Latest news with #SorbonneUniversity
Daily Maverick
15-07-2025
- Science
- Daily Maverick
Breakthrough SA research promises quantum leap into our global future
This will be an entirely novel way of managing quantum information and will have revolutionary implications – we will be able to quickly solve very hard problems in fields such as chemistry, pharmacology, logistics, finance and many more. 'Beam me up, Scotty!' A brave new South African-led study aims to solve exactly the quantum physics challenge that the fictional starship Enterprise's transporter system is designed to overcome. Unfortunately, we're not looking to dematerialise people and put them together again somewhere else, which certainly would be very exciting. What we envisage, however, is far more fundamental: we're going to show people the future – and unlock South Africa's development potential. To make the nascent field of harnessing quantum entanglement viable, we – myself, a vibrant, young team of South African researchers and select international partners, including leading scientists from China's Huzhou University, France's Sorbonne University and Australia's Monash University – aim to practically demonstrate an entirely novel way for managing quantum information. This will have revolutionary implications: with quantum computing, which will be exponentially more powerful than current technology, we will be able to quickly solve very hard problems in fields such as chemistry, pharmacology, logistics, finance and many more. We will also be able to truly harness artificial intelligence – without the unsustainably huge energy price (environmentally speaking) that we currently pay for it. In quantum communications, it will enable long-distance links, essential for a global quantum network that is fundamentally secure. Our quantum physics research, which stands to offer manifest benefits for humanity, is generously funded to the tune of R2.5-million by the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust through its annual Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Award, for which I am the 2024 co-recipient. SA a potential global leader I envisage South Africa, which has no Silicon Valley of its own, becoming a leader in quantum software – much like apps on cellphones, but harnessing quantum technology. I see us creating a quantum-literate workforce that will realise our country's immense human potential and create human and economic opportunities that we cannot yet imagine. Allow me to explain. The big picture to consider is quantum as a new paradigm for future technologies. In the past decade or two, humanity has begun to harness the spooky property of quantum theory that had hitherto remained elusive: entanglement – a form of connecting particles no matter how far apart they are, enabling faster computing, more secure communications and measuring with higher precision. This is an extremely valuable resource, and I (and others around the world) believe that this promises an entirely new economy for our planet, one based on quantum technologies. South Africa has a national quantum strategy – into which significant resources are being poured – to not only move us into the quantum economy we believe is coming, but also position our country as a major global player. It's a very exciting time to be involved in this field; indeed, 2025 is Unesco's International Year of Quantum Science and Technology to celebrate the progress made so far, but also to highlight how quantum can be used to address grand societal challenges. Entanglement At the heart of this promise is an aspect of quantum called entanglement that physicist Albert Einstein himself deplored; in fact, he called it 'spooky'. Entanglement is the unusual, but proven idea that two particles can be connected and if you do something to one of them, this will be replicated in the other, regardless of the distance between them (in theory, they can be infinitely far apart). Entanglement holds enormous potential for the nascent field of quantum computing. Unlike in classical computing in which particles have only the binary, one-bit value of 1 or 0, in quantum computing, entanglement will allow particles to be 1 and 0 at the same time. This means that you can do multiple things with one bit (in quantum computing, called a qubit). Imagine going through a maze using classical computing: every time you arrive at a junction, you have to turn left or right, 1 or 0, and then choose again at the next junction and so on. With quantum computing, you can turn left and right, 1 and 0, and map out the maze's pathways many times faster. Entanglement is also fantastic for communications. Modern cryptography works on the principle of mathematical complexity – that a code is sufficiently complex that it cannot quickly be cracked – but it doesn't guarantee security. The Enigma machine of World War 2 proved that if your adversary has a machine you're unaware of, they can break your code. Quantum computers will be able to decipher mathematical codes with ease. However, entanglement offers an exciting solution, too: if I send you a particle and retain its entangled partner particle, and I change something about my