
How Shor's Algorithm works (2007) - monort
http://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/?p=208
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kwaugh
Aarsonson has been one of my favorite professors. His undergrad quantum
information sciences class was great. Super smart guy, approachable, good
lecturer, good person. A+ dude. I recommend following his blog if you don't
already.

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seycombi
Video + Notes for his lectures MIT 6.045 Automata, Comput, & Complexity can be
found here:

video lectures:
[http://web.de.mit.edu/public/courses/6/6.045/2015spring/](http://web.de.mit.edu/public/courses/6/6.045/2015spring/)

notes:
[http://stellar.mit.edu/S/course/6/sp15/6.045/materials.html](http://stellar.mit.edu/S/course/6/sp15/6.045/materials.html)

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netvarun
After Shor's algorithm a good follow up would be to learn about Grover's
Algorithm[1]

Here is a fantastic explanation of it:
[http://twistedoakstudios.com/blog/Post2644_grovers-
quantum-s...](http://twistedoakstudios.com/blog/Post2644_grovers-quantum-
search-algorithm) [More technically involved explanation]

Interesting factoid: Scott Aaronson[2] interned with Lov Grover[3] at Bell
Labs as a teenager!

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover%27s_algorithm](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover%27s_algorithm)

[2] [https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cross-check/scott-
aaron...](https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cross-check/scott-aaronson-
answers-every-ridiculously-big-question-i-throw-at-him/) [This is a great
interview, btw!]

[3]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lov_Grover](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lov_Grover)

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jessriedel
In the spirit of Muehlhauser's list of textbooks (
[http://lesswrong.com/lw/3gu/the_best_textbooks_on_every_subj...](http://lesswrong.com/lw/3gu/the_best_textbooks_on_every_subject/)
) can anyone recommend a more technical introductions to Shor's algorithm --
kets allowed -- who's read at least two _other_ such introductions?

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sampo
I can't recommend in the spirit that you mention, but the description in
Nakahara's book Quantum Computing is surely technical and detailed enough. It
so happens that googling for the book, I happened to find a whole text pdf in
the results.

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stablemap
From 2007 (now fixed).

These are some of the hardest papers to write and make visible; I was
disabused of a few beliefs and the treatment of number theory didn't upset me
so this was great, particularly the Fourier bit at the end.

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stablemap
@GordonS It's an HN convention for the title. If you would delete your comment
then I think I would be allowed delete mine and would gladly do so now that
the submission has been "fixed".

Of course an algorithm like this is evergreen.

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unkown-unknowns
If you click the "x minutes ago" link on any comment you can reply directly to
it without having to wait for the "cooldown".

~~~
stablemap
But I think if I reply to him then he can't delete and the whole thing
recurses.

I am sorry for this derailing.

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wicha
Is there (or can be) any plan to avoid mayhem if a quantum computer emerges
controlled by an evil man?

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OscarCunningham
There are cryptographic protocols that are thought to be safe against quantum
computers, and people are gradually switching over to them.

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hossbeast
Appreciated the comment on the blog by Peter Shor :)

