1.1 Data
If you think of all the digital data and information stored in the cloud, on the web, on your phone, on your laptop, in hard and solid-state drives, and in every computer transaction, consideration comes down to just two things: 0 and 1.
These are bits, and with bits we can represent everything else in what we call “classical computers.” These systems date back to ideas from the 1940s. There is an additional concept for quantum computers, that of a qubit or “quantum bit.” The qubit extends the bit and is manipulated in quantum circuits and gates. Before we get to qubits, however, let’s consider the bit more closely.
First, we can interpret 0 as false and 1 as true. Thinking in terms of data, what would you say if I asked you the question, “Do you like Punk Rock?” We can store your response as 0 or 1 and then use it in further processing, such...
