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Famous mock musician David St. Hubbins once said, Theres a fine line between stupid and clever. On one side of the line is an endless celebration of genius. On the other: failure and ignominy.

The tech industry has no choice but to embrace innovation and risk taking. As such, some innovations start out looking crazy but end up being brilliant. Others start out looking just as crazy and implode under the weight of their own insanity.

In that light, here are seven next-horizon ideas that ride that fine line between amazing and amazingly stupid. The developers of these innovations might prove to be crackpots or they could turn out be insanely great. The technology could end up being a blackhole for venture cash or a savvy play for business value emerging along the fringe. It all depends on your perspective.

Of all the out-there technologies, nothing gets more press than quantum computers and nothing is spookier. The work is done by a mixture of physicists and computer scientists fiddling with strange devices at super-cold temperatures. If it requires liquid nitrogen and lab coats, well, its got to be innovation.

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6 'crackpot' technologies that might transform IT - CIO

() recently changed its name from Clear Leisure, which was more than a cosmetic alteration. Our investment programme is focused on selecting the most innovative and out-of-the-box start-ups in the blockchain and cryptocurrencies sector, with whom we will work alongside to develop exciting synergies, it said.

Below is an abridged transcript from a recent conversation with chairman Francesco Gardin, which provides a flavour of what is planned. After that is a brief explainer on quantum computing.

Let's focus on quantum [computing] first. There are few things that changed the course of mankind. Recently we witnessed the digital revolution; in the early 60s, computers were basically invented thanks to the transistor. And we are now very close to a similar revolution. [Quantum computers] could do something which are orders of magnitude superior to our digital computers. So, when you have this unlimited amount of computing power, you have no more boundaries to what you can do.

We are building a new team. If you want to use an analogy, then Formula 1 is a good one. We are trying to build the number-one car. So, we need a workshop, excellent engineers, and excellent drivers. And that is exactly what we're doing. We're setting up a workshop. Of course, it will not be a physical one, but a very well-protected data centre. We are setting up a team of experts; former students from the UCL in London and physicists from Milan University. So, we are putting together an excellent team of experts to work on our R&D. We are already working in the direction of using quantum computers and deep learning to explore mega terabytes of data related to, for example, cryptocurrencies and designing new ASIC chips. So, I mean the amount of R&D that we're going to pour into this company is massive.

Our strategy is one where we will deliver intermediate results that are very attractive not only for our own use but might also be useful for other companies too. So, some of our research will be medium- and long-term. Other parts of our research will be short-term that can be exploited with the right partner.

The mechanical and electrical interaction of a traditional computer can be distilled down to an on-off switch; or the ones and zeros that make up the binary code that powers the digisphere. These are called bits. Quantum computers use quantum bits or qubits and tap into the unique ability of subatomic participles to exist in more than one state at the same time. Insert exploding head emoji here. Long story short, using superposition (the aforementioned ability to exist in multiple states) and a process called entanglement (really, dont ask theres a link here), quantum computers can handle exponentially more data than the current supercomputers.

Quantum computers are exceedingly difficult to engineer, build and programme, an article in the Scientific American says.

As a result, they are crippled by errors in the form of noise, faults and loss of quantum coherence, which is crucial to their operation and yet falls apart before any nontrivial program has a chance to run to completion.

Its the point at which the quantum computer outperforms a traditional supercomputer.

Google in 2019 claimed it had passed the supremacy milestone one identified as early as the 1980s. This is a wonderful achievement. The engineering here is just phenomenal, Peter Knight, a physicist at Imperial College London to the NewScientist magazine. It shows that quantum computing is really hard but not impossible. It is a stepping-stone toward a big dream.

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Quantum Blockchain Technologies could help transform the digital economy as we know it - Proactive Investors UK

It seems in ancient Greece there was a man named Gordias, who devised a rope knot so large and complicated no one could untangle it.The claim was that the person who could undo the Gordian knot would become master of Asia.Then Alexander the Great showed up and with one swift sure stroke of his sword, cut the knotand subsequently, true to prophecy, made himself master of Asia.

Likewise, quantum computers are poised to cut the knot that has tied up supply chain management for centuries, and has made responding to the need to surge manufacturing or production of any commodity, highly problematicthat is, until now.

