How to solve a Rubik's cube: instructions for beginners

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:46

Rarely can we afford the joy of doing absolutely nothing when we rest our arms, legs, head and the whole organism. Most of the time, we just feel like we're messing around. This is because a person is very active by nature. He is bored and incomprehensible amorphous movement through life. If a free minute has already stood out, then he can set himself an original goal. Take, for example, a Rubik's Cube. The assembly instructions for this puzzle are very specific, but it is quite possible to figure it out.

Some historical facts

More than 40 years ago, the Hungarian sculptor Erno Rubik revealed to the world his famous puzzle, which was named just after the name of the author. Then the inventor was teaching industrial design and architecture. There is a version that he came up with a cube for a training manual, withwhich can be used to visually explain the foundations of the mathematical theory of groups. The inventor set the students a difficult task - to make individual cubes rotate freely in place, without damaging the constructive unity of the puzzle. Accordingly, Rubik's friends and students became the first testers.

In 1975, the Rubik's Cube was patented, but only two years later the production of an industrial batch of cubes was launched. They were the first to be produced by a small Budapest cooperative, which positioned the Rubik's cube as a New Year's toy. Assembly instructions were not included, but the object tempted with an abundance of colors and its mysteriousness. The toy became really universal and was offered to all categories of the population. The second surge in popularity occurred when the cube was seen in the hands of a waiter by German businessman Tibor Lakzi, who is fond of mathematics. He began promoting the product in tandem with Tom Kremer, a successful game inventor. Together, they were able to launch a "cubic" invasion and release more than 100 million toys.

Time Frame

So, how long does it take to complete a Rubik's Cube? The instruction does not particularly attract beginner "puzzlers". Therefore, it will take a long and painful time to collect. Many do not stand up and quit what they started halfway. But the assembly of this puzzle perfectly develops motor skills, stimulates the work of thought, calms and helps to understand oneself. Over time, people realize that it is very difficult to assemble a puzzle at random. account foruse proven algorithms. Many "sit down" and switch to high-speed assembly. Such people are called "speedcubers", and the process itself is called "speedcubing". Even official competitions are held under the auspices of the World Cube Association. To date, the world record has been set at 5.55 seconds. It was installed by Mats Volk. Before him, the world record belonged to Felix Zemdegs and was 5.66 seconds. According to unofficial data, he also achieved a result of 4.79 seconds.

For beginners

So, you have a Rubik's Cube in your hands. The assembly instructions have not yet been studied by you and you want to figure out how the puzzle works for yourself. The toy has 6 sides of different colors. When purchased, all sides are assembled and have cubes of the same color. Let your imagination run wild and spin the cube along all axes for a minute. As a result, in front of you is a tangled puzzle that, it would seem, cannot be unraveled. Many people recommend that you completely disassemble the cube into parts before direct assembly to make sure that the mechanism is correct. If everything is correct, then you can start the process. The beginner build consists of seven stages, each of which is quite achievable even for a child.

Step by step instructions: how to solve the Rubik's cube

You will need to focus on the white side. Imagine that this is the base that holds the entire structure. After each "fraud" check the white side so that its integrity is not damaged. At the first stage, collect a white cross, and where the white square is located in the center. Please note that the center sectors on each side indicate which color to collect where. At the second stage, you need to collect the corners of the white side. Next come the edges of the white layer, the cross in the last row. After you need to move on to the arrangement of edges and corners of the last layer and to turn the corners.

Among the most common

A very popular Rubik's Cube instruction by Jessica Friedrich. This is a fast assembly method that does not require memorizing a large number of formulas. The main thing is to understand the principle. In the process, a cross is assembled on one side. The first layer is collected simultaneously with the second. Next comes the orientation and rearrangement of the elements of the top layer.

On intuition

If you don't want to memorize the formulas, then you will like the step-by-step instruction of the Rubik's cube according to the method of Valery Morozov. Here you need to memorize the basic principles of assembly. First, eight corner elements are assembled. Further, four ribs in the middle layer are collected in a cross on the side. The remaining eight edges must form regular pairs. Finally, the six central sectors are set on their faces.

