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References: Expert Skeptics, Ethics, and Careers

  1. Gil Kalai - Wikipedia - Profile of the Hebrew University mathematician whose published arguments about correlated noise and the impossibility of fault-tolerant quantum computing form the centerpiece of this chapter's scientific skepticism section.

  2. Extended Church-Turing thesis - Wikipedia - Explains the hypothesis that all physically realizable computations can be efficiently simulated classically, the theoretical basis for Levin's complexity doubts about quantum speedups discussed in this chapter.

  3. Cold fusion - Wikipedia - Documents the cold fusion episode including career damage to researchers who pursued the field after it was discredited, providing the historical parallel this chapter uses to illustrate career risks in speculative physics fields.

  4. Will We Ever Have a Quantum Computer? (2020) - Michel Dyakonov - Springer - The most comprehensive book-length skeptical analysis of quantum computing, arguing that controlling \(2^{1000}\) parameters is physically impossible, a central argument examined in this chapter.

  5. Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory and the Search for Unity in Physical Law (2006) - Peter Woit - Basic Books - Documents how career incentives and groupthink sustained investment in string theory despite lack of experimental verification, the historical parallel this chapter applies to quantum computing career risks.

  6. The Argument Against Quantum Computers - Gil Kalai, arXiv (2019) - Kalai's mathematical framework arguing that correlated noise fundamentally prevents fault-tolerant quantum computation, the primary skeptical argument analyzed in this chapter.

  7. The Case Against Quantum Computing - Mikhail Dyakonov, IEEE Spectrum (2018) - Accessible summary of Dyakonov's argument about the impossibility of controlling exponentially many parameters, reaching a broad technical audience and supporting this chapter's analysis.

  8. Quantum Computing: How Close Are We? - Nature News Feature (2023) - Balanced assessment featuring both proponents and skeptics, illustrating the incentive asymmetry between the two groups that this chapter documents as distorting public discourse.

  9. Ethics of Emerging Science and Technology - National Academy of Engineering - Framework for evaluating ethical responsibilities in emerging technology fields including student advising, informed consent, and fiduciary duty, directly applicable to this chapter's ethics analysis.

  10. The PhD Career Crisis in Physics - American Physical Society - Employment statistics for physics PhDs showing the academic job market reality, providing empirical context for this chapter's analysis of career risks for students entering quantum computing research.