Date:  10 September 1980 18:12 edt
From:  Greenberg at MIT-Multics (Bernard S. Greenberg)
Subject:  Re: randomizing
Sender:  Greenberg.Multics at MIT-Multics
To:  Alan R. Katz <KATZ at USC-ISIf>
cc:  cube-lovers at MIT-MC
In-Reply-To:  Message of 10 September 1980 18:00 edt from Alan R. Katz

My personal theory on making a cube as hard to solve as possible
is as follows: Put the cube in
some very complex pretty, regular, pattern, such as the Plummer's
Cross with centers trebly rotated, or the Pons Asinorum on that
which looks like the simple Pons:  the challenged cubemeister
will INVARIABLY say, "Oh,
this, this is just one of those and solved like this" and go through
a long hairy procedure, hopefully the wrong one,
or make an error, or try hard at understanding it, and so forth.
In short, s/he will take MORE time trying to undo what s/he perceives
as a "simple" hairy hack than a straightforward application of
solve-from-random technology.