Where to get the supplies and components you need, and how, to make a product or provide a service can be challenging enough.When you also try to forecast how much youll need in future, it can become overwhelming.Just ask a lithium-ion battery maker trying to get the minerals he needs from the other end of the world; or an auto manufacturer facing todays microchip shortage.Ask any defense contractor who depends on a single supplier of a key component, what he or she will do if that supplier goes out of business.When the usual routes youve sweated to create for getting and keeping your crucial supply chains suddenly break down, the scramble to find replacements and alternatives can be all-consuming, while everything waitsand your companys fate hangs in the balance.

In some cases, its the fate of the nation.Supply-chain issues nearly ground Americas mobilization in World War Two to a halt in its early stages; untangling the COVID vaccines supply chain were among the biggest headaches faced by Operation Warp Speed.

A worker pulls a pallet of boxes containing doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at a warehouse in ... [+] Santiago, Chile, Wednesday, March 3, 2021. The Chilean Health Ministry received on Wednesday its largest shipment to date of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)

How can quantum computers help?Quantum computers are exceptionally good at solving optimization problems.These are problems where you are looking for the best of many possible combinations of variables, such as whats the most efficient route I need to deliver a stack of packages to multiple cities; or whats the quickest, cheapest way to get the components I need to manufacture my product, including the best possible alternative sources if my main suppliers run out.These are also puzzles that classical computers, even super computers, cant figure out.

But quantum computers will. Thanks to the unique properties of the quantum bits or qubits that are linked up or entangled for processing dataincluding being in two different physical states at oncethese machines will be able to solve the supply chain or logistical problems that stump a classical computer.

Fortunately, however, we dont have to wait until large-scale quantum computers are available.So-called quantum annealers like the one Canada-based D-Wave Systems, Inc. uses, are able to calculate the lowest energy level between the qubits different states of entanglement, which equals the optimal solution.D-Wave has used this method successfully to address traffic flow problems for Volkswagen in both Beijing and Lisbon.

The Japanese company Fujitsu has even developed a digital annealer that mimics the processing of a quantum annealerso much so that it can tackle the knotty supply chain problems that used to elude managers. The company thats proving it is American-based Entanglement, Inc., which has teamed with Fujitsu to use the annealer to tackle supply inventory problems for the U.S. Army.

Recently the Entanglement-led team moved on to Arizona to tackle an even more urgent problem: how to manage COVID vaccination operations at the state level, including handling widely dispersed inventories of the vaccine.Theyve been able to use the digital annealer to dispel some of the fog of crisis management by helping with decisions about where vaccines are needed most, how to distribute vaccines most equitably, and how vaccine distribution operations can be optimized.The flexibility built into the annealer model means Entanglement could take on these challenges on a national, even global, level.

Supply chain management, and the allocation of strategic commodities like steel and copper, almost derailed the biggest and most important manufacturing surge in American history, the mobilization for World War Two. Its amazing to think what would have happened if executives had had a quantum computer, or annealer, at their disposal, and how the breakthroughs that resulted would have shortened the war.

Thanks to annealing, what would have been a miracle then, is reality now.And what happens when full-scale quantum computers are turned loose on our toughest optimization problems?Cutting the Gordian knot made Alexander the master of Asia.Could cutting the supply chain management knot once and for all make American industry the master of the global economy?

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Quantum Technology: Cutting The Supply Chain Knot - Forbes

Credit: University of Twente

Light that is sent into a photonic crystal, cant go deeper than the so-called Bragg length. Deeper inside the crystal, light of a certain color range can simply not exist. Still, researchers of the University of Twente, the University of Iowa and the University of Copenhagen managed to break this law. They steer light into a crystal, using a programmed pattern, and demonstrate that it will reach places far beyond the Bragg length. They publish their findings in Physical Review Letters.

Photonic crystals have a regular pattern of nano pores etched in silicon. They are typically designed to work as a mirror for a certain color range of light. Inside the crystal, light of those colors is forbidden. Even if youd be able to place an atom inside the crystal, that typically emits one color, it will stop emitting light. The so-called Bragg length is the maximum distance light is allowed to travel, according to a well-known physics law.

This property can be used for creating perfect mirrors for certain wavelengths, but it also helps improving solar cells. Still, if there is a sign that says forbidden anywhere, then it is always tempting to go there. This is what the researchers did, they proved that light can penetrate the photonic crystal, much deeper than the Bragg length.

