dick fashioned cracking yarns around the concept. Television shows such as Star Trek, Red Dwarf and, more recently, Rick and Morty have explored its more surreal potential. Then there is the modern version of the Marvel multiverse, and the movies of Christopher Nolan, which have introduced a whole new generation to quantum mechanics.
These days, even teenagers are aware that this mind-bending branch of physics is based on the theory of how atoms and subatomic particles behave. It’s a world full of deeply weird and counterintuitive phenomena, but it’s not just useful for cinematic blockbusters – it also has practical applications that could yet transform the 21st century.
The first quantum revolution gave us lasers, silicon chips, transistors, GPS and semiconductor devices – the foundation of modern computing and communications. The potential of new developments in quantum computing opens up an entirely new vista – not only as a tool to better understand the nature of reality but also one that could revolutionise the pharmaceutical industry, finance, cryptography, gene sequencing, data searches, weather and traffic modelling, clinical care and medical research, and a whole host of other applications.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 30 - May 6, 2022 من New Zealand Listener.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 30 - May 6, 2022 من New Zealand Listener.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Morning songs
On a recent early and glorious Saturday morning - it was 4°C outside I let the complaining chickens out. Chickens never stop complaining.
Upwardly mobile
Climate-friendly e-scooters are proliferating but there are stumbling blocks for users and non-users.
A potent brew
There's a correlation between moderate coffee drinking and reduced risk of colorectal cancer - but evidence of a causal link is still percolating.
Food saviours
A little bit of silliness lightens the mood on the serious topic of food waste.
Ode to old masters
The Polynesian sound and Auckland's ska-punk scene are remembered in new releases.
Weaving Welsh with waiata
Te reo meets Cymraeg in a musical project partly spearheaded by Kawiti Waetford, an opera singer with connections to Wales.
Culture warrior
Activist and scholar Ngahuia te Awek6otuku achieved several firsts in society but had to fight many battles to get there.
An age-old problem
Is our lifespan fixed, or might we be able to slow down or even abolish ageing? And what would we do if we could?
When Jim becomes James
'What would white people do to a slave who had learned to read?' This impressive reimagining of Huckleberry Finn seeks to find out.
Manhattan transfer
A Kiwi movie star led the charge for an Anzac garden atop New York's Rockefeller Centre that's still in use today.