Die hard Star trek fans will have something to chatter about at their conventions now that a bit of Star Trek science has finally come true, with the world’s first successful demonstration of teleportation. Researchers at the University of Innsbruck managed to teleport a single particle of light a couple of yards, in an experimental idea that was first suggested by IBM Corp researcher Charles Bennett in 1992. The teleportation experiment uses the quantum physical theory of entangled particles, a process so strange and counter-intuitive that Einstein described it as spooky because particles can communicate information faster than the speed of light. The first commercial application is proposed for quantum computers or communications devices, because there would be no need to wire the various components, or speakers together. The system is handicapped by one significant flaw, it only sends the information state of the photon, rather than the photon itself. So it Captain Kirk still can’t be transported, unless the crew of the Enterprise were to zap him into data.