They managed to do this by using light that was pre-programmed, and by using the small imperfections that always come with creating nanostructures. These imperfections cause light waves to be scattered randomly inside the crystal. The researchers program the light in such a way that every location inside the photonic crystal can be reached. They even demonstrate a bright spot at five times the Bragg length, where light is enhanced100 times instead of decreased 100 to 1000 times.

This remarkable result can be used for creating stable quantum bits, for a light-driven quantum computer. The forbidden effect can also be employed in miniature on-chip light sources and lasers.

The research was done in theComplex Photonics group of Professor Willem Vos. The group is part of UTs MESA+ Institute. The first author, Ravitej Uppu, who worked in this group earlier on, is now a Professor at the University of Iowa. The research collaboration was continued, also together with the University of Copenhagen. It was supported by Dutch Research Council (NWO) programs Stirring of Light, Free form scattering optics and Self-assembled icosahedral quasicrystals with a band gap for visible light, by the Applied Nanophotonics section of the MESA+ Institute and the Center for Hybrid Quantum Networks of the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen.

Reference: Spatially Shaping Waves to Penetrate Deep inside a Forbidden Gap by Ravitej Uppu, Manashee Adhikary, Cornelis A.M. Harteveld and Willem L. Vos, 27 April 2021, Physical Review Letters.DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.126.177402

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Breaking the Laws of Physics: Steering Light to Places It Isnt Supposed to Go - SciTechDaily

Madison is increasingly being noticed as a hub of tech innovation, inspired in part by UWMadison technology and graduates. Photo: Bryce Richter

From February through June, we will highlight the ways that UWMadison powers the states economy through research and innovation, educates the next generation and reaches out to Wisconsinites to improve their lives. Aprils theme is Innovation. Watch for more at #CantStopABadger and #UWimpact on social media.Your supportcan help us continue this work.

The strong growth of Madisons technology sector is drawing attention nationwide.

The boom is fueled in part by UWMadison, which provides cutting-edge research, entrepreneurial graduates and researchers, and a well-educated local workforce that motivates some employers to open offices in Madison.

In 2020, the countrys biggest tech migration increase took place in Madison, according to LinkedIn data published by Big Technology on December 17, 2020.

Madisons technology labor market grew 47 percent from 2014-2019, based on data provided to Wisconsin Public Radio by Lexi Russell, associate director of research and analysis for CBRE, a San Francisco investment company that tracks national real estate trends.

In addition to these statistics that show real growth, Madisons growth potential stands out: In 2019, the Brookings Institution and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation ranked Madison first out of 35 cities with the potential to become innovation hubs.

Several big technology companies have had offices in Madison for years, drawn by collaborations and recruiting opportunities at UWMadison.

Jason Fields

Google, Zendesk, and Microsoft are all here and all recruiting, said Jason Fields, a six-term Wisconsin State Assembly member who has been president and CEO of the Madison Region Economic Partnership (MadREP) since January 2021.

Google opened its first Madison office in 2007 and now has over 100 employees in Madison; principal scientist and site leader Jeff Naughton, a former UWMadison professor of computer sciences, told the Cap Times in 2019 that the Madison office allows Google to hire UWMadison talent.

Zendesks Madison team has grown from 5 employees in 2013 to over 300 in 2021, and the Madison office is Zendesks Midwest regional hub.

Microsofts Gray Systems Lab (GSL) is based in Madison, and the GSL team collaborates on research projects with UWMadison graduates and faculty who are affiliated with the lab. The team designs, develops, and evaluates novel database system technologies, focusing on transitioning the most successful concepts into Azure Data products. Microsoft also owns Madison-based video game development studio Roundhouse Studios.

These large tech companies help anchor Madisons tech startup community, which is largely driven by UWMadison.

Jignesh Patel Photo by: David Tenenbaum

UWMadison computer sciences professor Jignesh Patels first three technology startups, spinoffs of his research, were acquired by Teradata in 1997, Twitter in 2013 and Pivotal in 2015. His fourth tech startup DataChat, founded in 2017, makes data science accessible to anyone. The company has 20 employees and recently received $4 million in funding from Silicon Valley venture capital firms.

To drum up enthusiasm for tech entrepreneurship among UWMadison students, Patel launched the venture creation program CS NEST and the Creative Destruction Lab. He says having big tech companies in Madison burnishes the citys image as a technology hub.

