Petaminx featured in today's newspaper

[cookingfat]

I was reading the Metro today (free newspaper on public transport) and found this >

it reads as below >

The Petaminx will break your brain

If you're one of those people who spends hours staring dumbly at a Rubik's cube, blindly twisting it one way and the other before giving up and weeping at your own stupidity (i.e. if you're us), then you might want to look away now.

The Petaminx is what a Rubik's cube would look like if designed by twelve-dimensional aliens intent on destroying humanity. Featuring 975 individual pieces, with 1,212 stickers on its faces, and apparently has 3.16 x 10'996' different possible rearrangements. That's a three, then a one and a six, and then 994 zeroes.

The Petaminx was built recently by puzzle enthusiast Jason Smith, working from a design by fellow puzzler Andrew Cormier that was posted in the TwistyPuzzles.com forums - a site devoted to increasingly complicated polyhedral mindbenders.

Smith then posted a video of the finished puzzle - which he then proceeded to twist around until it was a nightmarish, near-unsolvable mess.

He now plans to sell the puzzle on eBay. Sounds like an ideal purchase if you've got a couple of years free and want something to occupy yourself.

www.metro.co.uk/petaminx

Granted it's not breaking news to us but it's cool that it got a newspaper feature.

 

[kickinwing2112]

old news, but recognition none the less

 

[JohnnyA]

I saw that! At least 5 people gave me copies at school! (I am the cube guy at school)

 

[rjohnson_8ball]

Couple years? I would believe just a few hours (for me) or less (for Megaminx and big cube pros). Wouldn't it be comparable to a 9x9x9 cube but in Megaminx form?

I like the "twelve-dimensional aliens intent on destroying humanity".

 

[IamWEB]

Wouldn't it be comparable to a 9x9x9 cube but in Megaminx form?

Maybe, but being 'In Megaminx form' alone make it so much harder. Compare the 3x3x3 best times/averages to Megaminx best times/averages. Now compare 3x3x3 to theoretical 9x9x9 averages. The difference in multiplication can be applied to Megaminx.
The times would be insane, and probably divided in sections if it were to be timed on a stackmat.

 

[qqwref]

Couple years? I would believe just a few hours (for me) or less (for Megaminx and big cube pros). Wouldn't it be comparable to a 9x9x9 cube but in Megaminx form?

Yes, it would be. Given my first gigaminx attempt's time and multiplying by the ratio of the number of movable pieces gives 5708 seconds (just over an hour and a half). So I guess that's about how long it would take, assuming it turned well and that the solver knew what they were doing.


By the way: if this is in the real news now, it means it is Notable (according to Wikipedia). Someone make an article! Now!