Compass Points - Quantum World
Technology revolution?
September 13, 2024
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Every day there are news updates on the ongoing conflicts in the South China Sea, in and around Gaza, and in the border region between Ukraine and Russia. All the conflicts are difficult, persistent, and perplexing.
Conflicts in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe are nothing new. Armed conflicts and the threat of armed conflicts have been unending -- not just for the last few years, but for hundreds, and even thousands of years.
Is it possible that everything is about to change? Could a new technology, quantum computing, end all the conflicts and prevent new conflicts from erupting? The Pentagon is spending heavily on quantum computing. Recently, in Northern Virginia the Quantum World Congress assembled to discuss the disruptive power of quantum computing.
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The Pentagon has burgeoning initiatives to validate scientific discoveries and begin testing applications as it braces for a breakthrough to accelerate the arrival of revolutionary quantum computers.
Quantum computers pose significant risks and enormous opportunities for national security. The emergence of a “cryptanalytically relevant” quantum computer threatens to crack the encryption systems that secure defense secrets and everyday financial transactions.
The Defense Department’s primary objective for quantum computing is to understand its uses and prevent the power of the machines from falling into the hands of an adversary, said John Burke, the Pentagon’s principal director of quantum science.
In remarks at the Quantum World Congress, held this week in Northern Virginia, Mr. Burke outlined the military’s work to get its arms around the brave new world of quantum computing before an enemy does.
“There will be a time — and that time might come very soon, so we’re going to be open-minded to that — that quantum computing will be a very important application for useful applications for the [Defense Department],” Mr. Burke told the gathering. “That will change things dramatically if we have that evidence of utility.”
A quantum computer solves complex problems far faster than classical computers by using properties of superposition, interference and entanglement, according to President Biden’s National Security Memorandum 10.
-- Washington Times
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No doubt quantum computing is an amazing new technology. The mysterious properties of superposition, interference, and entanglement have powers we cannot yet fully understand. Still, while the Quantum World Congress gathered and discussed in Virginia, armed forces of many nations across the globe confronted each other.
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A senior Chinese military official on Thursday said Beijing will “crush” any foreign incursion into the South China Sea, which it considers its territory . . .
-- AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE
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While resuming its offensive against militants in the West Bank, Israel also kept up its bombardment of the Gaza Strip . . .
-- NEW YORK TIMES
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Moscow’s forces claim to have started an offensive to dislodge Ukrainian troops in the Kursk region of Russia . . .
-- BLOOMBERG NEWS
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Conflicts in Asia, the Middle East, and Europe are nothing new. Armed conflicts and the threat of armed conflicts have been unending -- not just for the last few years, but for hundreds, and even thousands of years.
Is it possible that everything is about to change? Could a new technology of quantum computing end all the conflicts and prevent new conflicts from erupting?
No doubt quantum computing is powerful. No doubt it should be carefully researched. It is also true, however, that, as the quotation most often attributed to Plato says, "Only the dead have seen the end of war."
In the years and decades to come, no matter how powerful quantum computing or other technology may be, the Nation will still face challenges from armed forces in Asia, in the Middle East, in Europe, and elsewhere.
The Nation will still need a reliable force of elite warriors who have earned the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor and who are prepared to rush to the sound of the guns, overcome all obstacles, rescue the innocent, and vanquish all opposition. It does not take a quantum computer to figure out that as long as Marines are organized, trained, and equipped to fight and win against any foe, then the Nation will always want and need the Marines.
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Washington Times - 09/11/2024
Pentagon preps for military’s entrance into quantum computing era: ‘Might come very soon’
By Ryan Lovelace
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/sep/11/pentagon-details-its-preparation-for-quantum-compu/
When I read the CPG I get the feeling that the Commandant sounds like a “used car salesman” instead of a leader of a war fighting organization. As the Commandant shouts “full speed ahead” with 2030 Design, I have to wonder where is the “Risk Analysis”? At the start of the 2030 Design transformation, we did hear the justification by “wargame”, however, a wargame is not a risk analysis.
When I retired and moved into the civilian job market I learned that the business world is better than the military at risk analysis. Normally, it is a formal systematic process and a documented requirement conducted by management and the project team. The key components of a Risk Analysis are:
Identification: Recognizing potential risks that could affect the objectives.
Assessment: Evaluating the likelihood and potential impact of these risks.
Mitigation: Developing strategies to manage or reduce the identified risks.
Monitoring: Continuously tracking and reviewing risks to ensure they are effectively managed.
Taking the lost tank battalions and towed artillery for example, the Commandant needs to identify, in all potential combat operations, the potential risks of no tanks and the reduction in tubed artillery. In the assessment phase, the risks potential likelihood and impacts on combat operations are evaluated. The “strategies” to manage and reduce the combat risks are then developed. (BTW I get the feeling that “strategy” is not the Commandant’s strength). Of course, the risks have to be tracked and reviewed.
The Commandant needs to drop the “used car routine” and start a risk analysis on his 2030 Design project. In addition, our political leaders in Congress and the Senate need to ask the Commandant for his 2030 Design “Risk Analysis” or they can always conduct their own risk analysis.