Jump to content
BrainDen.com - Brain Teasers
  • 0

Rolling blocks gather much interest


bonanova
 Share

Question

Eight cubes are placed on a 3x3 grid with the center location vacant.

The top of each cube is distinguished by a certain color, say, as is the bottom, but by a different color.

The side faces do not matter.

post-1048-0-64365000-1366661727_thumb.gi

Any adjacent cube may be "rolled" into the vacant location by giving it a 1/4 turn about a bottom edge.

By a series of such rotations, a configuration may be reached where the eight cubes are inverted,

and the center location is again vacant.

What is the minimum number of moves that accomplishes this?

All moves are by rotation.

A cube may not be slid into the vacant spot.

The cubes do not have to return to their original location.

You can simulate this puzzle using eight dice.

Initially a "1" shows on the top faces; finally a "6" shows on the top faces.

To record a solution, U, D, L and R can be used for up, down, left and right.

The first three moves will alternate vertically and horizontally.

Therefore, you may begin your solution with URD.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 answers to this question

Recommended Posts

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Answer this question...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...