It helps to have Microsoft and Google with big labs here, building core and leading-edge computer science technologies right here in Madison, Patel said.

Fields cites an additional way in which UWMadison fuels the Madison areas tech sector growth: the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF)s support for startups.

WARF files patents, licenses university technologies and invests in companies, like C-Motive Technologies, said Fields. Madison-based C-Motive Technologies was founded by Dan Ludois and Justin Reed, who both hold PhDs from renowned UWMadison research group the Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium (WEMPEC).

WARF Ventures funds promising tech startups based on UWMadison research, including AIQ Solutions, which came out of the University of Wisconsin Translational Imaging Research Program.

AIQ is a great example of how UW researchers teamed up to find a novel solution to a real clinical problem, attracted investment from Wisconsin venture funds, and built a product, said WARF Chief Venture Officer Mike Partsch. The companys software platform has the potential to revolutionize how clinicians treat complex diseases, starting with metastatic cancer. AIQs ability to make early predictions about both treatment effectiveness and toxicity risk will ultimately extend lives, while decreasing the money spent on expensive yet ineffective drugs.

UWMadisons leadership and expertise in fusion technology and quantum computing are frequently sought out by investors, and WARF recently invested in quantum computing startup ColdQuanta, which uses UWMadison technology in its product and raised $35 million last year. UWMadison Physics professor and Director of the Wisconsin Quantum Institute Mark Saffman is the Chief Scientist for Quantum Information at ColdQuanta. Headquartered in Boulder, the company has an office in Madison.

Teams of UWMadison alumni who launched startups in Madison have had successful exits. In 2018, ResMed acquired Madison-based Propeller Health, a maker of smart inhalers founded by UWMadison alumni, for $225 million. UWMadison alumnus Brian Raffel and his brother Steve sold Raven Software to Activision in 1997, and the company continues to produce video games for such well-known franchises as Call of Duty and Star Wars.

The Madison Region and UWMadison have produced great leaders in our tech space, said Fields. People understand that these well-known video games and other technologies were created in Wisconsin, and Madison is a great place to work, play, live long-term, and raise a family. These are the assets we have that I think draw people here.

Fields points out that its important to appeal to a diverse variety of tech workers who may want to move to Madison.

We all know the pitch to the guy from Stanford, but whats the pitch to the African-American, Latinx, or Hmong person to get them here? We have to send a message that everybody is welcome here, said Fields, who is also an angel investor and has personally invited the African-American founders whose companies he has invested in to move their businesses to Madison. Were talking about innovation, technology, and a welcoming environment. To Generations X, Y, and Z, diversity is important.

Several MadREP programs are designed to support a healthy technology sector, attract tech workers to Madison, and support the local community.

Were working on a broadband initiative and housing, said Fields. We have to have broadband in our surrounding areas and send the message that we support remote work.

MadREP is also working on a housing fund in partnership with developers, to attract people who want to stay or relocate here, coupled with a revolving loan fund that does gap financing, so underserved entrepreneurs have access to capital. That includes businesses that surround the technology ecosystem.

That makes a community whole and feeds into the culture, said Fields, adding that MadREP is also focused on supporting longtime residents who can benefit from jobs in technology and from roles adjacent to the technology sector. Kids are phenomenal at technology, and we can show them that they can be a part of this community and be leaders of where this community goes, and if our older population needs to learn a new skill set, technology can help level the playing field.

At UWMadison, the Dream Up Wisconsin competition fosters tech innovation for social good, and 2021 winner ConnectRx Wisconsin is a partnership with Epic that aims to integrated Dane County healthcare and social service systems by building on existing electronic health record technology. Second place winner Opportunity Calculator hopes to develop a mobile platform to give workers fast, accurate information about how career and training opportunities could affect their net incomes. Both teams have diverse leadership and community partners.

DreamUp Wisconsin offers the exciting opportunity for area innovators to apply tech-based strategies to increase the income of 10,000 Dane County residents, said director and UWMadison professor Lonnie Berger. We couldnt be more proud of the winning teams accomplishments and their commitment to both increasing family incomes and decreasing racial disparities in income and employment.

UWMadison contributes $20.8 billion per year to the Wisconsin economy, and UWMadison related start-ups contribute an additional $10 billion. Read morehere.

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Madison's tech sector booms, driven by UW innovation UW-Madison provides cutting-edge research, entrepreneurial - University of Wisconsin-Madison