particle, it will similarly change your particle. But if someone tries to intercept that message, according to the laws of physics, it will be destroyed; this will enable all communications to be fundamentally secure. Decay But, of course, all of this is easier said than done. This is because entanglement is very fragile and it begins to decay because of 'noise' – essentially, various kinds of disturbance – for example, temperature or atmospheric disturbances. To date, our efforts have been expended on trying to preserve entanglement from decay, and we have had very limited success in this regard. Think about Scotty in Star Trek, trying desperately to lock on to Captain Kirk and beam him safely back to the Enterprise; sometimes his transporter's capabilities have been tested by energy fluctuations, gravitational anomalies and other kinds of external forces. But this is where the Star Trek analogy ends. We need an alternative strategy, one that abandons the notion of preserving entanglement and asks: can we exchange information even though the link is decaying? Let's rather think of entanglement like a cellphone battery. Even though the battery is losing charge, the phone's apps will continue to work fully while there is power; the apps' functionality won't deteriorate along with the loss of charge. We have an idea on how to make this metaphor a reality: quantum topology. Essentially, topology allows us to ignore how something looks and instead focus on a feature of that 'something' that does not change. A famous example of topology is that of a coffee mug and a doughnut, which both feature one hole. Physically, they are very different, but topologically, they are the same. With the traditional alphabet (albeit including numbers), I would send you a 1 for the mug or a 0 for the doughnut, and you would receive the communication accordingly. Topologically, however, it doesn't matter how noisy the channel is, and if what I sent you has been deformed in any way, you would just count the number of holes in the information you receive: 0 for no holes, 1 for one hole, 2 for two holes, and so on. This represents a topological alphabet formed out of the topology of things rather than how they look. It has two fantastic features: it is an infinitely large alphabet, not just 0 and 1, and most importantly, it is intrinsically invariant to noise: it doesn't care how much the communication is distorted. In the quantum world, this would mean that the communication would be preserved, even though the entanglement is weakening. In our seminal academic paper in 2024, we showed that entanglement is inherently topological. What my team and I must now do is create a topological toolkit, with tools showing that topology can be used to communicate, regardless of entanglement decaying. What Einstein really disliked about entanglement is that, without measurement, objects are not real. The Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Award will allow us to dispel his doubt and unlock myriad possibilities that will largely only be revealed as we go. Spooky, indeed. DM Professor Andrew Forbes is a Distinguished Professor in the Structured Light Laboratory at the University of the Witwatersrand's School of Physics, and a co-recipient of the 2024 Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Award, presented on 15 July 2025. Established in 1958 by Harry Oppenheimer as an endowment trust to honour the memory of his father, Sir Ernest Oppenheimer, the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust (OMT) has recently undergone a strategic shift to better serve the sectors it supports, namely education, social justice and arts and culture.
The Star
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Resetting terms of engagement
Measured challenge: Anwar delivering his speech at Sorbonne University, where he let it be known that South-East Asia is done being spoken for, let alone spoken down to. Bernama IF the French were expecting a deferential guest, they did not get one. When Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim rose to speak at the Sorbonne on July 4, his address was both a nod to France's intellectual tradition and a measured challenge to its strategic assumptions. Woven with references to Sartre and Montesquieu, Camus and Tocqueville, and the Pirenne thesis to boot, it was a tour de force in intellectual diplomacy – at once appreciative and unsparing, gracious yet audacious. Billed as RM9.73 for the 1st month then RM13.90 thereafters. RM12.33/month RM8.63/month Billed as RM103.60 for the 1st year then RM148 thereafters. Free Trial For new subscribers only
Malaysiakini
05-07-2025
- Business
- Malaysiakini
Macron hails Anwar's visit to France as successful
French President Emmanuel Macron has described Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's two-day visit to France as a success, with the two nations reviving partnerships across all sectors. He said this was achieved through Anwar's high-level meetings with his French counterpart, François Bayrou, and other key officials, his speech at Sorbonne University, Paris, as well as his exchanges with civil society leaders and meetings with French businesses.
