Netflix has this https://g.co/kgs/kXCCRn Rubik’s cube documentary which is of nerdly interest, and kind of piqued my interest this week.

That documentary doesn’t deal with anything mathematical, but Rubik’s cubes can be represented as mathematical groups.

Groups are used a lot in cryptography. This TEDed video, though,  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW2Hvs5WaRY

actually makes a connection instead with music. If you haven’t been introduced to groups before, I think this ~4 min. rendering with Rubik’s cubes and music is a lot more fun and accessible than text book definitions.

However, if you do want something a little more formal, this is a high school level text on Rubik’s cubes + groups.

http://people.math.harvard.edu/~jjchen/docs/Group%20Theory%20and%20the%20Rubik's%20Cube.pdf

I’m only half way thru and so far it’s group theory with Rubik’s cube examples. I was kind of hoping for something with some “AHA!” about solving a Rubik’s cube based on understanding the math. Or given some state find an easy inversion… sort of the discrete log of the rubik’s cube world. If anyone finds something like that I’d be interested.

Happy Friday,

Dan