Rubik's cube

Matěj Naar

Like to many other people, the Rubik's cube was a real mystery to me and until recently I didn't desire to learn how to puzzle it out. But somehow my brother managed to learn how to solve it in under a few hours. It pushed me to get interested in it and I can tell you that it isn't as difficult as it first appears.

The cube was invented in 1974 by Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture Ernő Rubik. The cube consists of 26 unique smaller cubes. Each one of them contains an extension that connects it with other cubes and simultaneously binds it with the cube core. That enables particular cubes to move to different locations. The only parts of the cube that cannot be replaced are the middle ones of every side of the cube. Every small cube has a different set of colors on it and no two are the same. The whole cube has three layers. The sides of the cube are rotatable.

The task is clear. You have to move every smaller cube to the place it belongs so that all of the cube's sides are made up of one color. However the process itself isn't as simple. You have to proceed from layer to layer. Someday someone decided that the color to start with would be white, but it doesn't matter what color you choose first. While the first layer can be solved purely on the basis of logic, I found it really difficult to compile the second layer without knowing the strategy. And there come the algorithms. An algorithm is a memorized sequence of moves that has some desired effect on the cube. That's something you couldn't make up by yourself provided you weren't a genius and you have to learn them by heart. If all the algorithms are performed correctly you should have a complete Rubik's cube.

It might seem like a mysterious conundrum to some uninitiated people, but when you get into it, it's so much fun and actually relaxing. When you are good enough at it, you start doing it as fast as possible and that's particularly entertaining.

It took me about three hours to compile the cube without using the instructions. It was really satisfying moment when I attained this. Now I'm able to solve it in under one minute and a half. I'm still not as fast as my brother and I'm aware that there are many people who can do it much quickly, but it can already astonish some people.