[sci.math] The strong force

markh@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Mark William Hopkins) (12/24/89)

In article <1639@xn.LL.MIT.EDU> rp@XN.LL.MIT.EDU (Richard Pavelle) writes:
>In article <5310@garfield.MUN.EDU>, chris2@garfield.MUN.EDU (Chris Paulse) writes:
>> If I had a solved Rubik's cube, and the colors on each face were
>> just stickers on the black plastic surface, if I exchanged some
>> of the stickers, would the cube still be solvable in the normal way?
>
>Nope. For example you could change two edge cubie colors and it could
>not be solved from that position.

Sure you can.  Used to do it all the time.

There's a little known method of solving the cube from this position that
makes a good analogy with the effects of the strong nuclear force on
particle symmetry.

mmcg@bruce.OZ (Mike Mc Gaughey) (12/27/89)

markh@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Mark William Hopkins) [24 Dec 89 07:25:07 GMT]:
>>
>>Nope. For example you could change two edge cubie colors and it could
>>not be solved from that position.
> 
> There's a little known method of solving the cube from this position that
> makes a good analogy with the effects of the strong nuclear force on

Maybe _you_ can help me then.  I have a pristine cube, and I've just
exchanged the stickers on the top edge cubie facing me.  How do I
solve it?

So far, the only way I've been able to solve this one is to whack
it in a particle accelerator and wait for the stickers to change
color again...

Mike :-)
--
Mike McGaughey			ACSNET:	mmcg@bruce.cs.monash.oz

"The Christmas Spirit is not what you drink" - Jethro Tull.

markh@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Mark William Hopkins) (12/28/89)

Solving the cube from the flipped edge position...

In article <1766@bruce.OZ> mmcg@bruce.OZ (Mike  Mc Gaughey) writes:
> ... I have a pristine cube, and I've just exchanged the stickers on the
> top edge cubie facing me.  How do I solve it?

Remove the edge piece from the cube framework, flip it and insert it
back in (you've just turned an Up quark into a Down quark, or something
like that.)