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Solving a Rubik's cube is a quick way. Look ahead - looking ahead

People often wonder how to learn how to solve a Rubik's cube and how to then increase the speed of solving it, because many professional athletes solve it in just 7-10 seconds. 80% of them complete the task in 12 seconds.

Here it becomes clear that behind skill and experience there is something more: talent, dexterity, formulas, a system?

All professional speedcubing athletes (that's what speed cube solving is called) create their own systems, come up with their own unique combinations that are convenient for them personally. But some fans of sports cube building went further and created general rules, helping beginners in this difficult matter. One of these athletes was Jessica Friedrich, whose formulas are used by many speedcubers to this day, although they were invented more than thirty years ago.

The history of the Rubik's cube

The puzzle got its start in Hungary in 1974. The creator of the Cube was interior design teacher Erno Rubik, who at that time still lived with his parents. Subsequently he became one of richest people Hungary.

The idea of creating a cube did not come to Erno right away: initially he came up with a special tutorial in the form of 27 small cubes with multi-colored edges. Using similar material, Rubik explained to students the mathematical theory of groups. Over time, this manual took on the appearance of the current Rubik's cube - with 26 small cubes and a cylindrical part holding them together instead of the central inner cube.

Release of the cube to the masses

In Hungary, as in the former socialist camp, it was quite difficult to develop individual entrepreneurship. Erno Rubik was able to patent his project only in 1975, while the release of the first cube occurred only in 1977. Rubik's invention received large-scale development in 1980 after Tibor Lakzi and Tom Kremer became interested in it. As a result of their efforts in promoting the Rubik's Cube, one of the well-known American companies began producing the puzzle, releasing a full-scale batch of one million copies.

At that time, every tenth civilized inhabitant was faced with this puzzle. The Rubik's cube appeared in the USSR in 1981 and immediately gained popularity and love of the people. Children and their teachers went to school with it, solving a cube under their desk or hiding behind a class magazine; it was preferred to any birthday gifts.

Rubik's Cube Variations

In its original version, the Rubik's cube was a 3 × 3 × 3 system. Its visible elements are 26 small cubes and 54 colored faces. The six central cubes have one-color faces, the twelve side cubes have two-color faces, and the eight corner cubes have three-color faces. When assembled, all 6 faces of a large cube are painted the same color, and, as a rule, the green face is opposite the blue, the orange is opposite the red, and the white is opposite the yellow. This is a classic Rubik's cube model.

Now there are quite a lot of different cube models: these are 2 × 2, and 4 × 4, and 5 × 5.

Cube solving methods

There are a lot of methods for quickly solving a Rubik's cube, the main ones are:

Roux;
Petrus;
CFOP, or the Jessica Friedrich method.

With the help of all these techniques it is possible to get good results, but the most popular of them is the last one. Let's dwell on it in more detail.

Jessica's method

Jessica Friedrich first picked up a Rubik's cube when she was a 16-year-old girl. She was so fascinated by this puzzle that she soon developed her own technique for assembling the cube. In 1982, Jessica took first place in a speed cube competition.

Subsequently, Jessica herself refined the method of assembling the cube she used, also to further development Other people also contributed.

This is how Jessica Friedrich’s method appeared, which is still very popular and used everywhere, thereby making a huge contribution to the sport called “speedcubing.”

CFOP method by assembly stage

How can you solve a Rubik's cube using Jessica Friedrich's method?

Friedrich divided her assembly system into 4 main parts, each of which received its own name: Cross, F2L, OLL, PLL. So Jessica Friedrich's method acquired a different name - CFOP according to the first letters of each step. What is each level of the cube assembly according to Friedrich?

Cross is the first point of assembling a Rubik's cube, where you need to assemble a cross on the initial side from the four edged cubes of the bottom face.
F2L (First two layers) - the second point of the Friedrich algorithm, here the assembly of the lower and middle layers occurs. This stage of assembly can rightfully be considered the longest in the entire process: here it is necessary to completely assemble the face with the cross and the intermediate layer of four side cubes.
OLL (Orient the last layer) - orientation of the cubes of the top layer. Here you need to assemble the last face, and it is not so important that the cubes are not yet in place.
PLL (Permute the last layer) - correct placement of the cubes of the top layer.

