Why Quantum Computing Was Delayed by 30 Years - Michael Nielsen

Nielsen addresses why quantum computing didn't develop in the 1950s despite pioneers like John von Neumann having expertise in both computation and quantum mechanics. He argues that the field emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s due to a historically contingent convergence of two key developments. First, computation became much more salient to the general public during this period as personal computers like the Apple II and Commodore 64 became commercially available, making the power of computational devices apparent to many more people. Second, this same period saw crucial advances in quantum physics, particularly the development of ball traps and techniques for trapping single ions, which gave scientists the ability to manipulate individual quantum states for the first time. Nielsen illustrates the excitement around early computing with an anecdote about Richard Feynman, who was so enthusiastic about getting one of the first PCs that he tripped and injured himself while carrying it. Nielsen suggests that having someone as talented as Feynman who understood quantum mechanics and was simultaneously excited about these new computational machines naturally led to thinking about quantum computing possibilities. He emphasizes that this convergence was historically contingent - the necessary conditions simply didn't exist a decade earlier.