New Rubik's Cube World Record of 4.74 seconds
November 13, 2016 11:15 AM Subscribe
Rubik's Cube mastermind Mats Valk set a new world record over the weekend at the Jawa Timur Open in Indonesia. "Valk, 20, managed to break the existing record of 4.90 seconds, set last year by 14-year-old Lucas Etter, with a blistering time of 4.74 seconds."
Infineon just set the Rubik's Cube machine world record of 0.637 seconds
posted by Harpocrates at 11:51 AM on November 13, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Harpocrates at 11:51 AM on November 13, 2016 [3 favorites]
I might have mentioned this before, but this reminds me of the time I was in line to the Exploritorium museum in San Francisco with my (then) young kids. An adult in front of us was fiddling around with a Rubik's cube and my son asked him if he could solve it.
He said yes with a sneaky look in his eyes. Then he proceded to solve it in maybe 20 seconds--much longer than Mats Valk, but enough to make the whole thing look like a blur and to completely blow my kids' minds.
It turned out they were having a Rubik's cube competition at the museum that day.
posted by eye of newt at 11:57 AM on November 13, 2016 [7 favorites]
He said yes with a sneaky look in his eyes. Then he proceded to solve it in maybe 20 seconds--much longer than Mats Valk, but enough to make the whole thing look like a blur and to completely blow my kids' minds.
It turned out they were having a Rubik's cube competition at the museum that day.
posted by eye of newt at 11:57 AM on November 13, 2016 [7 favorites]
standupmaths (Matt Parker) has a video about this, including an interview with Mats and a step by step follow along of his optopmised solution: .
posted by Quinbus Flestrin at 12:52 PM on November 13, 2016
posted by Quinbus Flestrin at 12:52 PM on November 13, 2016
I grew up in the 1980s.
I have always sucked at math.
I have always felt solving a Rubik's cube to be the stuff of genius.
I have made a small effort (thanks SergsB!) and can now solve the 2x2, 3x3 and 4x4, albeit sloooooowly compared to your average and above average speedcuber.
Of course I have also come to realize you don't need to be a genius.
Or know anything about math,
But it still seems to me amazing, each time it's solved.
posted by chavenet at 1:40 PM on November 13, 2016 [2 favorites]
I have always sucked at math.
I have always felt solving a Rubik's cube to be the stuff of genius.
I have made a small effort (thanks SergsB!) and can now solve the 2x2, 3x3 and 4x4, albeit sloooooowly compared to your average and above average speedcuber.
Of course I have also come to realize you don't need to be a genius.
Or know anything about math,
But it still seems to me amazing, each time it's solved.
posted by chavenet at 1:40 PM on November 13, 2016 [2 favorites]
Wow! Very interesting.
posted by innonlakegranbury at 4:47 PM on November 13, 2016
posted by innonlakegranbury at 4:47 PM on November 13, 2016
I could never get into the normal Rubik's cube, it just struct me as too bland. However, in college I did learn to solve the cube21/square1, which changes shape and consequently is a lot more fun to physically manipulate. I had no interest in memorizing a bunch of special cases, so using like three or four different guides on the internet I cobbled together a system of I think six different sequences that could be used to solve it in a straightforward, albeit not remotely efficient, way.
posted by Pyry at 12:14 AM on November 14, 2016
posted by Pyry at 12:14 AM on November 14, 2016
This one is more my speed. Don't think I'll be setting any records on it though, the turning action is much too stiff.
posted by radwolf76 at 6:43 AM on November 14, 2016
posted by radwolf76 at 6:43 AM on November 14, 2016
Excludes inspection time. Lame.
posted by AbnerRavenwood at 8:45 AM on November 14, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by AbnerRavenwood at 8:45 AM on November 14, 2016 [1 favorite]
I decided to take a systematic approach to solving the Rubik's cube last time I tried, breaking down the process into moves I could fully understand. I realized that I could probably solve the outer corners more-or-less independently, and then the edges more-or-less independently, and then the centers fully independently. That simplified things a lot. I also came up with a small set of moves whose full implications I could understand more-or-less completely.
There are still six squares on that cube which are in the wrong place.
posted by clawsoon at 8:49 AM on November 14, 2016
There are still six squares on that cube which are in the wrong place.
posted by clawsoon at 8:49 AM on November 14, 2016
I solved my first 4x4 this weekend with a tutorial in front of me after being comfortable with the 2x2 and 3x3 for around a year.
Still was no picnic, stayed up til 3am after running into scenarios that are impossible on a 3x3 (like having the "centers" which are formed from four pieces instead of one in the wrong order) and was determined to prove to my kid I could do it the first day I got a chance to play with it.
For the 3x3 I recommend using the official instructions from Rubik.com vs. watching a video or using other guides.
posted by aydeejones at 9:25 AM on November 14, 2016
Still was no picnic, stayed up til 3am after running into scenarios that are impossible on a 3x3 (like having the "centers" which are formed from four pieces instead of one in the wrong order) and was determined to prove to my kid I could do it the first day I got a chance to play with it.
For the 3x3 I recommend using the official instructions from Rubik.com vs. watching a video or using other guides.
posted by aydeejones at 9:25 AM on November 14, 2016
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posted by Faint of Butt at 11:28 AM on November 13, 2016 [3 favorites]