Google的 Willow 量子晶片改變了遊戲規則，但它並不是對比特幣的直接威脅

谷歌本週發布了Willow——一款超強大、最先進的晶片，改變了量子電腦遊戲。儘管科技愛好者為這項突破歡呼雀躍，但比特幣人群卻顯得更加平靜，有些人對區塊鏈的安全性表示擔憂。

Google dropped a major bomb this week with the unveiling of Willow – an ultrapowerful quantum computer chip that could change the game for bitcoin. While tech enthusiasts rejoiced at the breakthrough, some members of the bitcoin community expressed concerns about the blockchain's security.

谷歌本週投下了一枚重磅炸彈，推出了 Willow——一種超強大的量子電腦晶片，可能會改變比特幣的遊戲規則。儘管科技愛好者對這一突破感到高興，但比特幣社群的一些成員對區塊鏈的安全性表示擔憂。

So here's the lowdown on Willow, quantum computing, and what it actually means for the OG crypto.

以下是 Willow、量子計算的內幕，以及它對 OG 加密貨幣的實際意義。

What are quantum computers, exactly?

到底什麼是量子計算機？

Quantum computers are next-level machines that use the rules of quantum mechanics to solve problems that regular computers can't handle. Instead of normal “bits” that are either 0 or 1, quantum computers use “qubits”.

量子電腦是下一代機器，它利用量子力學規則來解決常規電腦無法處理的問題。量子電腦使用“量子位元”，而不是普通的 0 或 1“位元”。

Qubits can be 0 and 1 at the same time, and that makes them ridiculously good at crunching numbers. So with things like cryptography, simulations, or optimization problems – quantum computers can blow traditional ones out of the water.

量子位元可以同時為 0 和 1，這使得它們非常擅長處理數字。因此，對於密碼學、模擬或最佳化問題等問題，量子電腦可以擊敗傳統電腦。

And where does Google’s Willow fit in?

Google 的 Willow 適合用在哪裡呢？

Qubits are the building blocks of quantum computers, but they do have one big problem: they become unstable and error-prone when too many of them work together. Since quantum computers need lots of qubits to run, building them has always been a massive challenge.

量子位元是量子電腦的建構模組，但它們確實有一個大問題：當太多量子位元一起工作時，它們會變得不穩定且容易出錯。由於量子電腦需要大量量子位元才能運行，因此建造它們一直是一個巨大的挑戰。

That's what's so exciting about Willow. Put simply, it's a chip that helps these qubits play nice together – making them more “scalable”. In other words, Willow makes it easier to build big, powerful quantum computers that are far less mistake-prone.

這就是 Willow 令人興奮的地方。簡而言之，它是一種幫助這些量子位元協同工作的晶片，使它們更具「可擴展性」。換句話說，Willow 使得建造大型、強大且不易出錯的量子電腦變得更加容易。

Willow is fast, too: Google says it performed a “random circuit sampling (RCS)” calculation in under five minutes. To put that into perspective, the same calculation would take a regular supercomputer ten septillion years to solve (a really long time).

Willow 的速度也很快：Google表示，它在五分鐘內完成了「隨機電路取樣（RCS）」計算。從長遠來看，同樣的計算需要普通超級電腦花費十億年才能解決（非常長的時間）。

Now, Willow itself is made up of 105 qubits – which isn't exactly a record number. IBM's Condor processor, for example, has 1,121 qubits. But Willow's qubits are built in a much more stable and efficient way (quality over quantity), which puts it way ahead of the competition.

現在，Willow 本身由 105 個量子位元組成——這並不是一個創紀錄的數字。例如，IBM 的 Condor 處理器擁有 1,121 個量子位元。但 Willow 的量子位元是以一種更穩定和高效的方式建造的（質量勝於數量），這使其在競爭中遙遙領先。

Essentially: Willow is powerful – and it's a total game-changer for quantum computing.

本質上：Willow 非常強大——它徹底改變了量子計算的遊戲規則。

What does any of this have to do with bitcoin?

這與比特幣有什麼關係？

Right, to understand what Willow could mean for bitcoin, we first need to talk about mining – the process that secures the blockchain. Miners update the blockchain by trying to guess a random number called a “hash.” No single computer can guess the hash alone, but millions of mining machines working together can.

