Meeting

Science Fair Series: Demystifying Quantum

Monday, December 8, 2025
Toby Melville/Reuters
Speakers

Associate Research Scientist, The Joint Center for Quantum Information and Computer Science and University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies; Post-Quantum Cryptographer Coauthor, Status Report on the Fourth Round of the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography Standardization Process, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Mathematical Physicist, Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, California Institute of Technology (Caltech); Consultant and Science Advisor, Marvel Studios

Presider

Senior Fellow for Digital and Cyberspace Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Introductory Remarks

President, Council on Foreign Relations; CFR Member

Quantum technologies are redefining the landscape of science and policy. National leading experts Spyridon Michalakis and Gorjan Alagic explore the foundations of this emerging field and its implications for innovation, security, and global governance. All members, science experts or not, are welcome to join this session.

Top Stories on CFR

Iran

The Islamic Republic has experienced multiple mass protests in recent years, but the latest round of demonstrations come at a particularly difficult moment for the regime.

Conflict Prevention

The world continues to grow more violent and disorderly. According to CFR’s annual conflict risk assessment, American foreign policy experts are acutely concerned about conflict-related threats to U.S. national security and international stability that are likely to emerge or intensify in 2026. In this report, surveyed experts rate global conflicts by their likelihood and potential harm to U.S. interests and, for the first time, identify opportunities for preventive action.

United States

The world faces unresolved conflicts, growing climate crises, attacks on aid workers, two famines, and diminishing political will—along with significant aid cuts. Altogether, 2025 has earned a grim new superlative: the worst humanitarian year on record.