Gan
09-29-2007, 09:07 AM
You can't help looking at his fingers. They're not particularly long, but there's a nimbleness about them that you notice when he picks up a spoon to stir his tea. Dan Harris, 22, is the fastest speedcuber in Britain, which means he can complete the Rubik's Cube in just over 10 seconds.
"I barely even have to think about it now," says the affable university student from Great Yarmouth as he picks up a cube. Dan is also Britain's fastest ever cuber; the plastic contraption is box-fresh again within seconds. It's astonishing to see.
More than 30 years after its invention, the Rubik's Cube is enjoying a comeback worthy of John Travolta. Sales have increased more than 1,000 per cent in the past three years, and worldwide, around 10 million cubes will fly off the shelves this year.
Retailers have the internet to thank for the unlikely resurrection of the £10 plastic toy: what was formerly the geeky pastime of bedroom loners is now a big draw for the tech-minded, who post their times, discuss manoeuvres and upload videos of their "solves" online. It's competitive stuff: this year there are national championships in Sweden, Italy, America, Canada, Spain, Czechoslovakia, Germany and France.
Link to video.
javascript:newWindow(' http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1137692013/bclid1155303449/bctid1213913070','Brightcove','menubar=no,width=92 4,height=710,scrollbars=no')
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml;jsessionid=ZGVAXO3LHGXXDQFIQMGSFFWAVCBQ WIV0?xml=/portal/2007/09/29/nosplit/ftcube129.xml&DCMP=ILC-traffdrv07053100
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I still have my old cube that I bought back in the first cube craze. :(
They must have re-engineered the way the spindles turn because the first generation cubes would hang when you tried to move them fast. And they didnt move as free as the one in the video, you really had to apply force to get the rows to shift (more of a full hand turn techinque rather than just using the fingers).
Ooooh! Rubik can put out a new racing line with alloy bearings and rounded corners for faster shifting. :lol:
"I barely even have to think about it now," says the affable university student from Great Yarmouth as he picks up a cube. Dan is also Britain's fastest ever cuber; the plastic contraption is box-fresh again within seconds. It's astonishing to see.
More than 30 years after its invention, the Rubik's Cube is enjoying a comeback worthy of John Travolta. Sales have increased more than 1,000 per cent in the past three years, and worldwide, around 10 million cubes will fly off the shelves this year.
Retailers have the internet to thank for the unlikely resurrection of the £10 plastic toy: what was formerly the geeky pastime of bedroom loners is now a big draw for the tech-minded, who post their times, discuss manoeuvres and upload videos of their "solves" online. It's competitive stuff: this year there are national championships in Sweden, Italy, America, Canada, Spain, Czechoslovakia, Germany and France.
Link to video.
javascript:newWindow(' http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1137692013/bclid1155303449/bctid1213913070','Brightcove','menubar=no,width=92 4,height=710,scrollbars=no')
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml;jsessionid=ZGVAXO3LHGXXDQFIQMGSFFWAVCBQ WIV0?xml=/portal/2007/09/29/nosplit/ftcube129.xml&DCMP=ILC-traffdrv07053100
__________________________________________________ _________
I still have my old cube that I bought back in the first cube craze. :(
They must have re-engineered the way the spindles turn because the first generation cubes would hang when you tried to move them fast. And they didnt move as free as the one in the video, you really had to apply force to get the rows to shift (more of a full hand turn techinque rather than just using the fingers).
Ooooh! Rubik can put out a new racing line with alloy bearings and rounded corners for faster shifting. :lol: