June 4, 2007 fun

A really bad optimization

I always knew that the scientists would optimize away sending the matter when all they need is to send the state:

A team of physicists has teleported data over a distance of 89 miles from the Canary Island of La Palma to the neighbouring island of Tenerife, which is 10 times further than the previous attempt at teleportation through free space. The scientists did it by exploiting the spooky” and virtually unfathomable field of quantum entanglement - when the state of matter rather than matter itself is sent from one place to another.” [ed: emphasis mine]

Sure. And what do they do with the matter at the original end? Do they leave it alive work another job, but only pay one set of taxes? I don’t think so…