Public attitudes to quantum
technology
Version 2.0
May 2014
Public attitudes to quantum technology
Table of Contents
1
Executive Summary ................................................................................................... 1
2
Public views................................................................................................................ 4
3
Analysis of views ....................................................................................................... 6
4
Gap analysis ............................................................................................................... 7
Appendix 1: summary of sources of information ............................................................. 8
Appendix 2: Google scholar searches on ‘public opinion’ together with following
search-terms: .....................................................................................................................16
i
Public attitudes to quantum technology
This report is a review of information on the views and values of the public on quantum technology
available at time of writing, April 2014. It provides a snapshot of public views and is a live document,
open to comments and additions.
The report will be useful to those interested in the public’s views on new and emerging areas of
science and technology and is particularly targeted to assist those involved in policy involving science
and technology as they provide a background to what is already known about public views.
It is worth noting that this report focuses on a high-level account of public views summarised across
various different engagement methodologies. It does not intend to capture the nuances or reasoning
behind those methodologies.
The views and values of the public will change and new information will become available. Hence, we
welcome your views, insights or comments.
•
Do you know of further evidence which we should include?
•
Do you have any comments or suggestions to improve the report?
You can comment here.
This report, and the others in the series, has been produced by Sciencewise.
Sciencewise is a BIS funded programme to encourage the more widespread use of public dialogue in
policy involving science and technology. Sciencewise provides advice and guidance to help those
involved in the development of policy to understand and to take into account the views and values of
the public in the development of policy involving science and technology. Sciencewise is able to
provide:

Advice and guidance on public dialogue and engagement

Assistance with the implementation of engagement as appropriate

Financial support for the implementation of selected public dialogue projects

Training and mentoring to assist those involved in policy development to build their
understanding of the benefits and their confidence around engagement with the public.
ii
Public attitudes to quantum technology
1 Executive Summary
Quantum technologies harness the effects of quantum physics in order to gain abilities and functions
that are otherwise impossible with conventional techniques. Most of the technologies are still in
relatively early research stages with some time until the technology comes to market. The quantum
technologies considered within this report are: quantum secure communications, quantum sensors,
quantum metrology, quantum simulators and quantum computing.
Despite an extensive web search, there seems to be no evidence of the views of the public on this
topic. Whilst there are examples of engagement with the public to inform and to educate, there are no
examples where the views and values of the public have been gathered and reported. Therefore, in
order to capture the zeitgeist relating to public opinion around quantum technologies, a study has
been made of mainstream and online media reportage to determine what is being said around this
topic.
Summary of findings:

There are no data on public opinion from either Eurobarometer or other surveys, and the media
(newspaper, blogs, websites) reportage about quantum technology is not particularly widespread.
There is no evidence of deliberative dialogue or work in the public engagement/science
communication sphere on public attitudes to quantum technologies. Thus, our
understanding of public opinion has been shaped by mainstream media reportage of the topic.

In the media “Quantum computing and secure communications are both semi-permanently ‘on
the horizon’”. When the topic first appeared in the media (in the early 2000s), it was reported as
an exciting new technology that had yet to be developed, a situation that apparently continues
fourteen years later. There are examples of both frustrations that the technology hasn’t yet
appeared and optimism about what may happen in the near future. This persists despite the
improvements made in the technology that underpins quantum computing and communications
which is underplayed in the media.

Reporting of the uses for quantum computing and secure communications focus on their probable
applications in decryption and the implications this is likely to have for financial systems
and national security. Although they never quite go away, security concerns came back into
prominent focus in early 2014, when the US National Security Agency (NSA) was revealed to be
building a quantum computer.

Quantum technology is acknowledged to be an extremely difficult topic to understand and
explain; blog posts that set out to explain it note that it is almost impossible to describe in simple
terms. It is also difficult to indisputably demonstrate: there is a strong strand of discussion
from experts and researchers on whether the only commercially available quantum computer is
actually harnessing quantum effects and how effective the technology is, which indicates the
complexity of the technology being discussed.

