Quantum computing basics in Python, without the hype (opens in new tab)

Quantum computing is buried under hype, but the basics are concrete: a qubit is a vector, a gate is a matrix, and you can simulate small quantum circuits in plain Python with NumPy. You do not need a quantum computer to understand how one works. A qubit is a vector A classical bit is 0 or 1. A qubit is a combination of both, written as a 2-element vector of amplitudes: import numpy as np zero = np.array([1, 0]) # |0> one = np.array([0, 1]) # |1> # a superposition: equal parts |0> and |1> plus...