Canada's Trudeau explains quantum computing in viral video

WATERLOO, Ontario (AP) — A video of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau showing off his geek side by nailing a reporter's question about quantum computing is going viral.

Making a funding announcement Friday at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo, Ontario, Trudeau dared reporters to ask him about how quantum computing works.

One reporter took the bait and Trudeau responded with a mini-lesson. The former teacher explained that a regular computer is a binary system, with a bit being "either a one or a zero, on or off," whereas a quantum state can be much more complex. He continued, "things can be both particle and waves" and the uncertainty around quantum states allows more information to be encoded into a much smaller computer.

And that, he added to laughter and applause, is "what's exciting about quantum computing."

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