Education and Outreach

If quantum computing is to realize its promise in the near future, it needs a community of researchers, engineers, and programmers to fill the research gap between theoretical algorithms and physical hardware, design and build the compilers, control systems, and hardware, and program new applications. A major goal of the EPiQC Education and Outreach team, led by Diana Franklin, Danielle Harlow, and Randy Landsberg, is to grow this urgently-needed community of computer scientists for quantum computing.  We target two populations - current computer science researchers who are not yet in quantum computing and the next generation of researchers.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

We have two major types of learning opportunities. First, we have held a variety of tutorials (prior to the pandemic) co-located with major conferences in order to cross-train existing researchers in quantum systems research. Second, we have developed two EdX courses series, one for novices and one for more advanced learners.

TEACHING MATERIALS

We have developed several types of resources for teaching students, whether it is an outreach activity or a formal classroom. These materials range from activities like exploring measurement by scientifically determining the flavor of a jelly bean for 3rd-8th grade students to zines (pamphlets) that can be handed out to general audiences to videos for high school or early college students. Our materials all emphasize real-world analogies, visual representations, and minimal math in order to build engagement and confidence in broad audiences.