Two UCLA computer scientists have shown that existing compilers, which tell quantum computers how to use their circuits to execute https://www.youtube.com/quantum programs, inhibit the computers’ ability to achieve optimal performance. Specifically, their research has revealed that improving quantum compilation design could help achieve computation speeds up to 45 times faster than currently demonstrated.
The computer scientists created a family of benchmark quantum circuits with known optimal depths or sizes. In computer design, the smaller the circuit depth, the faster a computation can be completed. Smaller circuits also imply more computation can be packed into the existing quantum computer. Quantum computer designers could use these benchmarks to improve design tools that could then find the best circuit design.
“We believe in the ‘measure, then improve’ methodology,” said lead researcher Jason Cong, a Distinguished Chancellor’s Professor of Computer Science at UCLA Samueli School of Engineering. “Now that we have revealed the large optimality gap, we are on the way to develop better quantum compilation tools, and we hope the entire quantum research community will as well.”
Cong and graduate student Daniel (Bochen) Tan tested their benchmarks in four of the most used quantum compilation tools. A study detailing their research was published in IEEE Transactions on Computers, a peer-reviewed journal.
Tan and Cong have made the benchmarks, named QUEKO, open source and available on the software repository GitHub.
Quantum computers utilize quantum mechanics to perform a great deal of computations simultaneously, which has the potential to make them exponentially faster and more powerful than today’s best supercomputers. But many issues need to be addressed before these devices can move out of the research lab

of how quantum circuits work, tiny environmental changes, such as small temperature fluctuations, can interfere with quantum computation. When that happens, the quantum circuits are called decoherent — which is to say they have lost the information once encoded in them.
“If we can consistently halve the circuit depth by better layout synthesis, we effectively double the time it takes for a quantum device to become decoherent,” Cong said.
“This compilation research could effectively extend that time, and it would be the equivalent to a huge advancement in experimental physics and electrical engineering,” Cong added. “So we expect these benchmarks to motivate both academia and the industry to develop better layout synthesis tools, which in turn will help drive advances in quantum computing.”
Cong and his colleagues led a similar effort in the early 2000s to optimize integrated circuit design in classical computers. That research effectively pushed two generations of advances in computer processing speeds, using only optimized layout design, which shortened the distance between the transistors that comprise the circuit. This cost-efficient improvement was achieved without any other major investments in technological advances, such as physically shrinking the circuits themselves.
“Quantum processors in existence today are extremely limited by environmental interference, which puts severe restrictions on the length of computations that can be performed,” said Mark Gyure, executive director of the UCLA Center for Quantum Science and Engineering, who was not involved in this study. “That’s why the recent research results from Professor Cong’s group are so important because they have shown that most implementations of quantum circuits to date are likely extremely inefficient and more optimally compiled circuits could enable much longer algorithms to be executed. This could result in today’s processors solving much more interesting problems than previously thought. That’s an extremely important advance for the field and incredibly exciting

Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry says Chinese companies are interested in the relocation of their factories to Pakistan because of the US-China trade war and believes the country is set to take a major benefit.
Flanked by Minister for Science and Technology Minister for Energy Omar Ayub Khan, Fawad Chaudhry announced the Alternative and Renewable Energy (ARE) Policy 2020 said the relocation of Chinese factories would benefit Pakistan’s manufacturing sector.
Both the ministers shared details of tax facilities offered to investors in the policy and said power plants will be inducted on open competitive bidding for lowest tariff and technology transfer.
Under the new policy, they said the government would increase the share of ARE in total power supply to 20 percent by 2025 and 30 percent by 2030.
They hoped the induction of power plants on open competitive bidding would bring down solar and wind tariffs to less than four cents per unit.
Key features of the policy:

1. the investment would be solicited on a competitive bid for the lowest cost instead of upfront or cost-plus based tariff under all previous power policies
2. the government would decide on the annual and three-year basis about the quantity of additional power requirement as before but it would be decided jointly by the four provinces, Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan at a steering committee as to how much share be allocated to solar, wind, waste to energy or other technology and what should be their location
3. the currency devaluation factor would be taken care of in bids for tariff
4. incentives for technology transfer for local manufacturing of solar panels, wind turbines and all related equipment for job creation for which Ministry of Science and Technology was finalising quality standards
5. bidding would bebased on two to three year forward looking energy requirements and on take and pay basis without allowing capacity payment price to ensure that tariff is paid only for the electricity purchased and not for capacity availability
   It was unearthed in the moot that three top Chinese companies and a leading European manufacturer had approached the government for setting up of manufacturing units for solar and wind equipment.

