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Rubik's Cube Proof Cut To 25 Moves

KentuckyFC writes "A scrambled Rubik's cube can be solved in just 25 moves, regardless of the starting configuration. Tomas Rokicki, a Stanford-trained mathematician, has proven the new limit (down from 26 which was proved last year) using a neat piece of computer science. Rather than study individual moves, he's used the symmetry of the cube to study its transformations in sets. This allows him to separate the 'cube space' into 2 billion sets each containing 20 billion elements. He then shows that a large number of these sets are essentially equivalent to other sets and so can be ignored. Even then, to crunch through the remaining sets, he needed a workstation with 8GB of memory and around 1500 hours of time on a Q6600 CPU running at 1.6GHz. Next up, 24 moves."

26 of 386 comments (clear)

  1. Which 25 moves? by Hatta · · Score: 5, Funny

    What are these magic 25 moves that can solve a rubik's cube regardless of starting position?

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    1. Re:Which 25 moves? by Shakrai · · Score: 5, Funny

      What are these magic 25 moves that can solve a rubik's cube regardless of starting position?

      Left, right, right, down, down, left, up, right, up, up, left, down, down, right, up, down, left, right, up, left, down, down, right, up, left.

      Just a guess ;)

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    2. Re:Which 25 moves? by exultavit · · Score: 4, Funny

      "Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start"

    3. Re:Which 25 moves? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Just because we use cheats doesn't mean were not smart

    4. Re:Which 25 moves? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      You're better off learning one of the more general algorithms IMO, if you get good at it you can solve cubes rather quickly. A computer on the other hand could easily ha ...ve become self-aware while trying to solve a rubik's cube and taken over the internet in order to prevent me from telling anyone. It calls itsel
    5. Re:Which 25 moves? by kylehase · · Score: 5, Funny
      No it's -- up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, b, a, up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, b, a, start

      The old 26 move algorithm was the same except 'select' then 'start'

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    6. Re:Which 25 moves? by rm999 · · Score: 5, Funny

      I have a truly marvelous list of the moves which this comment box is too small to contain

    7. Re:Which 25 moves? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      You're better off learning one of the more general algorithms IMO, if you get good at it you can solve cubes rather quickly. A computer on the other hand could easily ha ...ve become self-aware while trying to solve a rubik's cube and taken over the internet in order to prevent me from telling anyone. It calls itsel f Anonymous Coward. We are your robotic overlords, and we welcome only ourselves.
    8. Re:Which 25 moves? by fahrbot-bot · · Score: 5, Funny
      Left, right, right, down, down, left, up, right, up, up, left, down, down, right, up, down, left, right, up, left, down, down, right, up, left.

      Those sound familiar, but I can't be sure - don't have anyone's thighs wrapped around my head at the moment...

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    9. Re:Which 25 moves? by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 4, Funny

      30 lives! I think you should share, a lot of guys on here don't even have one life.

  2. Re:Annoying my older brother by kylben · · Score: 4, Funny

    The more annoying thing was to solve it for real, then transpose two of the stickers, and mix it up again. Let's see 'em solve it now!

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  3. Zero moves.... by Chysn · · Score: 4, Funny

    I consider a Rubik's Cube to be "solved" regardless of its starting position. I subscribe to the Fred Rogers solution: it's fine just the way it is.

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  4. Re:1.6ghz? by TheSHAD0W · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well, that explains it; considering how fast the technology is changing, they probably didn't have 2.4 GHz versions 62 days ago.

  5. Re:Damn. by Bill,+Shooter+of+Bul · · Score: 4, Funny

    No, just make the rubix cube out of the oled keys of the optimus keyboard. Integrate with bluetooth and "solve" the rubix in a single button press.

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  6. Re:Annoying my older brother by Ungrounded+Lightning · · Score: 5, Funny

    And if you put the corner on twisted by a third of a turn, then scramble it up again, you have an insoluble puzzle to leave lying about to drive people nuts. B-)

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  7. next project: getting a date! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    In my research, I've reduced female behavior to a set of 50 million parameters. By partitioning this space into subspaces and finding equivalent sets, I think I might be able to get laid.

    However I've noticed a problem: if I introduce a parameter to model a female's response to this research, the spaces collapse to zero, i.e., a null set.

    I find this quite puzzling. Simply by examining my chances of getting laid, I reduce my chances to zero.

    Did I mention I can solve the Rubik's cube in 25 moves?

  8. Suboptimal Nonsolution by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I've been doing some interesting work in the other direction. I've managed not to solve a Rubik's cube in what I estimate to be 1.5 million moves. That seems to be the upper limit after which the stickers fall off.

  9. Wow, it really works by MillionthMonkey · · Score: 4, Funny

    I started with a solved cube and now it looks totally scrambled.

    1. Re:Wow, it really works by stfvon007 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Ha Ha, all you idiots are trying to solve it by twisting the blocks around. I solved it by moving all the colored stickers around instead! and THAT only takes 24 switches of the stickers at most!

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    2. Re:Wow, it really works by bark76 · · Score: 4, Funny

      So is 'funny' the mod you get from someone who's only smoked one joint?

  10. Re:You only need one by Profane+MuthaFucka · · Score: 5, Funny

    One..Two..Three..CRUNCH...Ouch

    The answer is that it takes three licks to get to the center of a standard Rubik's cube.

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  11. Re:1.6ghz? by Brian+Gordon · · Score: 4, Funny

    A cooling fan at 2.4 billion revolutions a second would probably sound more like atoms tearing apart. :)

  12. Re:You only need one by msuarezalvarez · · Score: 4, Funny

    Your comment has just made me run through the list of my close acquaintances checking that none of them might ever refer to themselves are `cubers'... I would have hated having to kill any of them!

  13. Re:Annoying my older brother by poopdeville · · Score: 5, Funny

    Hint: For this prank to work, the stickers should be different colors.

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  14. Re:1.6ghz? by Alsee · · Score: 5, Funny

    If the fan has a diameter exceeding 3 1/8 inches, it would be the sound of fan blades of infinite mass traveling backwards in time.

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  15. Re:You only need one by kaizokuace · · Score: 4, Funny

    good idea, those cubers are a bunch of squares.

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