There is also evidence of conditional acceptance of the emerging technologies with a spread of
views as outlined above, particularly regarding the less-widely-reported technologies (metrology,
sensors and simulations).
Need for dialogue?
Given the lack of available evidence about public attitudes to quantum technology, there are likely to
be benefits from understanding the views of the public with this area and to do some exploration of
attitudes and values relating to this and connected topics. This is very timely considering the
announcement of £270m over the next five years and increasing coverage of these technologies in the
media. The future EPSRC Quantum Technology Hubs have a commitment to responsible innovation
that includes two-way dialogue and strengthens the argument for deliberative dialogue around the
applications of quantum technology. A future public dialogue relating to quantum technologies might
want to consider the following as a starting point: “What are the issues that quantum technology
(and its applications) raise?”
1
Public attitudes to quantum technology
Introduction
What are quantum technologies?
The EPSRC National Network of Quantum Technology Hubs Call document defines quantum
technologies as:
“...those that harness quantum physics [such as superposition and entanglement] to gain a
functionality or performance which is otherwise unattainable. Although many current and future
technologies are described by quantum theory, the focus of this call is on the direct exploitation of
quantum phenomena such as superposition or entanglement to enable disruptive impacts in security,
precision, sensitivity, accuracy or speed.”
And via stakeholder engagement, five sub-areas of quantum technologies have been identified:

Quantum Secure Communications: As the secrecy of quantum communications can be
measured directly, they have inherent potential for distributing secure digital keys on networks.
Quantum key distribution is widely regarded as one of the first quantum information
technologies with commercial applications. Working systems already exist and are applied to
niche applications. The opportunity now is to realise the breakthrough in affordability and
secure network integration that will enable widespread use of the technology. Next generation
quantum communication technologies will be based on distributed quantum entanglement.
This can be used to create quantum networks that implement more advanced protocols, such
as quantum-secure database queries or distributed quantum information processing. Here the
emphasis should be on the realisation of scalable network architectures, low-cost solid-state
sources of quantum entanglement alongside the creation of new secure protocols and
applications.

Quantum Metrology: Measurement underpins commerce; the definition of standards for
trade and industry is the basis for a thriving economy. Next generation metrology capabilities
will be based on quantum phenomena, and will deliver new standards for time, frequency,
mass, length, charge and other key fundamental measures. These will have immediate
important applications, such as miniaturised, robust, atomic clocks that can act as "fly-wheels"
for GPS. These will enable better standards for rapid electronic stock trading, for instance, as
well as new navigation opportunities. Further, new measurement methods and devices
derived from quantum metrology approaches and new methods for certification of such
techniques and instruments, will enable validation of other quantum technologies, such as
detectors for quantum sensors and register readout measurements for quantum computers.
Super-accurate measurement of time is required to manage and route the exploding volume
of traffic using mobile phone and other communications systems.

Quantum Sensors: Sensors are now ubiquitous, but are often limited by their precision, size
and efficiency. Quantum sensing technologies harnesses the advantage given by quantum
systems to provide measurement precision beyond conventional methods. This approach will
enable sensors to be deployed that can detect at the single molecule level; that can sense
electromagnetic and gravitational fields with unprecedented accuracy. These sensors will
provide new paradigms for healthcare and medical imaging technologies; security and
environmental monitoring; and manufacturing of high value materials. Another possible
application for this technology is to increase the performance of subterranean mapping to
search for valuable resources such as gas, oil and minerals. There may be other, unknown,
possibilities for quantum sensors such as in robotics and novel instrumentation.

Quantum Simulators: The modelling of real molecules or materials at the atomic scale is key
to technological problems ranging from the interaction of drug molecules with their targets, to
the nature of high-temperature superconductivity. This approach relies on modelling quantum
phenomena at the chemical scale and is very difficult using purely classical computers,
2
Public attitudes to quantum technology
because the effort required to achieve an accurate result scales very rapidly (in fact
exponentially) with the size of the system. In the long term a full quantum computer could
perform this simulation exponentially more quickly on any target quantum system. However in
the shorter term significant gains could be made by engineering well-controlled quantum
systems whose behaviour mimics the specific system under study, either in an analogue
fashion or through a digital simulation. Promising quantum systems to use as the 'mimic'
include trapped atoms, ions or molecules, multiple photons interacting via linear optics,
superconducting circuits, or electron spins in solids.

