I've owned a Rubiks Cube for a very long time and have been able to solve it since about 1982. I didn't tech myself how to do it but read a book which explained the sequences needed to move certain pieces in specific ways. I remember standing at the front of the classroom in Technical Drawing, probably in grade 10, and being timed to complete the puzzle. I don't recall the exact time but it was in the order of 3 minutes. Not a world record but very good considering how complex it is. An internet search will tell you that there are 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 possible combinations in which the cube can be configured. That big number is 43 quintillion..!! Likewise, internet searches will tell you that there is only one solution - but I disagree. It wasn't until I found a Rubiks Cube with printing on one side that it became apparent that there is more than one solution - in fact I say there are four solutions. Looking at the colours it is easy to tell if an edge or corner piece is in the wrong place or in the wrong orientation - but it is impossible to tell the orientation of the center squares. While the center squares do not shift place, they do rotate which gives another (normally unnoticeable) combination.
With the addition of words you can tell if the center square is up the right way or not as shown in the images below. I solved the puzzle four times and purposely placed the center square in each different orientation to illustrate the point. I have since been given another Rubiks Cube with words on two opposite sides and when one side has the word upside down the same happens on the opposite side which suggests rotating one center square also rotates the others. So until anyone can prove me wrong I say there are four solutions to a Rubiks Cube.
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11/8/2020 01:41:22 pm
Footnote - I have since purchased a new Rubiks Cube and marked each face so I could see the orientation of the centre squares. To my surprise I have discovered the centre squares do not all rotate at the same time. Therefore there are more than 4 solutions but unless the centre squares have more than a plain colour it is impossible to see them. Now to find a Rubiks Cube with letters or numbers on each face.....
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AuthorI love to understand things, how they work, why they happen - I'm always learning and keen to investigate... Archives
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