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5.0 out of 5 stars
A definitive reference on the world's greatest puzzle., January 20, 2010
This review is from: Rubik's Cubic Compendium (Recreations in Mathematics) (Hardcover)
This book covers all aspects of the Rubik's Cube.Most people have heard of the "Cube",may even have attempted to solve it;but this book really tells all the whys and wherefores behind this wonder puzzle.No doubt it is a learned tome,some parts are probably far too involved for one with only a casual interest;but that should not discourage anyone from spending some time with this book;if they want to know something about how and why it was invented ,why it became so popular,how does one go about solving it,and what is the mathematics behind it.
The book was first published in 1987 and contributions to it were made by the invertor as well as world experts.The book details how and why and the difficulties that Erno Rubik encountered in inventing and developing it and its complete history.The Art of Cubing chapter is by Tmas Varga.A chapter on Restoration Methods and Processes (Solving) is by Gerson Keri.The chapter on the Mathematics is by Gerson Keri and Tmas Varga.Gyorgy Marx wrote a fascinating chapter,The Universe of the Cube,and Tmas Vekerdy provided a chapter ,My fingers remember:the psychology of the cube.And to tie it all together David Singmaster wrote an Introduction as well as an Afterword,dealing with several things,including other "Twisty" puzzles,Competitions,Newsletters,Magazines,etc.
There is also an excellent Bibliography.
The book is profusily illustrated in both B&W and Color.
One must remember though,that this book was published in 1987 and there has been a continuing explosion of information written since that time.Thanks to the Internet,there is a vast amount to find there.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Read!, July 22, 2011
This review is from: Rubik's Cubic Compendium (Recreations in Mathematics) (Hardcover)
This is a great read if you want the details behind the cube, if you just want to memorize the algorithm then this won't be the best book for you.
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