Quantum Computation: Quantum physics offers the possibility of a computing engine
capable of solving problems that are completely intractable on current and future generation
conventional hardware. The hardware required to build such a computer would also deliver
revolutionary capabilities for other quantum technologies. Quantum computation
encompasses all elements of the field, from foundational studies of the generation,
manipulation and utilisation of entanglement and other quantum correlations, to development
of hardware and components with the properties needed for fabricating a true quantum
computer.
Context: £270m spending on quantum technology
In the 2013 Autumn Statement, the UK Government announced an investment of £270m over the next
five years in Quantum Technologies, with the aim to develop commercial applications of this
technology. The science minister has informally dubbed quantum technology as the ninth of the Eight
Great Technologies (which have been explored in other social intelligence reports) due to the
increased interest in this area since the original Eight Great Technologies report was published in
2013 after the statement made by the Chancellor to the Royal Society in 2012.
Scope of this report
Due to the novelty of these technologies and the current status of development, initial scoping of this
area indicates that the evidence of public views relating to quantum technology may be limited to
articles in mainstream media about the basic concepts rather than the social impacts or ethical issues
about the technologies. Scoping also indicates that there are public engagement initiatives around this
area. However blogs (and other social media) are limited to researchers and research groups working
on this, and there is no evidence of research, surveys or dialogue with the public in order to
understand views and values of this emerging technology.
Therefore, this social intelligence report, at this time, focuses on how the topics are represented in the
media and, if at all possible, includes more “direct” reportage of public views (such as primary sources
like blogs, social media or market research). If a future governmental report (such as the chapters for
the other Great Eight Technologies) is in production, this may help to guide the direction for the social
intelligence report and help to shape the gap analysis in understanding public views in the future.
3
Public attitudes to quantum technology
2 Public views
The views of the public summarised below were identified using the sources detailed in Appendix 1.
The main sources of public views were put together through online research and focussed on the last
10 years of media reportage.
Publicly-available information about quantum technology is restricted to newspaper/media reports,
websites and blogs. There are no data on public opinion from either Eurobarometer or other surveys.
This research does not cover the more traditional ‘transmitting’ modes of science communication such
as public lectures, popular science books unless these include elements of receiving public views
where these are captured and reported. For a list of search terms used to find sources of data, please
see Appendix 2.
Reportage on quantum technology can be divided into four themes:
1 ‘It’s coming …’ – quantum technology on the horizon
This is often observed especially in articles about quantum computing and quantum secure
st
communications. In the early 21 Century (2001–2010) quantum computing is reported in newspapers
as a technology that is on the horizon, about to make the transition ‘from science fiction to science
fact’. Reports on quantum computing describe its potential as wide-ranging; it could model complex
processes and answer unsolvable problems (e.g. Belfast Newsletter, June 2002) and perform
calculations that would take conventional computers millions of years (e.g. Daily Telegraph, July
2008). However, the technology’s major promise – and the major threat it poses – lies in its potential
to ‘effortlessly crack modern encryption’ (e.g. Independent, January 2005). This is noted as a
particular threat to complex systems such as banking, finance and national security. It is reported that
considerable obstacles lie in the path of a viable quantum computer (e.g. Guardian, July 2005) and
that fundamental problems remain unsolved (e.g. Daily Telegraph, December 2010).
A related theme that emerges is a sense of losing faith in a useful technology ever arriving – “heard it
all before”. Readers’ comments relating to technologies such as quantum secure communications and
computing often express a sense of frustration that the technology will never arrive in their lifetimes
(despite predictions made in the past) but there is also a sense of optimism about the possible
applications of new technologies in the future. Whilst extensive work has been done to develop the
technology that underpins quantum computing, this does not seem to be reported in the media.
2 ‘It’s impossible to understand…’ – the complexity of quantum physics
Quantum physics is a notoriously difficult concept to explain and this seems to extend to the
technology that exploits these effects. Metro (December 2012) wrote that quantum computing ‘will give
you a migraine trying to get your head round it’. Echoing Richard Feynmann’s quip that if you claimed
to understand quantum mechanics you didn’t understand quantum mechanics, Michael Nielsen’s blog
post argued that there is no possible simple explanation of how quantum computers work. There were
several comments on this post but they were largely from engineers and physicists, focussing on the
viability of simulations and the minutiæ of Nielsen’s (non)explanation. Quantum secure
communications are described in one blog as “mind-bendingly sophisticated” (12 June 2007) and a
comment in the same blog refers to “quantum magic”.
3 It’s an investment but is it actually quantum…?
Another recurring theme in the articles is the difficulty in actually proving that a technology works and
uses quantum effects to produce their results. This could be due to the underlying sophistication that,
as outlined above, is so difficult to explain easily. Again, this seems to mostly emerge in articles about
quantum computing and secure communications.
In 2007, a Canadian company, D-Wave, claimed to have built the world’s first quantum computer (e.g.
Guardian, February 2007). This created speculation whether quantum computers will supersede
conventional computers (e.g. Daily Telegraph, July 2008).
4
Public attitudes to quantum technology
In early 2013, there was a wave of reportage following Google and NASA’s decision to join a
consortium (including several universities) to research applications of quantum computing in artificial
intelligence, encryption/decryption and planning (e.g. MIT Technology Review, May 2013). The
consortium had purchased (at a cost of around $15 million) one of D-Wave’s computers; a strand of
comment – particularly in researchers’ blogs – discussed whether this machine was truly a quantum
computer or an extremely sophisticated simulation on a classic computer (e.g. BBC Online, May
2013). This discussion continued through 2013; Lauren Orsini’s blog post (December 2013), which
was widely promulgated via Twitter, focussed on scientists’ concerns about whether the computer was
actually harnessing quantum mechanics, a discussion which re-emerged in January 2014 with the
publication of a study expressing doubts over the benefits of quantum over conventional computing.
The D-Wave machine has been described by commenters on this report as a ‘stepping stone to a full
quantum computer’.
Later in 2013, the UK government announced government funding for a number of projects that
included quantum technologies (e.g. City AM, December 2013); media reporting linked this
announcement to the then recently-discovered Higgs boson, as one of the hubs was named in honour
of Peter Higgs.
4 It means ‘they’ will be able to read all our emails – quantum decryption becoming a reality?
Concerns about quantum technology’s applications in decryption and personal privacy resurfaced in
early 2014, when it was reported that leaked US government documents showed the US National
Security Agency (NSA) was building a quantum computer (e.g. Washington Post, January 2014). In
media reporting, this was primarily linked to current government, activist and political concerns around
privacy and security but also to the difficulties of designing and creating a quantum computer. Once
again, a working computer was noted as still being some distance in the future and the difficulties of
understanding how quantum computing works were again discussed (e.g. BBC Online, January 2014).
5 Conditional acceptance
The media reporting of quantum technologies has proposed public views which are typical arguments
around conditional acceptance of emerging technology. These views reported on quantum technology
are relevant to all the technology areas and include:

