December 16, 2019
The Woke Blokes at Nature, the supposedly premier science journal, have taken umbrage with the use of the words "supremacy" in regards to quantum computers because - get this! - it conjures images of white hooded klansmen seeking to lynch poor black sharecroppers!
Here is the letter by a number of scientists protesting the use of the word in an article:
Writing about this at Powerline John Hayward says:We take issue with the use of ‘supremacy’ when referring to quantum computers that can out-calculate even the fastest supercomputers (F. Arute et al. Nature 574, 505–510; 2019). We consider it irresponsible to override the historical context of this descriptor, which risks sustaining divisions in race, gender and class. We call for the community to use ‘quantum advantage’ instead.
The community claims that quantum supremacy is a technical term with a specified meaning. However, any technical justification for this descriptor could get swamped as it enters the public arena after the intense media coverage of the past few months.
In our view, ‘supremacy’ has overtones of violence, neocolonialism and racism through its association with ‘white supremacy’. Inherently violent language has crept into other branches of science as well — in human and robotic spaceflight, for example, terms such as ‘conquest’, ‘colonization’ and ‘settlement’ evoke the terra nullius arguments of settler colonialism and must be contextualized against ongoing issues of neocolonialism.
Instead, quantum computing should be an open arena and an inspiration for a new generation of scientists.
I guess Hayward was unaware of that.
Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at
10:01 AM
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To an old geezer like yours truly, "woke" pretty much equates to "stupid." At least, the "scientists" in the above article certainly act stupid. If they're going to worry about this stuff, how do they have time to "do science" anymore?
Posted by: Dana Mathewson at December 16, 2019 10:15 AM (nYRaQ)
These people really need to work harder, or get a hobby.
Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at December 16, 2019 10:33 AM (hLjuC)
Posted by: Dana Mathewson at December 16, 2019 01:55 PM (CcPEk)
Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at December 16, 2019 03:28 PM (SCgs4)
Posted by: Dana Mathewson at December 16, 2019 09:22 PM (HY6VT)
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