During the past month, I learnt how to solve a Rubik’s cube, and have reduced my time-to-solve from 5 minutes to a little above 3 minutes.
This is slow compared to the pros, who can regularly solve a cube in under 5 seconds.
I’ve merely learnt the basic 7 algorithms that, if implemented in that exact order, will get you to a solved cube every time. And I’ve only practised getting faster at these 7 steps. However, this approach is slow and inefficient.
For those willing to go deep down Rubik’s cube rabbit hole, there are a dizzying array of algorithms to learn. For example, just to solve the last layer of the cube there are 57 algorithms to “orient” and an additional 21 to “permute”—with orient meaning the last layer has the right colours, and permute meaning all cubes in the last layer are in their correct position. Committing these algorithms to brain and muscle memory can help you shave minutes off your solve time.
I don’t have time, nor the interest, in learning all the Rubik’s cube algorithms, but they are a great insight into what’s possible. When I look at an unsolved cube, there is the potential for it to be solved much faster if I’m willing to put in the work.
I’ll take that energy and apply it to an algorithm elsewhere.