Author: leonid
Date: 15:06:12 12/03/99
Go up one level in this thread
On December 02, 1999 at 19:52:20, Pete R. wrote: >On December 01, 1999 at 22:07:35, Tom Amburn wrote: > >> >> A few years ago I was reading somewhere that scientist were trying to discover >>Superconductivity, it said the benifits of this technology would lead to a >>thousand times increase in computer speed. I am not sure if I have all the facts >>correctly, as the article is hazy in the back on my memory. Can someone explain >>exactly what this superconductivity is and how it would benifit computer chess >>if ever discovered? thanks > >Conductors resist the flow of electrons through them, which generates heat, >which is a major problem when you are trying to fit millions of transistors into >smaller and smaller spaces. Superconductivity is a state where this resistance >goes to zero. Without any resistance you could conduct the power for an entire >city through one wire, which is incredible if you think about it. You can also >transmit over long distances without loss, etc., all of which would have amazing >practical benefits, except so far it only works at very cold temperatures. The >phenomenon has been known for decades, and in fact my freshman year physics >professor shared a Nobel prize for the first explanation of why it works (Robert >Schrieffer I believe, I think Bardeen, Cooper, and Schrieffer shared the prize >on that one). No experiments, I think he said they just sat around and drank >lots of coffee while mulling it over. ;) Anyway the quest now is to find >materials that achieve this state at higher and higher temperatures, the Holy >Grail of course being room-temperature superconductivity. I tend to think this >will have less impact on computing than continued advances in miniaturization >and materials. A single-molecule transistor has been demonstrated, and I think >a carbon nanotube-as-transistor has as well. If computer power keeps steadily >increasing as it has, or even accelerates, it will be quite interesting. The >current issue of Scientific American has an interesting article (one of many in >their Millenium issue) where a robotics researcher predicts computers with >sufficient processing power to achieve human level intelligence might be >possible in 40 or 50 years. Scientific American for exactly what month? Thanks! A lot of assumptions there of course, but it's an >interesting read which basically compares processing power of computers and >various organic creatures, current high-end desktop machines being at about >insect level. Regardless, if and when computers get near that sort of power they >will have long ruled the chess world. IBM has already built one that defeated >the world champ, and could easily build a stronger one if they felt like it, so >the technology exists already. The interesting question is when standard >desktop machines will be world champ level. Then of course as time goes on, you >have to wonder what level a Deep Blue equivalent could play at 50 years from >now. Let's hope we'll all be around to see. :)
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