Imagine solving the Rubik’s Cube blindfolded. Difficult? Then how about solving it with your feet?
If you find these feats improbable, Abhishek Satyanarayanan’s feats may astound, nay dumbfound, you. A class 9 student of Bhavan’s Sri Ramakrishna Vidyalaya, Abhishek accomplishes these tasks routinely.
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What’s more, he also set a new world record for solving a new type of cube – the Skewb Cube – in 13.70 seconds flat!
The 14-year-old set the record during Telesis Open ’14, an international Rubik’s Cube competition held here a few days ago. The tournament also saw three more records being created by city students and cubers Santosh Tantravahi, M. Sunil Kumar and Adithya Kannan. A total of 40 Rubik’s Cube enthusiasts participated in the competition.
Solving cubes is helpful in learning mathematics, Abhishek said during an interaction with the media on Friday. “Solving cubes involves dealing with mathematical algorithms and hence solving mathematics becomes easy for those solving the Rubik’s Cube. Also, solving cube puzzles improves one’s concentration,” he said.
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To solve a Rubik cube blindfolded, one has to first memorise the puzzle and then visualise it while solving it. This, Abhishek points out, needs a great degree of concentration and analysis. A gaming enthusiast, Abhishek, learnt solving cubes by watching online videos and later undergoing professional training.
“Beginners can learn solving the Rubik’s Cube by watching online videos,” he observed. Abhishek can also solve the Rubik’s Cube blindfolded in 3.35 minutes. His best time for solving the cube using his feet was 2.32 minutes.
While the 3x3 column Rubik’s Cube is the most commonly known variant, for professionals, there are advanced cubes that have 9x9 columns.