Anyone can understand Jessica Friedrich's system, but only a very patient and diligent person can solve a cube in 30 seconds or less. In such a matter as solving a Rubik's cube, technical knowledge of the process alone is not enough; one cannot do without dexterity, some experience and long training.

The main thing that can be advised to a beginning speedcuber is to buy a high-quality puzzle, and not a Chinese knockoff. The fact is that for quick assembly you need to rotate the cube with one finger, and it should not be loose.

It is also advisable to lubricate the cube before assembling with silicone grease, which comes with the puzzle or purchased separately, for example, at a car dealership.

By applying diligence, patience and endurance to the knowledge received from Jessica Friedrich, anyone can quickly learn how to solve a Rubik's cube.

Correct name " Rubik's Cube». Rubik- Hungarian sculptor and inventor of the popular puzzle. The Rubik's cube was invented back in 1974, and since then its solution has occupied the thoughts of all mankind.

This puzzle is a plastic cube consisting of 26 cubes that can rotate around the three internal axes of the cube. Each side is painted a specific color and consists of 9 squares.

By rotating the sides of the Rubik's cube, you can change the arrangement of the squares. The goal is to return the squares to their original position so that each face consists of squares of the same color. This is not so easy to do. Many people can solve only a certain part of the cube on their own.To complete the puzzle, there are certain rotations and algorithms calculated using formulas.

We invite you to familiarize yourself with one of the algorithms for solving a 3x3 Rubik's cube

The easiest way to solve a Rubik's cube - remember which rotations were used to disassemble it and repeat them in reverse order. However, this option only exists if the cube was originally solved. If the cube is disassembled, it is difficult to reassemble it. Intuition, spatial thinking or chance can help here. But it’s better to remember the algorithm for collecting the cube. There are several of them.

The traditional name of the algorithm that solves the Rubik's cube in the least number of moves is “God’s algorithm.” The maximum number of moves with this algorithm is the “number of God”. In July 2010, it was proven that this number is 20. That is, with known algorithms, you need to make at least 20 moves to solve a Rubik's cube.

Solving a cube for speed is a whole sport called speedcubing ) . There are competitions between speedcubers, and even blind assembly competitions!

You can also look video on how to solve a Rubik's cube step by step for beginners:

How to solve a Rubik's Cube

In a nutshell: if you remember 7 simple formulas of no more than 8 rotations each, then you can easily learn how to solve a regular 3x3x3 cube in a couple of minutes. This algorithm will not be able to solve the cube in less than a minute or a minute and a half, but two to three minutes is easy!

Introduction

Like any cube, the puzzle has 8 corners, 12 edges and 6 faces: top, bottom, right, left, front and back. Typically, each of the nine squares on each face of the Cube is colored one of six colors, usually arranged in pairs opposite each other: white-yellow, blue-green, red-orange, forming 54 colored squares. Sometimes instead of solid colors they put on the edge of the Cube, then it becomes even more difficult to assemble.

In the assembled (“initial”) state, each face consists of squares of the same color, or all the pictures on the faces are correctly folded. After several turns the cube is “stirred”.

Solving a Cube means returning it from being stirred to its original state. This, in fact, is the main point of the puzzle. Many enthusiasts find pleasure in assembling "solitaire" - patterns .

ABC of the Cube

The classic Cube consists of 27 parts (3x3x3=27):

6 single color centerpieces (6 “centers”)

12 two-color side or rib elements (12 “ribs”)

8 tricolor corner elements(8 "corners")

1 internal element - cross

The cross (or ball, depending on the design) is located in the center of the Cube. The centers are attached to it and thereby fasten the remaining 20 elements, preventing the puzzle from falling apart.

Elements can be rotated in “layers” - groups of 9 pieces. A clockwise rotation of the outer layer by 90° (if you look at this layer) is considered “straight” and will be denoted by a capital letter, and a counterclockwise rotation is “reverse” to the direct one - and will be denoted by a capital letter with an apostrophe “"”.

