What Are the Limits of Conventional Computing?

by Charles Seife Science, 1 Jul 2005 Mathematicians have shown that if you could come up with a quick and easy shortcut to solving any one of the hardest type of computational problems, you'd be able to crack them all. But it's uncertain whether such a shortcut exists. Scientists think not, but proving it is one of the great unanswered questions in mathematics. Read more