Concerns regarding benefits vs. risks of technology (e.g. Comment 2, Telegraph article, 9
March 2014)

Awareness of industry and business involvement in developing the technologies (e.g. CBR
article, 3 September 2012)

A focus on the technology answering specific societal needs (e.g. Guardian article, 17 March
2005)

A preference for incremental solutions for addressing needs

Technology in itself is not a solution to complicated social and environmental problems (e.g.
Wired.com article, 22 March 2010)

Technology needs to be good value for money

Technology needs to be properly regulated.
5
Public attitudes to quantum technology
3 Analysis of views
The bulk of the reportage that was uncovered during research tended to be around the quantum
computing and secure communications. These had the most “strong” views in terms of concerns about
personal privacy and security whereas the other technologies had fewer opinions expressed about
them and reportage was limited to “factual” reporting about the development of the technology and
comments tended to express conditional acceptance-type views.
To summarise the emerging themes above:

The view that “Quantum computing and secure communications are both semi-permanently
‘on the horizon’”; when it first appeared in the media (in the early 2000s), it was an exciting
new technology that had yet to be developed, a situation that apparently continues fourteen
years later. There are examples of both frustrations that the technology hasn’t yet appeared
and optimism about what may happen in the near future. This persists despite the
improvements made in the technology that underpins quantum computing and
communications which is underplayed in the media.

Reporting of the uses for quantum computing and secure communications focus on their
probable applications in decryption and the implications this is likely to have for financial
systems and national security. Although they never quite go away, security concerns came
back into prominent focus in early 2014, when the NSA was revealed to be building a quantum
computer.

Quantum technology is acknowledged to be an extremely difficult topic to understand and
explain; blog posts that set out to explain it note that it is almost impossible to describe in
simple terms. It is also difficult to indisputably demonstrate: there is a strong strand of
discussion from experts and researchers on whether the only commercially available quantum
computer is actually harnessing quantum effects and how effective the technology is which
indicates the complexity of the technology being discussed.

