{"rewrite":{"id":"r_92316b00c52f410b611a2ae7","clusterId":"c_04b8fb5f4059aeb7826d1a1a","slug":"a-quantum-magic-8-ball-web-app-uses-a-homemade-random-number-generator","model":"deepseek-v4-flash","headline":"A Quantum Magic 8-Ball Web App Uses a Homemade Random Number Generator","summary":"Researcher and engineer David Noel Ng built a device that generates random numbers from photon detection and created a web app called A Quantum Magic 8-Ball. The app randomly selects one of 20 pre-written answers using the quantum random numbers. The device uses an ultraviolet LED, a beam splitter, and photomultiplier tubes to read photon paths as coin tosses.","whyItMatters":"The project repurposes protein-analysis hardware into a functional quantum random number generator and presents it as a playful fortune-telling tool, demonstrating accessible quantum experimentation.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eDavid Noel Ng, a researcher and engineer, built a quantum random number generator from repurposed laboratory hardware and used it to power a web-based fortune-telling app called A Quantum Magic 8-Ball. The device generates random bits by detecting which of two photomultiplier tubes registers a photon after the light passes through a 50:50 beam splitter. The web app maps those random numbers to one of 20 fixed answers, discarding any result outside the 0-19 range to keep probabilities even. Ng named the generator Universe Splitter, a reference to the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. The photomultiplier tubes came from a Hamamatsu Photonics device originally used for protein structure analysis; Ng replaced the dichroic mirror with a half-mirror suited to ultraviolet light. The app does not send user input to the generator-clicking ASK only triggers a fresh random number pull.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"David Noel Ng's A Quantum Magic 8-Ball uses photon detection for randomness, turning a physics experiment into a divination tool.","twitterPost":"David Noel Ng's quantum magic 8-ball uses photon detection, not pseudorandom algorithms, to pick answers.","threadsPost":"David Noel Ng built a quantum random number generator from an UV LED and photomultiplier tubes, then wrapped it in a web app that answers yes/no questions. The hardware randomness is the point; the 8-ball format is the delivery mechanism.","newsletterBlurb":"Researcher David Noel Ng built a quantum random number generator from repurposed protein-analysis hardware and created a web app called A Quantum Magic 8-Ball. The app randomly selects one of 20 answers using photon detection as a coin toss. The generator, named Universe Splitter, uses an ultraviolet LED, a beam splitter, and two photomultiplier tubes.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"GIGAZINE\",\"url\":\"https://gigazine.net/news/20260629-a-quantum-magic-8-ball/\",\"title\":\"A Quantum Magic 8-Ball: A Fortune-Telling App Using a Homemade Quantum Random Number Generator\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":4255,"outputTokens":625,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1782736855,"createdAt":"2026-06-29T12:36:14.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-06-29T12:39:50.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-06-29T12:39:50.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_04b8fb5f4059aeb7826d1a1a","canonicalTitle":"自作の量子乱数生成器を使った占いアプリ「A Quantum Magic 8-Ball」","representativeArticleId":"a_2fade0d32a656c3dc4367b35","sourceCount":1,"writtenSourceCount":1,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":true,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[\"A Quantum Magic 8-Ball\"],\"studios\":[],\"people\":[\"David Noel Ng\"],\"type\":\"news\",\"domain\":\"other\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-06-29T12:00:00.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-06-29T12:00:00.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-06-29T12:39:51.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"GIGAZINE","url":"https://gigazine.net/news/20260629-a-quantum-magic-8-ball/","title":"自作の量子乱数生成器を使った占いアプリ「A Quantum Magic 8-Ball」"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":["A Quantum Magic 8-Ball"],"studios":[],"people":["David Noel Ng"],"type":"news","domain":"other","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":["David Noel Ng built a quantum random number generator from repurposed laboratory hardware, using an ultraviolet LED, a 50:50 beam splitter, and two photomultiplier tubes.","The web app A Quantum Magic 8-Ball randomly selects one of 20 pre-written answers using the quantum random numbers, discarding results outside the 0-19 range.","The photomultiplier tubes came from a Hamamatsu Photonics device originally used for protein structure analysis; Ng replaced the dichroic mirror with a half-mirror suited to ultraviolet light.","Ng named the generator Universe Splitter, a reference to the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics.","The app does not send user input to the generator; clicking ASK only triggers a fresh random number pull."]}