是的，為了理解 Willow 對比特幣意味著什麼，我們首先需要談談挖礦——保護區塊鏈的過程。礦工透過嘗試猜測一個稱為「哈希」的隨機數來更新區塊鏈。沒有一台計算機可以單獨猜測哈希值，但數百萬台礦機一起工作可以。

These mining machines run trillions of computations per second, and about every ten minutes, one miner successfully guesses the hash. That particular miner adds a new transaction block to the blockchain and earns some bitcoin as a reward. (That's also how new coins are created, by the way).

這些礦機每秒運行數萬億次計算，大約每十分鐘就有一名礦工成功猜出哈希值。該特定礦工為區塊鏈添加一個新的交易區塊並賺取一些比特幣作為獎勵。 （順便說一句，這也是新硬幣的創建方式）。

You can read all about mining in our bitcoin guide, but here's where the quantum computer fears come in. Some experts say that quantum computers could eventually overpower regular mining machines. And that could (in theory), give them some form of control over the blockchain – not a good thing.

您可以在我們的比特幣指南中閱讀有關挖礦的所有內容，但這就是對量子電腦的擔憂。這（理論上）可以讓他們對區塊鏈進行某種形式的控制——這不是一件好事。

So, is it all over for bitcoin?

那麼，比特幣的一切就結束了嗎？

Not exactly. Here are five reasons why I'm not too worried:

不完全是。以下是我不太擔心的五個原因：

1. The bitcoin network could upgrade to “quantum-resistant cryptography” before quantum computers become a serious threat. Right now, bitcoin's cryptography (the lock that secures it) uses something called SHA-256 – which might not stand up as well to quantum computers. But bitcoin developers are one step ahead here, and they're already building post-quantum algorithms that could replace SHA-256. Willow's just made that a more urgent priority.

1. 在量子電腦成為嚴重威脅之前，比特幣網路可以升級到「抗量子密碼學」。目前，比特幣的密碼學（保護它的鎖）使用一種稱為 SHA-256 的東西，它可能無法抵抗量子電腦。但比特幣開發人員在這方面領先了一步，他們已經在建立可以取代 SHA-256 的後量子演算法。威洛剛剛將其列為更緊迫的優先事項。

2. Miners are like bitcoin's defense squad, and they could use quantum computers too. That would help them fend off any stronger attacks (from quantum computers) and keep the network secure.

2. 礦工就像比特幣的防禦小隊，他們也可以使用量子電腦。這將幫助他們抵禦任何更強的攻擊（來自量子電腦）並保持網路安全。

3. Bitcoin's “mining difficulty” automatically adjusts every two weeks (give or take) to make sure blocks are mined roughly every ten minutes, not faster. And the proof is in the chart below: bitcoin's hash rate (the total computational power used by miners) has kept climbing as mining machines have upped the ante. So even if quantum computers tried to mine faster, the network would raise the mining difficulty. The hash rate would go up with it, and the blocks would still take ten minutes to mine.

3. 比特幣的「挖礦難度」每兩週自動調整一次（或多或少），以確保大約每十分鐘開採一次區塊，而不是更快。證據如下圖所示：隨著礦機加大賭注，比特幣的哈希率（礦工使用的總運算能力）不斷攀升。因此，即使量子電腦嘗試更快地挖礦，網路也會提高挖礦難度。哈希率會隨之上升，而開採區塊仍需要十分鐘。

That also means quantum computers can't create new bitcoin any faster – and the 21 million total coin supply cap still stands.

這也意味著量子電腦無法更快地創造新的比特幣——並且 2,100 萬枚比特幣的總供應上限仍然有效。

4. Bitcoin transactions get exponentially harder to reverse with each passing block. Cryptographer Nick Szabo explained blockchain security with a simple analogy: a transaction in the blockchain is like a fly trapped in amber. The more amber that sets around the fly, the harder it is for the fly to escape. So the further back you go in blockchain time, the lower the threat posed by quantum computers.

4. 每經過一個區塊，比特幣交易的逆轉就會變得更加困難。密碼學家 Nick Szabo 用一個簡單的比喻來解釋區塊鏈安全：區塊鏈中的交易就像被困在琥珀中的蒼蠅。蒼蠅周圍的琥珀越多，蒼蠅就越難逃脫。因此，區塊鏈時代越早，量子電腦構成的威脅就越低。

5.