IBM exec discusses latest computer advancements
QUEENSBURY, N.Y. » Computer programmers beware.
A new generation of “smart” quantum computers that think for themselves is about to replace classical computers, which could eventually make programming obsolete.
IBM Senior Vice President John Kelly III discussed such the potential of such world-changing advancements in “The Era of Cognitive Com-
puting and Artificial Intelligence” at Warren County Economic Development Corporation’s annual luncheon, at Great Escape Lodge.
“We are at incredible point in time, not just for technology, but for society,” he said told more than 250 area business leaders. “Quantum computers will solve problems classical computers could never solve. With a few hundred cubits we can do more calculations than billions of transistors. When these systems hit, computers will do calculations that we as humans can hardly imagine. All we have to do is give the computer data and it will train itself.”
IBM recently installed the world’s fastest super-computer, called Summit, at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.
Work there covers a wide variety of areas including materials research for new energy and new aircraft, solar energy, research with pharmaceutical companies for drug discovery, plus other medical healthcare applications. “It’s basically open science,” Kelly said. “Industry and academia across the United States now have access to the world’s fastest computer. It’s a race. Countries that build the best artificial intelligence are going to win big time.”
Locally, IBM in partnership with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and The Fund for Lake George, has been involved the past several years with an environmental initiative called The Jefferson Project.
A network of high-tech sensors have been placed throughout the length of Lake George, which give scientists a real-time view of everything affecting the water, from weather to human impacts such as road salt and stormwater runoff that carries various pollutants Researchers can see where substances enter the lake and then track their movement.
The ultimate goal is to provide clear evidence of negative impacts, followed by corrective steps to preserve the lake’s water quality.
“We now are finding hot spots around the lake and will help communities around the lake to address these issues,” Kelly said.
Lake George is a major contributor to the North Country economy, but this could quickly diminish of things such as algal blooms and invasive species discourage people from visiting.
The lake was chosen for the project because it’s a relatively closed ecological system, compared to bigger water bodies such as Lake Champlain, which is affected a great deal more by humans. This makes Lake George a good place for scientists to conduct their work.
The ultimate goal is use The Jefferson Project’s science around the world.
“Every freshwater body is under some kind of major stress,” Kelly said.