The Quest for the Quantum Computer

This is a well written book that covers the fundamental ideas of quantum computing and quantum physics as of 2001. A previous review makes the author sound biased towards David Deutch’s multiverse interpretation. While the multiverse and Deutch’s ideas are discussed at length, I didn’t feel the author was biased nor focused solely on Deutch. He reviewed the ideas of many researchers and discussed their strengths and weaknesses.

I would have given the book a higher rating if it had stayed more focused on just quantum computing, but it ranges widely from the interpretations of quantum physics to quantum cryptography (nearly a quarter of the book). Its not that these sections were poorly written, just that they are somewhat ancillary show more to the book’s title. But where the author focuses just on quantum computing he does a good job in explaining the basic ideas. He covers quantum logic (Fredkin, Hadamard, and Toffoli gates) and potential designs for building a quantum computer. He also discusses a logic notation that can represent superpositions of qbits. This notion and some of the mathematics introduced in the chapters on cryptography were the most difficult areas of the book, but they can be skimmed without losing the major ideas being presented.

The last chapter is a catch all that covers nanotechnology, DNA computing, consciousness and the universe. Enjoyable chapter but covered in lots of other books (i.e. Michio Kaku’s "Visions"). show less

A reprint of _Minds, Machines, and the Multiverse_ (Simon & Schuster, 2000). A good book, but why do publishers have to play these deceitful retitling games?

A journalists account of quantum computing, and thus pretty awful.
The general thrust is to completely buy into David Deutch's multiverse stuff.