Malay Mail
05-07-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Macron hails Anwar's Paris visit as a success, says it revives high-level France-Malaysia ties after 15 years
PARIS, July 5 — French President Emmanuel Macron has described Malaysia's Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's two-day visit to France as a success, with the two nations reviving partnerships across all sectors. He said this was achieved through Anwar's high-level meetings with his French counterpart François Bayrou and other key officials, his important speech at Sorbonne University Paris as well as his exchanges with civil society leaders and meetings with French businesses. Macron also called the visit meaningful, as it had been 15 years since the last official visit by a high-ranking Malaysian official. He expressed delight to see both countries signing agreements in areas such as minerals and aircraft purchase. 'This visit is a success. We also heard your (Anwar) speech at the university and that is a very important moment,' he said during a joint press conference after holding a bilateral meeting with Anwar at the Elysee Palace here yesterday. Anwar had earlier delivered a lecture entitled 'Southeast Asia and Europe: Recalibrating the terms of engagement' at Sorbonne University Paris, where he called for an equal partnership on all grounds between Southeast Asia and Europe. Macron said France's ties with Malaysia and Asean were getting stronger, adding that his visit to Indonesia, Vietnam and Singapore in May this year was an indication of the revival. 'In Southeast Asia, I reiterated our support for regional electricity connectivity, including support for civil nuclear energy,' he added. Meanwhile, Anwar expressed hope that the French President would visit Malaysia after attending the 20th Francophonie Summit in Cambodia next year. He said bilateral ties between the countries were getting stronger with the commitment shown by the French government under Macron's leadership. 'Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia are buying more planes. And Sarawak is also strengthening its own airline by collaborating with France,' said Anwar, who is also the Finance Minister. At the same time, he expressed hope that French companies would continue to manufacture aeroplane parts in Malaysia. In the energy sector, Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) is working with partners from France in its joint ventures in Latin America and Africa. Earlier in the day, AirAsia signed an agreement to buy US$12.25 billion (RM51.72 billion) worth of long-range Airbus 321XLR aircraft, with deliveries confirmed by 2028. The Prime Minister also witnessed the memorandum of understanding exchange between 3P Capital Advisers and Ardian, a leading private investment firm from France, for the exploration of investment opportunities in the private markets. The private sector initiative can give Malaysians a wider access to alternative investments, Anwar said. Meanwhile, during his meeting with Imerys, an industrial mineral processing company that has been operating in Malaysia for over 25 years, Anwar said the company expressed its commitment to expand operations and support the development of a high-value, environmentally-friendly manufacturing sector in the country. In addition, Anwar held a meeting with the management of Arkema, a global leader in specialty chemicals, which is evaluating potential new investments in Malaysia. Anwar was accompanied on this visit by Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan, Transport Minister Anthony Loke, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Mohamad Sabu, Defence Minister Mohamed Khaled Nordin, and Investment, Trade, and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz. Also joining the delegation was Deputy Minister of Energy Transition and Water Transformation Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir. France remains one of Malaysia's top five trading partners within the European Union. In 2024, bilateral trade totalled RM15.95 billion (US$3.63 billion), with RM6.26 billion (US$1.49 billion) recorded between January and May this year. From France, Anwar heads to Brazil to attend the 17th BRICS Leaders' Summit from July 5 to 7. — Bernama
The Sun
05-07-2025
- Business
- The Sun
PM Anwar's France visit strengthens Malaysia-EU ties, new deals signed
PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron hailed Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's two-day visit as a success, marking a revival of bilateral cooperation across multiple sectors. The visit included high-level meetings, business engagements, and a keynote speech at Sorbonne University Paris. Macron noted the significance of the visit, the first by a high-ranking Malaysian official in 15 years. He highlighted key agreements, including mineral collaborations and aircraft purchases, as milestones in strengthening France-Malaysia relations. 'This visit is a success. We also heard your speech at the university, and that is a very important moment,' Macron said during a joint press conference at the Elysee Palace. Anwar's lecture at Sorbonne University, titled 'Southeast Asia and Europe: Recalibrating The Terms of Engagement,' called for equal partnerships between the regions. Macron reaffirmed France's commitment to ASEAN, citing his recent visits to Indonesia, Vietnam, and Singapore as part of broader regional engagement. Major deals were sealed during the visit. AirAsia signed a US$12.25 billion agreement for Airbus 321XLR aircraft, with deliveries expected by 2028. Additionally, Petronas expanded its joint ventures with French firms in Latin America and Africa. Anwar also witnessed an MoU between 3P Capital Advisers and Ardian, opening private investment opportunities for Malaysians. French industrial firms Imerys and Arkema pledged further investments in Malaysia, supporting sustainable manufacturing and specialty chemicals. Anwar expressed optimism about Macron's potential visit to Malaysia after the 2025 Francophonie Summit in Cambodia. France remains a top EU trade partner for Malaysia, with bilateral trade reaching RM15.95 billion in 2024. Anwar's delegation included key ministers, underscoring the strategic importance of the trip. The Prime Minister will next attend the BRICS Summit in Brazil. -BERNAMA