There is also evidence of conditional acceptance of the emerging technologies with a
spread of views as outlined above, particularly regarding the less-widely-reported technologies
(metrology, sensors and simulations).
In conclusion, a summary of public views on quantum technology (as far as can be drawn from the
sources available) is that the technology is an exciting, potentially highly significant, but not well
understood new technology. An emerging opinion is that computing and secure communications have
some serious implications for the security of data and issues of personal privacy emerge with later
news stories involving the US National Security Agency (see point 4 in the previous chapter).
These views seem relatively consistent over time – the same themes emerge in the media as stories
develop with ‘what is quantum computing?’ (for example) recurring as the technology gradually
advances.
6
Public attitudes to quantum technology
4 Gap analysis
Reflections from a researcher:
A researcher that took part in the Day of Discovery event in 2014 (organised by Ipsos MORI in
London) reflects on her experience:
“When I was at the Day of Discovery event, almost every participant came to ask me about quantum
computing after hearing that I did my doctorate on a related subject. So my impression is that the
public is somewhat uninformed but fascinated by the concept / technology.”
This is just one, anecdotal, example but illustrates the potential public interest in this area.
Given the lack of available evidence about public attitudes to quantum technology, there are likely to
be benefits from better understanding of the views of the public with this area and to do some
exploration of attitudes and values relating to this and connected topics. This is very timely considering
the announcement of new public investment in this area and increasing coverage of these
technologies in the media with work done by researchers in the UK and overseas by companies like
Google and D-Wave and bodies such as the NSA. Given the lack of understanding of publics’ views
on this subject area, and the £270m of public investment within the very near future, there is a strong
argument for deliberative dialogue to understand the views of the public around the applications of
quantum technology.
The EPSRC National Network of Quantum Technology Hubs Call document outlines the existing
commitment to responsible innovation and specifically mentions two-way dialogue (amongst other
public engagement activities) and so an opportunity to explore public attitudes to these technologies
will exist in the near future:
“EPSRC is fully committed to develop and promote responsible innovation. It is expected that the
Quantum Technology Hubs will undertake an active programme of education, stakeholder
engagement, public engagement and two-way dialogue with wider social groups.”
A future public dialogue relating to quantum technologies might want to consider the following as a
starting point: “What are the issues that quantum technology (and its applications) raise?”
As the levels of discussion in the mainstream media remain relatively basic (or, rather, as basic as
coverage can be considering such complicated science), there is work to be done in engaging the
public with the science involved (and the applications of the technology). The challenge is to
understand the advances in technology and how they might begin to affect computing,
communications, research and industry, its impact on society and then to gather public attitudes
relating to this.
7
Public attitudes to quantum technology
Appendix 1: summary of sources of information
Topic
Title
Type
Producer
Date
Quantum
computinggeneral
When the revolution is digitised, will
there be enough work for us all?
Comment from
public on
comment
piece for
newspaper
Article: Roger
Bootle for The
Telegraph
9 March
2014
Quantum
computinggeneral
Video: A first look inside Google &
NASA's quantum computing lab
Comments on
news
Article: James
Vincent for
The
Independent
14 Oct
2013
Quantum
computinggeneral
Quantum computing explained:
Harnessing particle physics to work
faster
Comment on
blog post
The Guardian
Tech Blog
Article: 6
March
2014
Comment on
news
Article: Allan
Swann for
CBR, your
tech social
network
Article: 3
Sept
2012
Comment on
blog post
Blog post by
Kevin Kwang
for ZDNet
3 Sept
2012
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comme
nt/rogerbootle/10685682/Roger-BootleWill-there-be-enough-work-to-goround.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/lifestyle/gadgets-and-tech/news/video-a-firstlook-inside-google--nasas-quantumcomputing-lab-8879787.html
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/
mar/06/quantum-computing-explainedparticlemechanics?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487
Quantum secure
communication
UK Scientists crack quantum
computing
http://www.cbronline.com/news/ukscientists-crack-quantum-computing030812
Quantum secure
communication
Quantum chip breakthrough to secure
mobile devices
http://www.zdnet.com/quantum-chipbreakthrough-to-secure-mobile-devices7000003601/
NOT UK
EDITION
Quantum secure
communication
Race is on to make quantum
teleportation a reality
News
Adam Mann
for
wired.co.uk
