The Theatre of Spin Glass

Some ongoing debates and broad applications of the spin glass physics

Abstract

The theories describing spin glass (a magnetic state originally observed in manganese alloys) have been used with exceptional consistency to advance fields as diverse as neuroscience, observational biology, and economics. This is because manifold research objects of those communities resemble the randomness, competition, and frustration of interacting spins typical for the spin glass. By comparing its adequate and possibly inadequate interdisciplinary translations, this review addresses the problems that researchers may face when applying spin glass to their fields.

Centrally, the juxtaposition of two disparate spin glass' descriptions (continuous-in-nature Replica Symmetry Breaking method with discrete droplet-scaling) applied in graph theory, flocking, and financial modelling problems yielded a set of requirements ensuring a valid translation.

Thus, the value of this review is expected to be twofold.
1. In general, the translational requirements are hoped to add a new tool for those using interdisciplinary methods in science.
2. In particular, these requirements shall gauge how spin glass may influence the research in quantum neural networks. The analysis focuses on the ``quantumness of the brain'' to reexamine the views presented, for instance, by Schuld in the context of new advancements in relevant fields (e.g., photonics).

With the broader outlook, the following discussions encourage the specialist in, e.g., quantum computing to use spin glass models more often. Upgrading devices to the quantum world is projected to bring about an unprecedented-scale revolution in terms of computational power and speed. It could be topped with an improved understanding of brain processes.