6 outer layers: Top, Bottom, Right, Left, Front (front layer), Rear (back layer). There are three more inner layers. In this assembly algorithm, we will not rotate them separately; we will only use rotations of the outer layers. In the world of speedcubers, it is customary to use Latin letters for the words Up, Down, Right, Left, Front, Back.

Turn designations:

clockwise (↷ )- V N P L F T ⇔U D R L F B

counterclockwise (↶ ) - V" N" P" L" F" T" ⇔U" D" R" L" F" B"

When assembling the Cube, we will sequentially rotate the layers. The sequence of turns is recorded from left to right one after another. If some rotation of a layer needs to be repeated twice, then a degree icon “2” is placed after it. For example, F 2 means that you need to turn the front twice, i.e. F 2 = FF or F "F" (whichever is more convenient). In Latin notation, instead of F 2, F2 is written. I will write formulas in two notations - Cyrillic And Latin, separating them with this sign ⇔.

To make it easier to read long sequences, they are divided into groups, which are separated from neighboring groups by dots. If a certain sequence of turns needs to be repeated, then it is enclosed in parentheses and the number of repetitions is written at the top right of the closing bracket. In Latin notation, a multiplier is used instead of an exponent. In square brackets I will indicate the number of such a sequence or, as they are usually called, “formulas”.

Now, knowing the conventional language of notation for rotation of the layers of the Cube, you can proceed directly to the assembly process.

Assembly

There are many ways to assemble a Cube. There are those that allow you to assemble a cube with a couple of formulas, but in a few hours. Others, on the contrary, by memorizing a couple of hundred formulas allow you to solve a cube in ten seconds.

Below I will describe the simplest (from my point of view) method, which is visual, easy to understand, requires memorizing only seven simple “formulas” and at the same time allows you to assemble the Cube in a couple of minutes. When I was 7 years old, I mastered this algorithm in a week and solved a cube in an average of 1.5-2 minutes, which amazed my friends and classmates. That’s why I call this assembly method “the simplest.” I will try to explain everything “on fingers”, almost without pictures.

We will assemble the Cube in horizontal layers, first the first layer, then the second, then the third. We will divide the assembly process into several stages. There will be five of them in total and one additional one.

6/26 At the very beginning, the cube is disassembled (but the centers are always in place).

Assembly steps:

10/26 - cross of the first layer (“upper cross”)

14/26 - corners of the first layer

16/26 - second layer

22/26 - cross of the third layer (“lower cross”)

26/26 - corners of the third layer

26/26 - (additional stage) rotation of centers

To assemble the classic Cube you will need the following: "formulas":

FV"PV ⇔FU"RU- rotation of the edge of the upper cross

(P"N" · PN) 1-5 ⇔(R"D RD)1-5- "Z-switch"

VP · V"P" · V"F" · VF ⇔UR · U"R" · U"F" · UF- edge 2 layers down and to the right

V"L" · VL · VF · V"F" ⇔U"L" UL UF UF"- edge 2 layers down and to the left

FPV · P"V"F" ⇔FRU R"U"F"- rotation of the ribs of the lower cross

PV · P"V · PV" 2 · P"V ⇔RU · R"U · RU"2 · R"U- rearrangement of the ribs of the lower cross (“fish”)

V"P" · VL · V"P · VL" ⇔U"R" UL U"R UL"- rearrangement of corners 3 layers

The first two stages could not be described, because Assembling the first layer is quite easy "intuitively". But, nevertheless, I will try to describe everything thoroughly and on my fingers.

Stage 1 - cross of the first layer (“upper cross”)

The goal of this stage: the correct location of the 4 upper ribs, which together with the upper center make up a “cross”.

So, the Cube is completely disassembled. Actually not completely. Distinctive feature The classic Cube is its design. Inside there is a cross (or ball) that rigidly connects the centers. The center determines the color of the entire face of the Cube. Therefore, 6 centers are always already in place! First, select the top. Typically, assembly begins with a white top and green front. For non-standard coloring, choose what is more convenient. We hold the Cube so that the upper center (“top”) is white and the front center (“front”) is green. The main thing when assembling is to remember what color is the top and what is the front, and when rotating the layers, do not accidentally turn the entire Cube and get lost.