4 Oct
2012
News and
comment on
news
Duncan
Geere for
wired.co.uk
14
March
2011
News
Katie Collins
for
wired.co.uk
3 Jan
2014
News and
comment on
news
Khadim
Shubber for
wired.co.uk
7 May
2013
Comment on
The Guardian
Article:
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201210/04/quantum-teleportation/viewall
Quantum secure
communication
First photon qubit routed, paving the
way for a quantum internet
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201103/14/photon-qubit-routed
Quantum secure
communication
NSA working on building an
encryption-busting quantum computer
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201401/03/nsa-quantum-computer
Quantum secure
communication
US government lab unveils fully-secure
quantum internet system
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201305/7/quantum-internet
Quantum
Google: 'Where will future quantum
8
Public attitudes to quantum technology
computinggeneral
computer scientists come from? Our
best guess: Minecraft'
news
Tech Blog
22 Oct
2013
Comment
piece by guest
writer
The Guardian,
News
17
March
2005
Blog post
The frontline
blog
1 Feb
2013
Comments on
a blog post
ZDNet
4 April
2012
Blog
Roland
Piquepaille for
ZDNet
19 May
2006
Comment on
blog post
Blog: Tom
Espiner for
Security
Bulletin on
ZDNet
15 Oct
2008
Blog post and
comment on
blog post
Karen Friars
for From both
sides
12 June
2007
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/20
13/oct/22/google-minecraft-qcraft-quantumphysics?commentpage=1
Quantum secure
communication
Quantum secure
communication
Second Sight
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/20
05/mar/17/comment.comment1
Cambridge boffins cast doubt on
quantum computing future
Author: Dave
Birch,
consultant on
electronic
transactions
http://www.v3.co.uk/v3-uk/the-frontlineblog/2240902/cambridge-boffins-castdoubt-on-quantum-computingfuture#disqus_thread
Quantum secure
communication
Researchers develop quantum
encryption method to foil hackers
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/security/researc
hers-develop-quantum-encryption-methodto-foil-hackers/11326
Quantum secure
communication
Quantum cryptography using qutrits
Quantum secure
communication
Toshiba developing quantum repeater
Quantum secure
communication
Are these wires the future of crypto?
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/q
uantum-cryptography-using-qutrits/250
http://www.zdnet.com/toshiba-developingquantum-repeater-4010009535/
http://www.zdnet.com/are-these-wires-thefuture-of-crypto-4010005478/
For ZDNet
Quantum secure
communication,
quantum
computing
A single-photon channel to space
Quantum secure
communication
Surveillance and the limits of GCHQ's
powers
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/asingle-photon-channel-to-space/878
Blog and
comment
Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
29
March
2008
Letter to
newspaper
Glyn C Evans,
Kenilworth,
Warwickshire,
writing to The
Guardian
23 June
2013
News
Jason Palmer
for BBC News
3 Aug
2012
News
Jason Palmer
for BBC News
20 Nov
2012
http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/jun/23
/surveillance-limit-gchq-powers
Quantum secure
communication
Quantum key distribution with single
photons
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-19097605
Quantum secure
communication
Quantum cryptography done on
standard broadband fibre
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-
9
Public attitudes to quantum technology
environment-13940928
Quantum secure
communication
‘Uncrackable’ codes set for step up
Quantum secure
communication
Tricking the perfect code machine
Quantum secure
communication
Does quantum mechanics offer the
best way to protect our most valuable
data?
News
Melissa
Hogenboom
for BBC News
4 Sept
2013
News
Steven
McGann for
BBC News
13 Aug
2011
News
Christopher
White for The
Independent
31
March
2011
Comment on
blog post
Blog: Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
2 Dec
2005
Blog
Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
2 Dec
2005
Blog and
comment
Chris
Jablonski for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
16 April
2009
News
Duncan
Geere for
wired.co.uk
2 Sept
2010
News
Tia Ghose for
wired.co.uk
8 Feb
2010
News
Lisa
Grossman for
wired.co.uk
13 May
2011
News
Sophie Curtis
for The
Telegraph
12 Feb
2014
Comment on a
guide
Edited Guide
entry for
H2G2 (The
16 Aug
2000
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-23946488
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology14505750
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/scienc
e/does-quantum-mechanics-offer-the-bestway-to-protect-our-most-valuable-data2257679.html
Quantum secure
communication
Six atoms in quantum 'cat' state
Quantum
metrology
Six atoms in quantum 'cat' state
Quantum
metrology
New atomic clock loses only a second
every 300 million years
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/si
x-atoms-in-quantum-cat-state/94
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/si
x-atoms-in-quantum-cat-state/94
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/n
ew-atomic-clock-loses-only-a-secondevery-300-million-years/1456
Quantum
metrology
Scientists create 'Quantum Cats' out of
light
