Learning English Podcast - December 15, 2024
VOA Learning English Podcast - VOA Learning English
Deep Dive
What is Google's Willow processor capable of?
The Willow processor can perform computations in under five minutes that would take a fast supercomputer longer than the current age of the universe to complete. It uses 105 qubits and can correct errors in real time.
Why is error correction important in quantum computing?
Error correction is crucial because qubits, the units of data in quantum computing, are prone to errors. As more qubits are added to a chip, error rates can increase, making the chip less effective. Google's Willow chip has found a way to reduce error rates as the number of qubits increases.
What are the potential applications of quantum computing according to Google?
Google hopes quantum computers will one day solve problems in medicine, battery chemistry, and artificial intelligence that today's computers cannot handle.
What was Merriam-Webster's Word of the Year for 2024?
Merriam-Webster selected 'polarization' as its Word of the Year for 2024, reflecting the division in society during the U.S. presidential election.
Why did Oxford University Press choose 'brain rot' as its Word of the Year?
Oxford chose 'brain rot' because its usage increased by 230% from 2023 to 2024, reflecting concerns about the mental impact of over-consuming online content, particularly trivial or unchallenging material.
What is the significance of the Hartsdale Pet Cemetery?
Hartsdale is America's oldest pet cemetery, added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. It has been in operation since 1896 and has buried around 70,000 animals, including cats, dogs, and even exotic pets like a lion cub and a Bengal tiger.
How much does it cost to bury a pet at Hartsdale Pet Cemetery?
The cost for a pet burial at Hartsdale includes the individual site, burial, burial container, tombstone, and grounds care, totaling around $7,000.
What is the future continuous tense, and how is it used?
The future continuous tense is used to describe actions that will be ongoing at a specific time in the future. It is formed with 'will' + 'be' + the main verb with '-ing'. For example, 'I'll be working from noon until 6 p.m.'
What are some examples of expressions taught in the lesson of the day?
Expressions taught include 'interview', 'handy', 'scrapbook', 'wary of', 'venue', 'obsessed by', 'obsession', and 'hang out'.
- Google's Willow processor solved a major quantum computing error problem.
- The computation took under five minutes, a task impossible for current supercomputers.
- The research has no immediate commercial uses but holds promise for medicine, battery chemistry, and AI.
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