Our goal is to find an edge with top and front colors and place it between them. At the very beginning, we look for a white-green edge and place it between the white top and the green front. Let's call the required element a “working cube” or RK.

So, let's start assembling. The top is white, the front is green. We look at the Cube from all sides, without letting go of it, without moving it in our hands and without rotating the layers. We are looking for RK. It can be located anywhere. Found. After this, the assembly process itself begins.

If the RK is in the first (upper) layer, then by double turning the outer vertical layer on which it is located, we “drive” it down to the third layer. We do the same if the RK is in the second layer, only in this case we drive it down not with a double, but with a single rotation.

It is advisable to drive it out so that the color of the paint turns out to be the color of the top down, then it will be easier to install it in place. When driving the RK down, you need to remember about the ribs that are already in place, and if some edge was affected, then you need to remember to return it later to its place by reverse rotation.

After the RC is on the third layer, we rotate the bottom and “adjust” the RC to the center of the front. If the RK is already on the third layer, then simply place it in front of us from below, rotating the bottom layer. After this, turn F 2 ⇔F2 We put RK in place.

Once the RK is in place, there can be two options: either it is rotated correctly or not. If it is turned correctly, then everything is OK. If it is turned incorrectly, then we turn it over using the formula FV"PV ⇔FU"RU. If the RK is “kicked out” correctly, i.e. color from top to bottom, then you practically won’t have to use this formula.

Let's move on to installing the next rib. Without changing the top, we change the front, i.e. turn the Cube towards you with the new side. And we repeat our algorithm again until all the remaining edges of the first layer are in place, forming a white cross on the top edge.

During the assembly process, it may turn out that the RC is already in place, or it can be put in place (without destroying what has already been assembled) without first being driven down, but “immediately”. Well, good! In this case, the cross will come together faster!

So, already 10 elements out of 26 are in place: 6 centers are always in place and we have just placed 4 edges.

Stage 2 - corners of the first layer

The goal of the second stage is to collect all upper layer, installing four corners in addition to the already assembled cross. In the case of the cross, we looked for the right edge and placed it in front at the top. Now our RK is not an edge, but a corner, and we will place it in the front at the top right. To do this, we will do the same as at the first stage: first we will find it, then we will “drive” it to the bottom layer, then we will place it in the front lower right, i.e. under the place we need, and after that we’ll drive it up.

There is one wonderful and simple formula. (P"N" · PN) ⇔(R"D" RD). It even has a “smart” name - . She must be remembered.

We are looking for an element with which we will work (RK). In the upper right corner there should be a corner that has the same colors as the centers of the top, front and right. We find him. If the RK is already in place and turned correctly, then by turning the entire Cube we change the front and look for a new RK.

If the RC is in the third layer, then rotate the bottom and adjust the RC to the place we need, i.e. front lower right.

Let's turn the Z-switch! If the corner is not in place, or is in place, but is rotated incorrectly, then turn the Z switch again, and so on until the RK is at the top in place and correctly rotated. Sometimes you need to turn the Z-switch up to 5 times.

If the RK is in the upper layer and is not in place, then we drive it out of there with any other one using the same Z-commutator. That is, first we turn the Cube so that the top remains white, and the RK, which needs to be kicked out, is located at the top right in front of us and turn the Z-commutator. After the RK has been “kicked out,” we again turn the Cube towards us with the desired front, rotate the bottom, place the already kicked out RK under the place we need and use the Z-commutator to drive it to the top. We turn the Z-switch until the cube is oriented correctly.

We apply this algorithm for the remaining corners. As a result, we get a fully assembled first layer of the Cube! 14 out of 26 cubes are still in place!

Let's admire this beauty for a while and turn the Cube over so that the collected layer is at the bottom. Why is this necessary? We will soon need to start assembling the second and third layers, and the first layer has already been assembled and is in the way on top, covering all the layers that interest us. Therefore, let’s turn them upside down to better see all the remaining and uncollected disgrace. Top and bottom changed places, right and left too, but the front and rear remained the same. The top is now yellow. Let's start assembling the second layer.