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201009/02/scientists-create-quantum-cats-outof-light
Quantum
metrology
Quantum logic clock puts old atomic
clock to shame
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201002/08/quantum-logic-clock-puts-old-atomicclock-to-shame
Quantum
metrology
Quantum calculations can make
atomic clocks of the future far more
accurate
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201105/13/better-atomic-clock/viewall
Quantum
metrology
UK pioneers new technology to
combat GPS jamming
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/new
s/10631705/UK-pioneers-new-technologyto-combat-GPS-jamming.html
Quantum
metrology
A Chronology of Time
10
Public attitudes to quantum technology
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/placelondon/A395273
Quantum
sensors
Quantum image sensors coming to
phone cameras
Guide to Life,
the Universe
and
Everything) on
BBC.co.uk
News
Priya
Ganapati for
wired.co.uk
22
March
2010
News and
comment
Priya Ganapati
for wired.com
22
March
2010
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/201003/22/quantum-image-sensors-coming-tophone-cameras
Quantum
sensors
Quantum Technology Promises
Wedding Photos From Phone
Cameras
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/03/q
uantum-dot-images/
Quantum
sensors
Quantum key distribution with single
photons
NOT UK
EDITION
News
Jason Palmer
for BBC News
3 Aug
2012
Blog
Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
6 Dec
2005
Blog
Lucy Sheriff
for Qubits and
Pieces on
ZDNet
18 May
2012
Blog
Chris
Jablonski for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
16 April
2009
Blog
Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
18 Jan
2007
Blog
Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
18 July
2006
News
Jason Palmer
and Alex
Mansfield for
BBC News
28 Jan
2013
News
Jason Palmer
for BBC News
13 Aril
2012
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-19097605
Quantum
sensors
Quantum dots to detect DNA
Quantum
sensors
Quantum dots boost graphene's
photodetector dreams
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/q
uantum-dots-to-detect-dna/98
http://www.zdnet.com/quantum-dots-boostgraphenes-photodetector-dreams4010026208/
Quantum
simulators
New atomic clock loses only a second
every 300 million years
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/n
ew-atomic-clock-loses-only-a-secondevery-300-million-years/1456
Quantum
simulators
The birth of quantum biology
Quantum
simulators
Painting a semi-conductor
Quantum
simulators
Quantum biology: Do weird physics
effects abound in nature?
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/th
e-birth-of-quantum-biology/465
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/p
ainting-a-semiconductor/296
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-21150047
Quantum
simulators
Quantum computing: Is it possible,
should you care?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-17688257
11
Public attitudes to quantum technology
Quantum
simulators
Elusive magnetic ‘monopole’ seen in
quantum system
News
James Morgan
for BBC News
30 Jan
2014
News
Jason Palmer
for BBC News
24
March
2011
News
Metro
14 Dec
2012
Blog and
comment
Roland
Piquepaille for
Emerging
Tech on
ZDNet
27 Aug
2006
Comment on
news article
Article:
Christopher
Booker for
The
Telegraph
Article:
27 Dec
2008
Blog
Lucy Sheriff
for Qubits and
Pieces on
ZDNet
1 May
2012
News
James
Morgan and
Jonathan
Amos for BBC
News
9 Oct
2013
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-25946734
Quantum
simulators
Quantum physics explanation for smell
gains traction
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-12827893
Quantum
simulators
Quantum computers: The start of an
intergalactic internet?
http://metro.co.uk/2012/12/14/quantumcomputers-the-start-of-an-intergalacticinternet-3316352/
Quantum
simulators
Data mining used to find new materials
Quantum
simulators
2008 was the year man-made global
warming was disproved
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/emergingtech/d
ata-mining-used-to-find-new-materials/336
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/colum
nists/christopherbooker/3982101/2008was-the-year-man-made-global-warmingwas-disproved.html
Quantum
simulators
300 atom quantum simulator smashes
qubit record
http://www.zdnet.com/300-atom-quantumsimulator-smashes-qubit-record4010026044/
Quantum
simulators
Computer chemists win Nobel Prize
Quantum
computing
From science fiction to science fact
Newspaper
Belfast
Newsletter
20 June
2002
Quantum
computing
Quantum computing is set to
revolutionise the way we work.
Trouble.
Newspaper
Independent
26 Jan
2005
Quantum
computing
Obstacle for quantum computer
Newspaper
Guardian
14 July
2005
Quantum
computing
News narratives about nano S&T in
major US and non-US newspapers
(27(2)175)
Journal paper
Science
Communicatio
n (L.
Stephens)
1 Dec
2005
Quantum
computing
Computers about to take a quantum
leap into the future
Newspaper
Guardian
8 Feb
2007
Quantum
computing
Will the QC kill the PC?
Newspaper
Daily
Telegraph
1 July
2008
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-24458534
12
Public attitudes to quantum technology
Quantum
computing
Quantum computing for everyone
Quantum
computing
Quantum
computing
Blog
