Can the computer grow stronger?

It seems that everything we do today is related to computers. Financial system, social relations, communication network, entertainment . everything is very extraordinary. Simply because the computer is a relatively "new" thing.

According to ScienceABC, the first computer was manufactured in 1946 and it was as big as a house. It's called ENIAC , and slower than the worst dial-up connection you can imagine thousands of times.

How far have we gone? We can calculate millions of calculations at the same time, talk and see other people in the world right away, and access any kind of human data with a single swipe.

Sometimes it feels like we have nothing left to discover. Computer companies are continuing to improve their products, both in function and speed. Will this continue forever?

Moore's Law

The speed of a computer is related to the processor it uses, more specifically the number of transistors on that processor.

Back in the mid-1960s, Intel's founder made an eloquent statement about the speed of computers. He thinks the speed and performance of computers will double every two years. Nobody believed this at the time, but over four decades, this is what we see when we look at microprocessors.

Continuous improvements have helped increase the number of semiconductors on the processor by almost every two years. That unexpected prediction, later called Moore's Law. But unfortunately, there are still natural limits for this law that we are gradually witnessing.

Humans have been making transistors of only a few atoms. But what will happen when it reaches the limit?

Based on the same principles of quantum mechanics, it is thought that quantum computing will increase the speed and processing power of computers based on the instability of quantum states. This increases the computing power many times, possibly trillions of calculations per second.

There is a calculation that "perfect" quantum computers can compute up to 10 million billion calculations per unit of energy compared to today's fastest processors.

If this happens Moore's law will almost never end. Many people criticized the opinion, and provided links to an equally hot topic - artificial intelligence (AI).

Can robots make computers better than humans?

Another theory is that when people reach a certain level of technology, we will be able to create enough computing power and capacity to simulate the human brain - also to create a form of awareness ( which we often call artificial intelligence - AI). This is interesting but equally intimidating.

If you create a form of AI that can continue to design and innovate computers more than what humans can do in the past, and if Moore's law is not broken, mankind will fall into danger, mind Smart intelligence will quickly be surpassed by computers, robots have " awareness ".

The first generation of robotics might create a smart machine twice as much as humans - and who knows where it will lead? 2 years later, what about 10 years later? Humans may become unnecessary at that time and be replaced by a completely superior intelligence.

In other words, when people refer to Moore's Law, humans have a limit, but AI is not. Everyone must see the Terminator, right? Many theorists have come up with ideas about what can happen when AI gets access to the Internet: robotic robbers, humanity wiped out, nuclear weapons .

But not every Hollywood is worried about this. Elon Musk (founder of Paypal, Tesla Motors and Space X) has also warned about the dangers associated with AI due to its high handling capabilities and advanced technologies.

Are these our only options?

From these perspectives, everything seems bleak, but is it our only options?

Fortunately not!

Recently, researchers have made remarkable progress with graphene . At IBM, one has created one of the most advanced graphene chips in the world, with 10,000 times faster processing capacity than what graphene technology has currently achieved. In a field where small, fast is the foundation of success, graphene may be eyeing.

By using a thin layer of graphene in the final step of the process of developing microprocessors, engineers prevented a decrease in speed thanks to the constantly changing nature and the atomic thickness of graphene. Although thanks to this physical feature (thickness) of graphene that electrons (and then information) can move faster, it also makes graphene very difficult to use. Fortunately, IBM took a step forward in optimizing graphene capabilities.

This is likely to extend the limit of Moore's law, allowing us to use graphene as an indispensable material in future transistors and processors.

The near future . or what's left of it

According to Moore's Law, and the limits of quantum mechanics, some people predict that we will reach maximum processing capacity in about 70 years. Opponents of this claim that the law will be broken in about 15 years, basically because transistors are now too small. Who is right, who is wrong, we have to wait and see.