I want to warn you that with each step the Cube becomes more assembled, but when you twist the formulas, you already assembled parties stir. The main thing is not to panic! At the end of the formula (or sequence of formulas), the cube will be assembled again. If, of course, you follow the main rule - during the rotation process you cannot spin the entire Cube, so as not to accidentally get lost. Only separate layers, as written in the formula.

Stage 3 - second layer

So the first layer is assembled and it's at the bottom. We need to put 4 ribs of the 2nd layer. They can now be located both on the second and on the third (now upper) layer.

Select any edge on the top layer without the color of the top face (without yellow). Now it will be our RK. By rotating the top, we adjust the RC so that it matches the color of some side center. We rotate the Cube so that this center becomes the front.

Now there are two options: our working cube needs to be moved down to the second layer, either to the left or to the right.

There are two formulas for this:

down and right VP · V"P" · V"F" · VF ⇔UR · U"R" · U"F" · UF

down and left V"L" · VL · VF · V"F" ⇔U"L" UL UF UF"

If suddenly the RK is already in the second layer out of place, or in its place, but incorrectly rotated, then we “kick it out” with any other one, using one of these formulas, and then apply this algorithm again.

Be careful. The formulas are long, you can’t make mistakes, otherwise the Cube will “figure it out” and you’ll have to start assembling again. It's okay, even champions sometimes get confused during assembly.

As a result, after this stage we have two assembled layers - 19 out of 26 cubes are in place!

(If you want to slightly optimize the assembly of the first two layers, you can use this.)

Stage 4 - cross of the third layer (“lower cross”)

The goal of this stage is to assemble the cross of the last unassembled layer. Although the unassembled layer is now on top, the cross is called "bottom" because in its original state this layer was at the bottom.

First, we will unfold the edges so that they all face up in a color that matches the color of the top. If they are already all turned up so that at the top you get a single-color flat cross, we proceed to moving the edges. If the cubes are turned incorrectly, we will turn them over. There can be several cases of edge orientation:

A) all are turned incorrectly

B) two adjacent ones are incorrectly rotated

C) two opposite ones are turned incorrectly

(There cannot be other options! That is, it cannot be that there is only one edge left to turn over. If two layers of the cube are completed, and on the third there is an odd number of edges left to turn over, then you don’t have to worry about it any further, but.)

Let's remember the new formula: FPV · P"V"F" ⇔FRU R"U"F"

In case A) we twist the formula and get case B).

In case B) we turn the Cube so that two correctly rotated edges are on the left and behind, twist the formula and get case C).

In case B), we turn the Cube so that the correctly rotated edges are on the right and left, and, again, we twist the formula.

As a result, we get a “flat” cross of correctly oriented, but out of place edges. Now you need to make a correct volumetric cross from a flat cross, i.e. move the ribs.

Let's remember the new formula: PV · P"V · PV" 2 · P"V ⇔RU · R"U · RU"2 · R"U(“fish”)

We twist the top layer so that at least two edges fall into place (the colors of their sides coincide with the centers of the side faces). If everything falls into place, then the cross is assembled, we move on to the next stage. If not everything is in place, then there can be two cases: either two adjacent ones are in place, or two opposite ones are in place. If the opposite ones are in place, then we twist the formula and get the adjacent ones in place. If the neighboring ones are in place, then we turn the Cube so that they are on the right and behind. Let's twist the formula. After this, the ribs that were out of place will swap places. The cross is assembled!

NB: a small note about the “fish”. This formula uses rotation AT 2 ⇔U"2, that is, we rotate the top counterclockwise twice. Basically, for the Rubik's Cube AT 2 ⇔U"2 = AT 2 ⇔U2, but it’s better to remember exactly AT 2 ⇔U"2, because this formula can be useful for assembling, for example, Megaminx. But in Megaminx AT 2 ⇔U"2 ≠ AT 2 ⇔U2, since one turn there is not 90°, but 72°, and AT 2 ⇔U"2 = AT 3 ⇔U3.

Stage 5 - corners of the third layer

All that remains is to install it in place, and then turn the four corners correctly.

Let's remember the formula: V"P" · VL · V"P · VL" ⇔U"R" UL U"R UL" .

