Quantum networks have the potential to support capabilities that are unachievable with classical means alone. Besides quantum cryptographic applications, quantum networks have a variety of scientific uses and can help scale up quantum computers. However, the realization of quantum networks faces formidable challenges, including noise that is inflicted upon quantum states and loss that is suffered by photons, which act as information carriers between distributed quantum information processors. In this talk, Gayane Vardoyan of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, will introduce some of the fundamentals of quantum communication, provide examples of noise and loss in quantum systems with real-world examples, and discuss some of the ways that can help us cope with these challenges.