Technologies

IBM Quantum Computing Progress Edges Toward Eventual Utility

Osprey has 433 qubits, the fundamental data processing element inside these weird machines.

In a move that bodes well for quantum computing’s long-term prospects, IBM said Wednesday it’s built a new machine called Osprey with 433 qubits. Tripling the total number of data processing elements compared with last year significantly increases the computational power of the system.

IBM has been working steadily for years to make quantum computing a commercial success, competing against big companies like Google and Intel, earlier specialists like D-Wave and Rigetti Computing, and newer startups like Atom Computing and Pasqal. Quantum computing promises to conquer challenges out of reach of the conventional technology that powers smartwatches and supercomputers.

One of the most promising domains for quantum computing is materials science, where quantum chemistry simulations could improve solar panels, batteries and other devices that operate at the molecular level. But quantum computing fans also hope to bring new tools to AI, logistics, and finance. With a slowing Moore’s Law constraining conventional computing, that could mean important new progress.

It’ll take years more progress before quantum computers deliver on their revolutionary progress, but delivering on promised steps toward the ultimate goal is important. Without the progress, the billions of dollars of investment could dry up and a quantum winter could chill the industry.

IBM actually announced two new Osprey systems. The first is fully tested, said Jay Gambetta, vice president of IBM’s quantum computing work.

«It works. It’s alive. All the qubits are good,» Gambetta said. «It’s another confirmation of the road map as we build larger and larger devices.»

The second incorporates improvements made to Osprey’s predecessor, Eagle, that extends the lifespan of calculations. Quantum computers today are limited by «coherence» time, which governs how long finicky qubits can maintain their state and connections to each other.

The improvements to IBM’s quantum processor design reduces electronic noise that can derail calculations, roughly doubling coherence time to 200 millionths of a second. That’s long enough for hundreds of calculation steps.

New IBM customers include telecommunications giant Vodafone, which is investigating quantum-safe cryptography, and French bank Crédit Mutuel, which is looking into financial services applications, IBM said.

IBM’s supercomputers, like those of Google and Rigetti, are called superconducting quantum computers. They rely on very cold temperatures just a fraction of a degree above absolute zero and colder than space. And they’re housed in increasingly large and expensive cylindrical refrigerators.

To get signals in and out of the quantum computers through ever-colder refrigeration zones, IBM previously used loops of gleaming cables. Now it’s got a new method, though, ribbons of communication links that are more compact.

«We solved a bottleneck in scale,» Gambetta said.

More scaling is on the horizon. For 2023, IBM plans to build 1,121-qubit Condor. After that comes 1,386-qubit Flamingo in 2024 and 4,158-qubit Kookaburra in 2025.

Correction at 8:32 a.m. PT: The story misstated the temperature at which IBM’s computer operates. It runs at a fraction of a degree above absolute zero.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for March 10, #533

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for March 10, No. 533.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition features a lot of team names, but that doesn’t mean it’s an easy one to solve. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Play ball!

Green group hint: Not front.

Blue group hint: Certain NFL player.

Purple group hint: They play at Smoothie King Center.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: An AL Central player.

Green group: Words appearing before «back,» in football.

Blue group: Associated with Derrick Henry.

Purple group: New Orleans Pelicans.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is an AL Central player. The four answers are Guardian, Royal, Tiger and Twin.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is words appearing before «back,» in football. The four answers are corner, defensive, full and running.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is associated with Derrick Henry. The four answers are Heisman, King, Ravens and Titans.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is New Orleans Pelicans. The four answers are Bey, Fears, Murphy and Queen.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Tuesday, March 10

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 10.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? I’d just like to point out that the New York Times puzzle-makers love the 7-Across answer — they use it about every other week. Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Writing that lacks substance
Answer: FLUFF

6A clue: Pencil in a cosmetics bag
Answer: LINER

7A clue: ___ acid (building block of proteins)
Answer: AMINO

8A clue: Partner of services, in economics
Answer: GOODS

9A clue: Small criticism
Answer: NIT

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Warning sign in a relationship, metaphorically
Answer: FLAG

2D clue: Fancy prom ride
Answer: LIMO

3D clue: SAG-AFTRA, for one
Answer: UNION

4D clue: Luxury fashion house headquartered in Rome
Answer: FENDI

5D clue: Ground coating on a cold morning
Answer: FROST

Technologies

Australians Flock to VPNs in the Wake of Online Age-Restriction Laws

App downloads for VPN services increase sharply as websites in Australia go behind age-restriction walls.

A new set of laws in Australia requiring adult websites and app stores to age-restrict content for those under 18, and requiring AI companies to restrict chatbot offerings from displaying certain types of sensitive or adult content to minors, is apparently driving many to download Virtual Private Network apps there.

Major adult sites have closed their virtual doors to those who aren’t age-confirmed in Australia, and these changes follow a nationwide ban on social media use by teenagers and young children that went into effect in December.

According to reports from Reuters, The Guardian and others, in response to the bans, downloads of VPN-related apps, which people can use to circumvent location-based restrictions, are sharply on the rise. According to Reuters, three of the 15 most downloaded free iPhone apps in the country were VPN-related as the new laws went into effect on Monday.

Lawmakers in some regions, including the US, are well aware that people use VPNs in this way. In states such as Michigan and Wisconsin, laws are being proposed to limit or outright ban VPN use. Wisconsin’s proposed law would require adult sites to block VPN traffic, while Michigan’s proposal would ban VPN use entirely in the state.

There is also a proposal in England under consideration to ban VPN use by minors. That proposal is currently under review.