Walking along the stripes

If you have already tried and even managed to assemble a puzzle, you can try the so-called strip method. It is suitable for a 55 cube, but it is better to train on a smaller version - 33.

Formastering the method, you need to be able to distinguish sides and master the rotation of the cube clockwise and counterclockwise. The assembly begins with the notorious white cross. Next, it needs to be extended to the corner elements. Your task is to match the central elements of the sides with the upper ones, which extend from the white cross. You need to move the white corner elements to the same side. An inexperienced person can master the Rubik's cube in this way. The assembly instructions for beginners of this type are not that simple, but they give consistent directions. Get ready for the fact that this is not an easy task.

Basic Knowledge

So it turns out that many people themselves come up with an algorithm for how to solve a Rubik's cube. Step-by-step instructions are not particularly important to them. Maybe you can invent your own method too? Everything is possible, but there are basic knowledge that will be useful to every person. So, the cube has a frame - a cross, on which the central parts are attached. All elements are movable, and the cube itself is spinning in all directions. The white side is usually taken as the base, and the opposite side is usually yellow. Rotation of parts is possible clockwise, counterclockwise and 180 degrees. Further, it is known that the simplest assembly scheme includes seven successive stages. The white cross is always assembled first

Main Stage

So, here is the Rubik's Cube, instructions for beginners, and in stock - about half an hour. This is enough to learn the basics of assembly. Initially, do not chase after time. Practice and only practicewill help you become a speedcuber. In the meantime, try to master the main stage - the assembly of the cross. By the way, successful speedcubers perform it intuitively, since there are no formulas. The main thing is to find the side in which the white cube is in the center. Remember that each edge cube has two colors and, accordingly, it must match the two centers - white and color. Now check the side with the white center for white edges. If they are, then simply rotate the bottom of the cube to match the edge with the second center. Now look at the opposite side: if there are white edge faces, then it is quite easy to return them to the white side. The remaining elements can be adjusted to the top by lifting the white side of the cube to the top and turning it to the center.

Start build process

The first two layers can be laid out quite simply. This is a very problematic moment for those who are wondering how to solve the Rubik's Cube. The instruction for beginners will be a visual aid, but in general this step can be performed intuitively. The main problem with this is the installation of corner cubes in the first layer. Speedcubers have a special technique for this, which they call "bang-bang." By the way, it also has its own formula. Try to always keep the cube with the white center (and side, respectively) down. Look for a side die that matches the colors of the border sides. Lift the side edge up, and then take it to the side, opposite from the side of the cross that "left" to the other side. The mechanism for lining up corner cubes remains identical - searching for a cube in colorframes, bringing it to the desired field, and then moving to the side of the face with the "new" cube. After installing the corner cubes in the bottom layer, you can move on to the second one from the bottom. The algorithm is similar, but the search for cubes becomes more difficult and longer. These same edge cubes are put in place using one formula and its mirror image. Before lining up, you need to rotate the top layer and set the edge cube in the right place. Always make sure that the color of the side face matches the color of the central sector of the middle layer. Oh, and don't destroy the top white cross. If you are building the white side, then its integrity will not be violated a priori, but if the color side is assembled, the destruction of the white cross is fraught with complete chaos in the puzzle. With similar mirror repetitions, you can completely collect the white side and the two lower layers on each side. Plus, as a result of your work, the central sectors of the sides should coincide with the centers. Now you are left with the final step - collecting the corner cubes on the top side.

Many people solve the Rubik's Cube in their free time and try to do it faster and easier than others. Since 1980, the search for the so-called God algorithm for high-speed assembly began. Mathematicians, programmers and simply lovers of scientific puzzles are looking for a method that allows them to solve the puzzle in the minimum number of moves. In 2010, programmer Thomas Rokiki, mathematicians Herbert Kotsemba and Morley Davidson, and engineer John Dethridge managed to prove that any configuration of the puzzle can be solved in 20 moves maximum. In this case, any turn of the edge is considered a move.