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A '''Quantum Computer''' (also known as a '''ternary computer''' or '''trinary computer''') is a new form of digital computer which offers new processing capabilities. While traditional binary computers operated based on boolean values (either zero or one), quantum computers can essentially see a vale as both zero and one simultaneously.  While this may sound both simple and pointless, it offers an entirely new method of processing data, at much greater speeds.

A '''Quantum Computer''' (also known as a '''ternary computer''' or '''trinary computer''') is a new form of digital [[computer]] which offers new processing capabilities. While traditional binary computers operated based on boolean values (either zero or one), quantum computers can essentially see a value as both zero and one simultaneously.  While this may sound both simple and pointless, it offers an entirely new method of processing data, at much greater speeds.

==Details==

==Details==

Quantum computers accomplish this by utilizing states of matter (other that the typical solids, liquids, and gasses) which can only exist at temperatures very near [[absolute zero]]. These additional matter states enable the computer to have values be both 1 and 0 simultaneously.<ref name="howstuffworks.com 1">http://computer.howstuffworks.com/quantum-computer.htm</ref> This differs from the traditional [[Alan Turing|Turing]] computer because while normal computers can only be one or zero at a given point, Quantum Computers can be anything from 0-1 at the same time. A good analogy is a tape of unlimited length that is divided into little squares. Each square can either hold a symbol (1 or 0) or be left blank. A read-write device reads these symbols and blanks, which gives the machine its instructions to perform a certain program. For the quantum computer, the tape exists in a quantum state, as does the read-write head. This means that the symbols on the tape can be either 0 or 1 or a superposition of 0 and 1; in other words the symbols are both 0 and 1 (and all points in between) at the same time. While a normal binary machine can only perform one calculation at a time, a quantum computer machine can perform many calculations at once.<ref name="howstuffworks.com 1">http://computer.howstuffworks.com/quantum-computer.htm</ref>

Quantum computers accomplish this with [[quantum mechanics]], utilizing states of matter (other that the typical solids, liquids, and gasses) which can only exist at temperatures very near [[absolute zero]]. These additional matter states enable the computer to have values be both 1 and 0 simultaneously.<ref name="howstuffworks.com 1">http://computer.howstuffworks.com/quantum-computer.htm</ref> This differs from the traditional [[Alan Turing|Turing]] computer because while normal computers can only be one or zero at a given point, Quantum Computers can be anything from 0-1 at the same time. A good analogy is a tape of unlimited length that is divided into little squares. Each square can either hold a symbol (1 or 0) or be left blank. A read-write device reads these symbols and blanks, which gives the machine its instructions to perform a certain program. For the quantum computer, the tape exists in a quantum state, as does the read-write head. This means that the symbols on the tape can be either 0 or 1 or a superposition of 0 and 1; in other words the symbols are both 0 and 1 (and all points in between) at the same time. While a normal binary machine can only perform one calculation at a time, a quantum computer machine can perform many calculations at once.<ref name="howstuffworks.com 1">http://computer.howstuffworks.com/quantum-computer.htm</ref>

==Uses==

==Uses==