The Universe as Quantum Computer

This article reviews the history of digital computation, and investigates just how far the concept of computation can be taken.In particular, I address the question of whether the universe itself is in fact a giant computer, and if so, just what kind of computer it is.I will show that the universe can be regarded as a giant quantum computer.The quantum computational model of the universe explains a variety of observed phenomena not encompassed by the ordinary laws of physics.In particular, the model shows that the the quantum computational universe automatically gives rise to a mix of randomness and order, and to both simple and complex systems.