Let's look at the corners. If they are all in place and all that remains is to turn them correctly, then look at the next paragraph. If not a single corner is in place, then twist the formula, and one of the corners will definitely fall into place. We are looking for a corner that stands still. We turn the Cube so that this corner is at the back right. Let's twist the formula. If the cubes do not fall into place, then twist the formula again. After this, all the corners should be in place, all you have to do is turn them correctly, and the Cube will be almost solved!

At this stage, it remains to either turn three cubes clockwise, or three counterclockwise, or one clockwise and one counterclockwise, or two clockwise and two counterclockwise. There can be no other options! Those. It cannot be that there is only one corner cube left to turn over. Or two, but both clockwise. Or two clockwise and one counterclockwise. Correct combinations: (- - -), (+ + +), (+ -), (+ - + -), (+ + - -) . If two layers are assembled correctly, the correct cross is assembled on the third layer and the wrong combination is obtained, then again you can no longer worry, but go get a screwdriver (read). If everything is correct, read on.

Let's remember our Z-commutator (P"N" · PN) ⇔R"D" RD. Rotate the Cube so that the incorrectly oriented corner is in the front right. Rotate the Z-switch (up to 5 times) until the angle turns correctly. Next, without changing the front, we rotate the top layer so that the front right is the next “wrong” corner, and again rotate the Z-commutator. And we do this until all the corners are turned. After this, we will rotate the top layer so that the colors of its edges match the already assembled first and second layers. All! If we had a regular six-color cube, then it is already solved! It remains to turn the Cube with its original top (which is now bottom) up to get the initial state.

All. The cube is complete!

I hope you find this guide useful!

Stage 6 - Rotation of centers

Why won't the cube assemble?!

Many people ask the question: “I do everything as written in the algorithm, but the cube still doesn’t fit. Why?" Usually an ambush awaits on the last layer. Two layers are easy to put together, but the third is not easy. Everything is stirred, you begin to reassemble, again two layers, and again when assembling the third, everything is stirred. Why might this be so?

There are two reasons - obvious and not so obvious:

Obvious. You are not following the algorithms exactly. It is enough to make one turn in the wrong direction or miss a turn for the entire Cube to get mixed up. At the initial stages (when assembling the first and second layers), an incorrect turn is not very fatal, but when assembling the third layer, the slightest mistake leads to complete mixing of all collected layers. But if you strictly follow the assembly algorithm described above, then everything should come together. The formulas are all time-tested, there are no errors in them.

Not very obvious. And most likely this is exactly the point. Chinese manufacturers make Cubes of varying quality - from professional championship cubes for quick assembly to those that fall apart in your hands at the very first spins. What do people usually do if the Cube falls apart? Yes, they put back the fallen cubes, and don’t worry about how they were oriented and in what place they stood. But you can’t do that! Or rather, it is possible, but the likelihood of solving a Rubik's Cube after this will be extremely small.

If the Cube fell apart (or, as speedcubers say, “gotten”) and was assembled incorrectly, then When assembling the third layer, problems will most likely arise. How to solve this problem? Take it apart again and put it back together correctly!

On a cube with two layers assembled, you need to carefully pry up the lid of the central cube of the third layer with a flat screwdriver or a knife, remove it, unscrew the screw with a small Phillips screwdriver, without losing the spring attached to the screw. Carefully pull out the corner and side cubes of the third layer and insert them correctly color to color. At the end, insert and screw the previously unscrewed central cube (do not tighten too much). Twist the third layer. If it turns tightly, loosen the screw; if it turns too easily, tighten it. It is necessary that all faces rotate with the same force. After this, close the lid on the central cube. All.

Without unscrewing, you can rotate any edge by 45°, pry one of the side cubes with your finger, knife or flat screwdriver and pull it out. You just need to do this carefully, because you can break the cross. Then, one by one, pull out the required cubes and insert them back into their places, now correctly oriented. After everything is assembled color by color, you will also need to insert (snap) the side cube that you pulled out at the beginning (or some other, but side cube, since you definitely won’t be able to insert a corner one).

After this, the Cube can be mixed and calmly assembled using the above algorithm. And now he’ll definitely get it together! Unfortunately, you cannot do without such “barbaric” procedures with a knife and a screwdriver, since if, after falling apart, the Cube is folded incorrectly, it will not be possible to assemble it by rotation.

