Do you know the three most unimaginable things in the world of intelligence games? They refer to "Huarong Path" invented by Chinese, "Independent Diamond" created by French, and "Magic Cube" discovered by Hungarians. The popularity level of the Magic Cube is a miracle in the world of intelligence games.
The Magic Cube, also known as the Rubik's Cube, is a shape-shifting puzzle. It is also called the Rubik's Cube, which was invented by Hungarian architecture professor Rubik in 1974. It became popular in Europe, America, and worldwide at the end of the 1970s and early 1980s. Rubik initially invented the cube merely as a teaching tool to help students enhance their spatial thinking ability. However, making those small cubes rotate freely without falling apart was not only a mechanical challenge but also involved wooden axles, seats, and tenons. It wasn't until he had the cube in his hand and rotated it a few times that he realized restoring the scrambled color blocks was an interesting and difficult problem. Rubik then decided to mass-produce this toy. Not long after the invention of the magic cube, it quickly swept the world, and people found that this little cube-based game was truly full of wonders.
The magic cube is made of elastic hard plastic and is a six-faced cube. In the center, there is an axle, and it consists of 26 small cubes. This includes 6 central cubes that are fixed and only have one face with color. There are 8 corner cubes (3 faces with color) that can rotate. There are also 12 edge cubes (2 faces with color) that can rotate. When sold, the arrangement of the small cubes makes each face of the large cube have the same color. When a face of the large cube rotates, the adjacent single-colored faces are disrupted, forming new patterns on the cube. With more rotations and changes, every face ends up being composed of different colored small cubes. Experts estimate that the total number of possible patterns is approximately 4.3 x 10^19. The way to play is to restore the scrambled cube to a state where all six faces are of a single color through rotations as quickly as possible.
There are various types of magic cubes. Generally speaking, the most common one is the 3x3x3 cube. However, there are also 2x2x2, 4x4x4, 5x5x5, and other polyhedral magic cubes, where the faces can be other polygons.
- 2x2x2 Cube
- 3x3x3 Cube
- 4x4x4 Cube
- 5x5x5 Cube
- Sphere Cube
- Number Cube
- Dice Cube
- Pyraminx Cube
- Six-color Megaminx
- Scrambled twelve-color Megaminx
- Classic Square-1
This must be the hardest one, right!
Popularity of the Magic Cube
The widespread love for the magic cube occurred in the 1980s. From 1980 to 1982, nearly 2 million magic cubes were sold. In 1981, a British boy named Patrick Bossert wrote a book called "You Can Do The Cube" (ISBN 0140314830), selling almost 1.5 million copies. Due to the tremendous commercial potential of the magic cube, Professor Rubik and his partners developed the 2x2x2 and 4x4x4 cubes, both of which were successful. In China, the magic cube was the hottest toy in the 1980s, akin to today's handheld gaming consoles for children, becoming the favorite toy for teenagers. However, with the reform and opening-up, more and more peculiar toys entered China, causing the magic cube craze in China to gradually subside.
However, in recent years, the informal Chinese magic cube community, "Mofangba," has been striving to change the public's perception of the magic cube. The magic cube is not just a toy for kids; it is also a way to relax and unwind. Additionally, with more stimulating and challenging ways to play, such as speedcubing, one-handed solving, and blindfolded solving, more and more people are re-engaging with the magic cube.
Basic Terminology:
Order: The order refers to the number of pieces each side of the magic cube possesses. For example, a 3x3x3 magic cube has 3 small pieces on each side.
Restoration: Refers to the process of bringing the magic cube from a non-original state back to its original state.
POP: Refers to the situation where some parts of the magic cube detach during restoration. If this happens during a competition, it is considered an invalid restoration process.
DNF: Stands for Did Not Finish, referring to the situation where the person restoring the magic cube feels unable to complete it within a satisfactory time and decides to quit.
Advanced Magic Cube Formulas: In competitions, there can be one DNF.
Magic Cube Station Forum.
Related theme articles:
Mastering the Magic Cube, Mnemonics
Shanghai Hosts Rubik's Cube China Open