Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hey shortwavers, Emily Kwong here. So the last Tuesday of every month is Nature Quest. That's the segment where we take one of your questions about the environment, how it's changing, and investigate it.
We've talked about why flowers are blooming early, how to live with extreme heat, why all the mosquitoes, what is managed retreat, and we are looking for more questions for future episodes in 2026. So if you're wondering what's going on with planet Earth and the bugs and the birds and the bees around you, email us at shortwave at NPR dot org. Give your name, your location, your question.
Bonus points if you record your question as a voice memo. Thanks so much.
Chapter 2: How is quantum science being funded and developed today?
You're listening to Shortwave from NPR. Hey, shortwavers. Emily Kwong here. And today I am joined by NPR science correspondent, Katie Riddle. Hey, Katie. Hi, Emily.
Chapter 3: What is quantum mechanical tunneling and why is it important?
Hi. Okay. Today we're talking about quantum, which is one of my favorite topics in science.
Yeah, quantum science and computing, I think it's safe to say they came up often in science news in 2025. Yeah. It used to be a concept that we heard about, you know, like in sci-fi. But this year, scientists have been talking about its utility IRL.
Okay, quantum in real life.
Chapter 4: When can we expect quantum technology to impact our daily lives?
How so?
Well, for one thing, despite all the slashing and burning the Trump administration has done around science investments this year, quantum computing and science is one of two things that they've pledged to preserve funding in, along with AI.
Yes, AI for sure, too. When it comes to quantum, there's also been a ton of investment from tech companies, right?
Yeah, exactly.
Chapter 5: What are the unique properties of quantum particles?
Billions of dollars both from our government and from China's government, as well as tech companies. Google, for example, continues to tout breakthroughs that they've made something called quantum supremacy or quantum advantage.
Today, Google Quantum AI is unveiling the first demonstration of verifiable quantum advantage, a critical step that transforms quantum computing from being science into doing science.
Wow, that little ding at the end really sells it. Quantum advantage.
They have been bragging a lot about this new quantum computing chip they have called Willow, which they say is an indicator of real progress in the field.
Yeah, let's talk about the progress of the field, because the Nobel Prize this year, one of them had to do with working quantum mechanics.
Right. So 2025 Physics Nobel was awarded jointly to John Clark, Michel Devoret, and John Martinez for their work, proving a concept called quantum mechanical tunneling.
What is quantum mechanical tunneling?
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Chapter 6: How does quantum computing differ from classical computing?
So it's a fundamental concept of quantum that particles can tunnel their way through barriers that by the conventional rules of physics, they shouldn't be able to penetrate. The work happened a few decades ago, but many people now credit it with laying the foundation for advancements in quantum that have happened since then.
One thing, Katie, I'm wondering, when is quantum going to be a part of my life? Like, what can it do for regular folks?
Yeah. What have you done for me lately? Quantum. Once you get past the question of what it actually is, the next logical question, when will it actually pay off? We hear that quantum science and engineering can one day help. do things like cure diseases, or design new materials, or optimize things like traffic or supply chains, or use cases that we can't even fathom right now.
I talked to a lot of scientists for this story about this question, and even the ones who are working on the front lines of this field are really managing expectations, both theirs and ours, on that question.
Chapter 7: What challenges do scientists face in achieving quantum supremacy?
Today on the show, is the future really quantum? And if so, when? We go beyond the quantum hype to get a sense of where the science really is. You're listening to Shortwave, the science podcast from NPR.
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OK, Katie, let us start with quantum physics itself.
Chapter 8: What is the future potential of quantum computing?
Can you remind me what that is?
Right. Quantum is the physics of the smallest things, electrons, photons, other subatomic particles. The wild part is they don't follow the same rules as the stuff that we can see. Their behavior is weird, but it's consistently weird.
I love Consistently Weird. And I love the movie Ant-Man, whose plot was very dependent on this.
I have not seen it, but now I want to.
You should. It's really good. What is an example of how subatomic particles behave in weird ways?
One of the concepts you hear a lot is superposition. That means a particle that can be in multiple potential states at once. You've heard of Schrodinger's cat, dead and alive. Like the universe hasn't decided if the cat is dead or alive until the box containing the cat is open. It's a cloud of probabilities.
Right. And in the world of quantum, it means superposition means that particles could be doing many things at once.
Right. And this is a concept that's been around for a while, almost as long as the whole field that was established 100 years ago around the time of Niels Bohr and Einstein.
What does this have to do with quantum computing? How does that fit together?
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