PS: if you can’t assemble even two layers, then first you need to make sure that at least the centers are in the right places. Perhaps someone rearranged the center caps. The standard coloring should have 6 colors, white opposite yellow, blue opposite green, red opposite orange. Usually the top is white, the bottom is yellow, the front is orange, the back is red, the right is green, the left is blue. But the relative position of the colors is absolutely determined by the corner cubes. For example, you can find a corner white-blue-red and see that the colors in it are arranged clockwise. This means that if there is white on top, then there should be blue on the right and red on the front.

PPS: if someone made a joke and not only rearranged the elements of the cube, but re-glued the stickers, then it is generally impossible to assemble the Cube, no matter how much you destroy it. No screwdriver will help here. You need to figure out which stickers were re-glued, and then re-glue them in their places.

Could it be even simpler?

Well, how much easier is it? This is one of the simplest algorithms. The main thing is to understand him. If you want to pick up a Rubik's Cube for the first time and immediately learn how to solve it in a couple of minutes, then it is better to put it aside and do something less intellectual. Any learning, including the simplest algorithm, requires time and practice, as well as brains and perseverance. As I said above, I mastered this algorithm myself in a week, when I was 7 years old, and I was on sick leave with a sore throat.

This algorithm may seem complicated to some because it contains many formulas. You can try using some other algorithm. For example, you can assemble a Cube using one single formula, for example the same Z-commutator. But collecting this way will take a long, long time. You can take another formula, for example, F · PV"P"V"·PVP"F"·PVP"V"·P"FPF", which swaps 2 side and 2 corner cubes in pairs. And using simple preparatory rotations, gradually collect cube, putting all the side cubes in place first, and then the corner ones.

There are a huge bunch of algorithms, but each of them must be approached with due attention, and each requires enough time to master.

Designations of sides and language of rotations in Russian letters

First of all, let's agree on a notation system. The faces of the cube are indicated by letters F, T, P, L, V, N- the initial letters of the words façade, rear, right, left, top, bottom. Which face of the cube is considered the front face - blue, green, etc. - depends on you and the resulting situation. During the assembly process, you will have to several times take one or another face, convenient for a given case, as a façade. The central cubes determine the color of the face, that is, we can say that even in a completely mixed up cube, the central cubes have already been selected and 8 cubes of the same color remain to be attached to each of them. The central cubes are designated by one letter: f, t, p, l, v, n.

Edge cubes (there are 12 of them) belong to two faces and are designated by two letters, for example fp, pv, fn etc.

Corner cubes - in three letters according to the name of the faces, for example, fpv, fln etc.

In capital letters F, T, P, L, V, N the elementary operations of rotating the corresponding face (layer, slice) of a cube by 90° clockwise are indicated. Designations F", T", P", L", V", N" correspond to the rotation of the faces by 90° counterclockwise. Designations F 2, P 2 etc. they talk about double rotation of the corresponding face ( F 2 = FF).

Letter WITH indicate the rotation of the middle layer. The subscript indicates which face should be viewed from in order to make this turn. For example S P- from the right side, C N- from the bottom side, S" L- from the left side, counterclockwise, etc. It is clear that C N = C "B, S P = S "L etc. Letter ABOUT- rotation (revolution) of the entire cube around its axis. O F- from the side of the front edge clockwise, etc.

Process recording (F" P") N 2 (PF) means: rotate the front edge counterclockwise by 90°, the same - the right edge, rotate the bottom edge twice (that is, 180°), rotate the right edge 90° clockwise, rotate the front edge 90° clockwise.

Along with the alphabetic recording of processes, a matrix form of recording is also used, where elementary operations are depicted by a drawing of a front face with corresponding arrows indicating the directions of rotation of the corresponding face.

The layer-by-layer algorithm for solving the Rubik's cube is far from the only one. There are other methods, which are discussed on other pages in this section.

To be continued...

Surely everyone knows it from childhood famous puzzle, named after its creator, Ernő Rubik. Quite quickly it gained popularity and reached the most remote corners of the planet.

