QUANTUM COMPUTER DEFINITION BASED ON X=0 TEST

We are attempting to define a quantum computer using a short program. Steps 1-2 must be run on a quantum computer, and steps 3-5 could be executed on a conventional computer.

Step 1) x=0. Assign an integer zero to a variable x.

Step 2) Determine x. Find out the value of the variable x.

Step 3) Save x. Don't overwrite previous values. Essentially, collect measured data.

Step 4) Repeat steps 1-3 a thousand times. The exact number is optional but should not be too small.

Step 5) Plot distribution of x. To verify results.

DEFINITION:

The computer is quantum if it cannot handle correctly steps 1 and 2.

No quantum computer can ever pass this test!

Any cell phone or laptop processor can handle this simple program without problems. A conventional computer essentially gives a vertical line at x=0, with almost no values with x<0 or x>0. A quantum computer is probabilistic and can only return a wide distribution; the exact shape is implementation dependent. So that is a preeminent problem.

Please note that we do not require that the simulation time be recorded. The computer can be as fast or as slow as it can be. If the computer cannot handle basic operations correctly, as described in steps 1 and 2, then who cares how fast that computer is!

Hope this clarifies some misunderstandings about quantum computers.