Happy anniversary: The puzzle known as Rubik's Cube turns 50 this year

Transcript

A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:

One of the world's most famous puzzles turns 50 this year.

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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: There's never been a puzzle quite like Rubik's cube, and America may never be the same.

SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:

Yes, the Rubik's cube.

MARTÍNEZ: Yeah, the creator is an 80-year-old Hungarian architect, Erno Rubik. Back in the day, he was a professor in Budapest, fascinated with geometry and he created a prototype in 1974 that took him months to solve.

PFEIFFER: The creator of the Rubik's cube, Mr. Rubik himself, was stumped by his own invention.

MARTÍNEZ: Very difficult. Here he is speaking to MORNING EDITION a few years ago.

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ERNO RUBIK: I discovered the potential of the object as a puzzle, and I liked it. So I found it difficult, more difficult, more enjoyment to solve it and had some kind of magnetic force. I had the feeling I'm not alone in the world.

MARTÍNEZ: What he called the Magic Cube was patented in 1975 and became an immediate success in Hungary.

PFEIFFER: And then it came to the U.S...

MARTÍNEZ: Five years later, rebranded as Rubik's Cube.

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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: People are practicing at clinics, entering contests and competing across the country. Rubik's Cube from Ideal...

PFEIFFER: Now, half a century later, about 500 million Rubik's Cubes, official versions and look-alikes, have been sold worldwide.

MARTÍNEZ: And solving it has become a competitive sport, the World Cube Association.

PFEIFFER: There's an association for everything.

MARTÍNEZ: Yeah, that's what the script says.

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MARTÍNEZ: I wouldn't know. Now, the World Cube Association says the current world records set last year is just over 3 seconds. You can watch it on YouTube.

PFEIFFER: Three seconds - must be a very short video.

MARTÍNEZ: In 2020 Rubik published a memoir called "Cubed: The Puzzle Of Us All," where he described his philosophy of play.

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RUBIK: Most of the people are taking most of the things too seriously. They really can't enjoy life because of that. So to do something playfully, if you don't really mind, you are winning or losing, you enjoy the play.

PFEIFFER: Enjoy the play. What a nice philosophy for life. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.