Everyone knows what a Rubik's cube is. Did you know that this toy is coming back into fashion again? Yes, it is. A toy that your grandparents must have played with or at least know, is on the scene again.
For those few of you who don't know what it is, here's a quick introduction. The Rubik's Cube is a mechanical puzzle, in its original form it is a cube. It's made up of sub-coloured cubes. The puzzle works on the principle of rotations and the goal is to rearrange the individual parts so that each side of the whole body is in one colour.
The 3×3×3 cube became a hit in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when it was produced in batches of millions and became the best-selling product on Earth. It was invented by Hungarian sculptor and architect Ernő Rubik on May 19, 1974.
Many years have passed since then and a great number of innovations have been created in the meantime. Whether it is the cubes themselves and their types, or the different types of competitions. Let's start with the cubes first.
The original 3x3x3 cube was the only type of this puzzle in its time, but nowadays there are new types such as 2x2x2, 5x5x5, 6x6x6, 8x8x8 and others. However, today's cubes differ not only in the number of cubes, but also in the shape of the puzzle itself. For example, the triangular puzzle (see Figure 3), or even the Perplexus puzzle (see Figure 4).
For example, there are also cubes for the blind with characters or numbers on the individual cubes.
Whole metal cubes or mini cubes, like a keyring, are also part of the collector's collection.
There is also the "WCA" or World Cube Association, which is a non-profit organization run mostly by volunteers, from local organizers to delegates to the board of directors. The goal of the World Cube Association is to have "more competitions in more countries with more people and more fun, under fair conditions".
Along with these new features came a host of new ways to compete. So-called speedcubing, as the name suggests, is a competition where contestants try to complete a puzzle in the fastest time possible. In the second row, it is then a matter of completing it in the fewest number of moves. However, blind folding is also a popular competition, where the contestants also compete to fold as many cubes as possible. One-handed folding is also rarely seen in competitions, and in the past, foot folding was also competed in. This trend also has its audience in the Czech Republic.
Even in the Czech Republic there are speedcubing conventions and professional competitions where our Czech competitors meet. One of them is our best speedcuber Matěj Mužátko. Matěj, since 2012, has broken over 55 world records and to this day he still has a few left.
On the website http://www.rubikovka.cz/ you can find a lot of other information about "rubik's " and things around it. For example, upcoming competitions and their program, more information about speedcubing events in the Czech Republic or links to social networks. In 2022, more activities related to Rubik's cube are planned, workshops and competitions for interesting prizes are waiting for us.
Are you completely new to folding and don't know how to fold the cube? Or have you just decided to start folding again after a long time, only you don't remember techniques how to do it? Don't worry, anyone can start at any time. It's not as complicated as it looks - check out the Rubik's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzooUbeAXgX69Se1dEfz-FQ . Here you will find helpful videos on how to put together different kinds of puzzles. New videos will be added gradually, with new tips and tricks on how to do it. So don't forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel Rubikovka, so you don't miss any more videos.