Mapping of the Nosham reaches completion

The geological experts have completed 100 percent mapping of the Nosham area of Balochistan under a coal exploration and evaluation project.
This project is included in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) with an allocation of Rs 6.524 million for 2020-21.
The Rs 42.318 million project titled “Exploration and Evaluation of Coal in Nosham and Bahlol Areas, Balochistan” had been approved in 2017 which made significant progress during the last two years, a senior official said.
Elaborating the updated physical progress, he said the initial study of maps, toposheets, aerial photographs, and satellite imageries had been completed. While data had been transferred from aerial photographs/satellite imageries onto toposheets, he added.
Preliminary reconnaissance geological mapping has been commenced. 100 percent Geological Mapping of Nosham area has been completed and five stratigraphic sections have been measured, besides purchasing different field and lab items. Whereas, a compilation of field data, analysis and integration of data to prepare the required geological maps was in progress.
“Drilling of 1st borehole (BNCP#01) at Nosham area, District Barkhan has been completed to the depth of 297 meters, where coal seams encountered at different depths. Geological logging of exploratory borehole/logs and Geophysical Survey (Resistivity) has also been completed in the project area,” officials said. Drilling engineers and other technical staff are busy in drilling operations for the next borehole. “Compilation of geological map and report is in progress.” The experts believed that the project investigations would result in proving more than 20 million tonnes of coal worth over Rs 2000 million at the current market rate. — APP

Petroleum Division has identified as many as 40 new blocks in different parts of the country to step up oil and gas exploration activities. The step is aimed at making discoveries as the existing reservoirs are fast-depleting and since long there is no major discovery, says a report
The new blocks would be awarded through international bidding, for which necessary work was in process.
In September 2018, a bidding round of 10 onshore exploration blocks was conducted, which was held after a gap of almost five years, wherein eight blocks were awarded.
“Next bidding round is being planned shortly whereby 20 Onshore Blocks would be offered and efforts are being made to attract foreign companies,” officials say.
The country’s total sedimentary area was around 827,268 square kilometers, out of which 320, 741 KM (39 percent of the area) is under exploration.
Pakistan fears to deplete its deposits by 60 percent by the year 2027, forcing it to accelerate exploration activities in potential areas on war-footing.
Total consumption of petroleum products in the country stood at 19.68 Million Tonnes (MTs) during the fiscal year 2019-20, out of which 11.59 MTs were achieved through local refineries and 8.09 MT through import.
While there was a gap of over 2 Billion Cubic Feet per Day (BCFD) gas between production and demand of the commodity to meet requirements of more than 9.6 million consumers across the country, Current gas production is around 4 BCFD against the demand of 6 BCFD, the gap is being bridged through the import of LNG and LPG.
The Petroleum Division, a report says has granted open access to the private sector in the import of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) besides allowing them to set up their own terminals.
The government has planned to introduce Euro-V fuel in the country to meet the requirements of the hi-tech vehicles and tackle environmental issues like pollution and smog factors.
Officials say general sales tax on fuels had been fixed at the rate of 17 percent by law to streamline the matters related to the pricing of petroleum products.
The government has simplified the approval process for those who wanted to work in the exploration and production business. The official said the government had finalized new downstream oil policy, whereas the work on dualization of the white oil pipeline would start soon.
It merits mentioning that during a period from August 18, 2019, to April 30, 2020, exploration and production (E&P) companies have drilled around 142 wells, out of which 50 were exploratory and 92 appraisals/developmental.
As many as 26 discoveries with the initial flow of 6,799 Barrels per Day (BPD) oil and 234 Million Cubic Feet per Day (MMCFD) gas were announced.
The E&P companies added 9,444 BPD oil and 218 MMCFD gas was added in the national pool against the depletion of 9611 BPD oil and 279 MMCFD gas from the operational wells.
While the companies had acquired around 5,110 2D Line-Kilometre and 2,693 Square- Kilometer seismic data to assess the potential of hydrocarbon deposits in different pockets