> On the original Rubik's Cube, how many stickers could be found on each side?And the answer: 9. Photo courtesy: HPCwire.comIn 1974, Hungarian designer Ernő Rubik invented theMagic Cube, which was later renamed as the Rubik's Cube. Since then, over 350million Cubes have been sold worldwide, making it one of the most popularpuzzles ever sold. The inventor explained the popularity by saying, "People likeits beauty, simplicity and form. It's really not a puzzle or a toy. It's a pieceof art."Upon its creation in 1974, Rubik realized he had made something worthy ofavid-puzzlers' attention when the inventor himself could not solve his puzzlefor the first month of its existence. Eventually, after cracking the code andreceiving a slew of patents, first for Hungarian sales and then worldwidedistribution, Rubik had a second realization: he had created a near perfectpuzzle. In 1980 and 1981, the Rubik’s Cube received the UK Toy of the Yearaward, and in the first three years of its release it sold 100 million cubes.Today, over three times that figure have been sold, making it the most popularpuzzle toy of all time.Apparently, the idea behind the toy was mathematical. Rubik himself acknowledgedthat he purposefully set out to design a puzzle based on geometry, initiallybelieving that the cube would appeal to those with science, math, or engineeringbackgrounds. However, the inventor writes in his recent book Cubed: The Puzzleof Us All, that he was shocked when “it found its way to people whom nobodywould ever have thought might be attracted to it." Young puzzlers, known as"cubers," are attracted to the seeming simplicity of the puzzle, and are oftenskilled at spotting the patterns ("algorithms") necessary to solve the cube.Today, competitions around the world invite cubers to put their skills, speed,and techniques to the test.Learn some speedcubing tips from the current world champion of the Rubik's Cubebelow.