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Dancing with Qubits

You're reading from   Dancing with Qubits How quantum computing works and how it can change the world

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Product type Paperback
Published in Nov 2019
Publisher Packt
ISBN-13 9781838827366
Length 516 pages
Edition 1st Edition
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Author (1):
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Robert S. Sutor Robert S. Sutor
Author Profile Icon Robert S. Sutor
Robert S. Sutor
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Table of Contents (16) Chapters Close

Preface
1 Why Quantum Computing? FREE CHAPTER 2 They’re Not Old, They’re Classics 3 More Numbers than You Can Imagine 4 Planes and Circles and Spheres, Oh My 5 Dimensions 6 What Do You Mean ‘‘Probably’’? 7 One Qubit 8 Two Qubits, Three 9 Wiring Up the Circuits 10 From Circuits to Algorithms 11 Getting Physical 12 Questions about the Future Afterword
Other Books You May Enjoy Appendices

3.4 Rational numbers

The rational numbers, denoted Q, take care of the problem of the integers not being closed under division by non-zero values.

3.4.1 Fractions

Let’s start by talking about fractions, also known as the rational numbers, the way you may have been first introduced to them. This is elementary but useful to review to relate to what we have in the big picture with Q.

Given a loaf of bread, if we cut it right down the middle, we say we have divided it into halves. Fraction-wise, one-half = 1/2. The two halves equal one whole loaf, so 1/2 + 1/2 = 2 × 1/2 = 1. Two halves is 2/2, which is 1. Four halves would make two loaves: 4/2 = 2.

Considering whole loaves, 1/1 is one loaf, 2/1 is two loaves, and 147/1 is one hundred and forty-seven loaves. We can represent any integer n as a fraction inline math.

To multiply fractions, we multiply the tops (numerators) together and put those over the product (the result of multiplication) of the bottoms (denominators...

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