Michael
Nielsen
28 Aug
2008
Quantum computing could be
enormous. Because it’s very tiny
Newspaper
Daily
Telegraph
18 Dec
2008
Quantum computing: Is it possible and
should you care?
Website
BBC Online
13 April
2012
Blog
Nature Blogs
(Geoffrey
Brumfiel)
17 Aug
2012
Newspaper
Financial
Times
Sept
2012
http://michaelnielsen.org/blog/quantum
-computing-for-everyone/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-17688257
Quantum
computing
D-Wave quantum computer solves protein
folding problem
http://blogs.nature.com/news/2012/08/
d-wave-quantum-computer-solvesprotein-folding-problem.html
Quantum
computing
Quantum chip breakthrough to be unveiled
Quantum
computing
Understanding quantum computers is
more difficult than working out The
Matrix
Newspaper
Metro
14 Dec
2012
Quantum
computing
Quantum computer passes speed test
Blog
Nature Blogs
(Nicola Jones)
9 May
2013
Quantum
computing
NASA buys into ‘quantum’ computer
Website
BBC
16 May
2013
Quantum
computing
Google and NASA launch quantum
computing AI lab
Website
MIT
Technology
Review
16 May
2013
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/1410dc2cf383-11e1-b3a200144feabdc0,Authorised=false.html?_
i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.co
m%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2F1410dc2cf383-11e1-b3a200144feabdc0.html%3Fsiteedition%3D
uk&siteedition=uk&_i_referer=#axzz2tI
7s4b4A
http://blogs.nature.com/news/2013/05/
quantum-computer-passes-speedtest.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-22554494
http://www.technologyreview.com/new
s/514846/google-and-nasa-launchquantum-computing-ai-lab/
Quantum
computing
Boffins make a quantum leap towards
superfast computers
Newspaper
Independent
18 Nov
2013
Quantum
computing
Quantum memory world record smashed
Website
BBC Online
18 Nov
2013
Quantum
computing
Nobel laureate celebrates £270m
investment into quantum research
Newspaper
City AM
6 Dec
2013
Quantum
computing
Quantum leap towards commercial
applications
Newspaper
Daily
Telegraph
6 Dec
2013
Quantum
£11m space technology centre named
Newspaper
Independent
6 Dec
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-24934786
13
Public attitudes to quantum technology
computing
after UK scientist behind ‘God particle’
Quantum
computing
Osborne has pledged £270m over five
years for the setting up of a network of
quantum technology centres
Newspaper
Guardian
6 Dec
2013
Quantum
computing
D-Wave CEO Vern Brownell on Quantum
Computing and tackling tech’s big
problems
Video
(Website)
TechCrunch
23 Dec
2013
Blog
ShtetlOptimized
(Scott
Aaronson)
24 Dec
2013
Website
VentureBeat
(Christina
Farr)
27 Dec
2013
Blog
ReadWrite
(Lauren
Orsini)
30 Dec
2013
Blog (Video)
MIT CSAIL
(Scott
Aaronson)
30 Dec
2013
Newspaper
Washington
Post
2 Jan
2014
Website
Gizmodo
2 Jan
2014
Website
BBC Online
3 Jan
2014
Website
BBC Online
17 Jan
2014
2013
http://techcrunch.com/2013/12/23/dwave-ceo-quantum-computing-vernbrownellinterview/?ncid=twittersocialshare
Quantum
computing
My quantum computing research
explained, using only the most common
1000 English words
http://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/?p
=1628
Quantum
computing
D-Wave: Multimillion dollar sham or
quantum breakthrough?
http://venturebeat.com/2013/12/27/dwave-a-multimillion-dollar-sham-orquantum-breakthrough-interview/
Quantum
computing
How D-Wave could make or break
quantum computing
http://readwrite.com/2013/12/30/dwave-quantumcomputing#awesm=~otRGd1r9vGIV7j
Quantum
computing
Does quantum computing seem too
complicated?
https://www.csail.mit.edu/node/2138
Quantum
computing
NSA seeks to build quantum computer that
could crack most types of encryption
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/
national-security/nsa-seeks-to-buildquantum-computer-that-could-crackmost-types-ofencryption/2014/01/02/8fff297e-719511e3-8defa33011492df2_story.html?Post+generi
c=%3Ftid%3Dsm_twitter_washingtonp
ost
Quantum
computing
The NSA’s trying to build a quantum
computer so it can break any code
http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2014/01/thensas-trying-to-build-a-quantumcomputer-so-it-can-break-any-code/
Quantum
computing
NSA developing code-cracking quantum
computer
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology25588605
Quantum
computing
Study doubts quantum computer speed
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-
14
Public attitudes to quantum technology
environment-25787226
Quantum
computing
Hack the multiverse (D-Wave company
blog)
Blog
D-Wave
http://dwave.wordpress.com/
15
Public attitudes to quantum technology
Appendix 2: Google scholar searches on ‘public
opinion’ together with following search-terms:

Quantum

Quantum Secure Communications
o digital keys
o quantum key distribution
o quantum communication technologies
o (distributed) quantum entanglement
o quantum-secure database query
o (distributed) quantum information processing
o scalable network architectures

Quantum Metrology
o atomic clocks AND GPS

Quantum Sensors

Quantum Simulators
o Quantum AND drug
o Quantum AND superconductivity
o Quantum AND health
o Quantum AND “trapped atoms” OR ions OR molecules
o Quantum AND “multiple photons”
o Quantum AND “superconducting circuits”
o Quantum AND “electron spins”
16