Without proper dexterity, it will not be possible to put together a puzzle, even after doing a hundred manipulations, but relatively recently specialists from Inc. learned how to solve a Rubik's cube in 20 moves. They managed to achieve this phenomenal result with the help of a computer, which was given the task of analyzing all possible combinations.

Where did the Rubik's cube come from?

Back in 1974, a Hungarian architect and teacher at the Academy applied arts Ernő Rubik thought about the optimal way of knowing

He wanted a new invention to help students explore the world, and one day a sensational idea came to his mind - to create a puzzle. The task is seemingly elementary - rotate the rows of the cube until each side becomes the same color. But the scheme for assembling a Rubik's cube is not so simple and can take even several hours without yielding a result. Students appreciated and got carried away new toy. At that moment, the creator had no idea that many years later scientists would rack their brains, solving the puzzle until they figured out how to solve a Rubik's cube in 20 moves.

How did it gain worldwide popularity?

At first, the original toy was not popular among investors. It was believed that its production would not be profitable, since solving a Rubik's cube could only be of interest to intellectuals. However, one thing small business I finally decided to invest in this unusual project, and the puzzle began to conquer Budapest.

A few years later, Tibor Lakzi, an intermediary for one of the German companies, arrived in the city and became interested in the original puzzle, which was very popular among the townspeople at that time. Realizing that spreading this amazing invention around the world could bring huge profits, he decided to promote the Rubik's cube. For aspiring businessmen Lakzi and Rubik, the main difficulty was finding investors. But thanks to Tibor's economic education and commercial acumen, the owner of Seven Towns Ltd, Tom Kremer, was soon attracted to the project. He took on large-scale production and distribution, which helped the cube become popular throughout the world.

"God Algorithm"

Since 1982, many countries have regularly held competitions in which the main task of the participants is high-speed assembly Rubik's cube. In order to solve a puzzle as quickly as possible, it is not enough just to have good dexterity and intelligence. A person should know the optimal scheme for solving a Rubik's cube, allowing him to spend as little effort as possible. The minimum number of steps required to solve a given problem is the “God Algorithm”.

Many scientific minds and simple amateurs tried to find a solution. At one time it was believed that the minimum number of steps from any position was 18, but this theory was later refuted. Many years were spent searching for the optimal sequence, and only in 2010 scientists managed to find out how to solve a Rubik's cube in 20 moves, regardless of the position of the puzzle before the assembly began. This is currently an absolute record.

Who is faster - a machine or a person?

At the moment, the fastest person is American schoolboy Colin Burns - he managed to solve the puzzle in less than 5.5 seconds. And the robot, assembled by British engineers from EV3 construction kit parts, coped with this task in 3.253 seconds. The advantage of the mechanism is not only that the work of all its parts is more coordinated than human actions. Scientists gave him 4 arms, which allow him to perform all operations 2 times faster.

How to learn to collect it

There is more than one standard Rubik's cube scheme that allows you to quickly learn how to solve this original puzzle. Different assembly systems allow you to approach the issue differently. Which one to choose is up to you. Of course, it’s unlikely that without Google’s computer power you’ll know how to solve a Rubik’s cube in 20 moves, but finding simple solutions You will learn in a short time. The main thing is that you have enough perseverance. No technique will help you solve the puzzle without problems if you are not willing to spend your precious time on learning.

But you shouldn’t devote all your time to this toy. Doctors noted an increase in the number of patients in psychiatric clinics after the appearance of the Rubik's cube. And traumatologists began to regularly encounter symptoms that were later called “Rubik’s syndrome.” It manifests itself in the form of acute

Assembly diagram

There are several schemes that allow beginners to quickly learn how to fold a Rubik's cube. One of them is attached to this article:

First you need to assemble a cross, the ends of which continue on adjacent faces. There is no universal technique - everything comes with practice.
Next, you need to complete the entire side on which the cross was assembled, and assemble a belt from the parts around it. It is important to ensure that each belt is the same color.
Now you need to collect the second belt and move to the opposite side of the cube.
We assemble the cross on this side in the same way as at the very beginning.
We complete the entire side.
Now we put the corners of the cube in order - we make sure that the colors on them match the colors of the sides to which they are turned.
All that remains is to correctly rotate the parts that have only 2 sides. The cube has been completed.