Cubing

The Rubik’s Cube is the most popular toy out there. With 43 quintillion different possible scrambles, it’s sure to get the brain working. It takes an average person 3 hours to figure out a Rubik’s Cube for the first time, if you have the patience and don’t just watch a YouTube video.

So, what exactly even is a Rubik’s Cube? A Rubik’s cube can be many things, ranging from a 2x2 to a 21x21, but we’ll focus on the 3x3, which is the original. (If you are looking for a tutorial I would highly recommend watching this YouTube video:

Anyway, the 3x3 cube has 9 small squares on each of its 6 sides (54 squares), which can be turned and maneuvered to create a ‘scramble’. The aim? Well, every side has a different colour, meaning you can turn the colours around and make random patterns. You need to turn and twist the cube to bring it back to its ‘solved’ state.

As a beginner, you would probably think that with 43 quintillion possible scenarios, every solve would be completely different and each one would require hours of studying, and solving times would be slow. And you would be right! Kind of. The first part is completely accurate, and professionals have memorized hundreds of algorithms (sequences of moves that lead to a solution), and when you put different algorithms together, you get entirely different paths to a solution, and solve time can vary so much with one different turn.

As for the second part, well, no. If you watch a YouTube tutorial, you can learn 3 simple algorithms in the space of 10 minutes. After practicing with these algorithms for a bit, you can solve the cube in under 3 minutes. This is known as the beginner method, and can be used to solve cubes in 30 seconds (if you have fast fingers and a good cube). However, if you have the practice, the algorithms, the knowledge and a good cube, you are well on your way to solving a cube in 5 seconds or less.

Now, a 5 second solve is only achievable by the most determined of people. These people have been cubing for years, and have got the best of the best in experience, and they know exactly what they are doing. The beginner's method is good for starting, but if you want to be serious, then you would need to learn hundreds of algorithms and techniques to solve at that speed.

By now, you are probably wondering, ‘what is the fastest solve time ever?’, and the answer is 2.68 seconds. This was achieved by Ruihang Xu, a young cuber who was at a convention, sat down and started to speed solve.

Now, you are harnessed with the power of knowledge! Get solving!

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