Rubik’s Cube - How The Puzzle Achieved Success Reading Answers

Dec 13, 2022

Rubik’s Cube How The Puzzle Achieved Success Reading Answers has 5 questions that have to be answered in 20 minutes. Rubik’s Cube How The Puzzle Achieved Success Reading Answers comprises only one type of question, namely- no more than two words. In no more than two words, candidates are required to answer based on a given cue within a word limit of two words. Candidates must read the IELTS reading passage, identify keywords, and recognize synonyms to answer the question.

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

Rubik’s Cube How The Puzzle Achieved Success Reading Answers

Erno Rubik first studied sculpture and then later architecture in Budapest, where he went on to become a teacher of interior design. It was while he was working as a teacher that he began the preliminary work on an invention that he called the ‘Magic Cube'.
Rubik was inspired by geometric puzzles such as the Chinese tangram, a puzzle consisting of various triangles, a square and a parallelogram which can be combined to create different shapes and figures. However, unlike the tangram, which is two- dimensional, Rubik was more interested in investigating how three-dimensional forms, such as the cube, could be moved and combined to produce other forms.
His design consisted of a cube made up of layers of individual smaller cubes, and each smaller cube could be turned in any direction except diagonally. To ensure that the cubes could move independently, without falling apart, Rubik first attempted to join them together using elastic bands. However, this proved to be impossible, so Rubik then solved the problem by assembling them using a rounded interior. This permitted them to move smoothly and easily. He experimented with different ways of marking the smaller cubes, but ended up with the simple solution of giving a different colour to each side. The object was to twist the layers of small cubes so that each side of the large cube was an identical colour.
Rubik took out a patent for the Cube in 1977 and started manufacturing it in the same year. The Cube came to the attention of a Hungarian businessman, Tibor Laczi, who then demonstrated it at the Nuremberg Toy Fair. When British toy expert Tom Kremer saw it, he thought it was amazing and he persuaded a manufacturer, Ideal Toys, to produce 1 million of them in 1979. Ideal Toys renamed the Cube after the toy’s inventor, and in 1980, Rubik’s Cube was shown at toy fairs all over the world. It won that year’s prize in Germany for Best Puzzle. Rubik’s Cube is believed to be the world’s best-selling puzzle; since its invention, more than 300 million Cubes have been sold worldwide.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Questions 1-7:
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Rubik’s Cube

Originally named the 1_____ , Rubik’s Cube consists of a number of smaller cubes organised in 2 _____.

The smaller cubes can be twisted in almost any way, though not 3 _____. The Cube’s 4 _____ is shaped in a way that allows the smaller cubes to move smoothly. Each side of the smaller cubes has a different colour, and the aim of the puzzle is to organise the cubes so that the colours on the sides of the large cube are 5 _____.

The manufacturers of the puzzle changed the name of the Cube to the name of its 6 _____ it has now sold more than any other 7______ in the world.

Question: 1

Answer: Magic cube
Supporting sentence: Erno Rubik first studied sculpture and then later architecture in Budapest, where he went on to become a teacher of interior design. It was while he was working as a teacher that he began the preliminary work on an invention that he called the 'Magic Cube'.
Keywords: preliminary work, interior design, invention
Keyword location: Paragraph A, lines 2-3
Explanation: As it is stated in the third line of paragraph 1 that when Erno Rubik was working as a teacher. He started focusing on the invention of Rubik's cube initially and originally named it 'Magic cube'.

Question: 2

Answer: Layers
Supporting sentence: Rubik was more interested in investigating how three-dimensional forms, such as the cube, could be moved and continued to produce other forms. His design consists of a cube made up of layers of individual smaller cubes, and each smaller cube could be turned in any direction except diagonally.
Keywords: three-dimensional, smaller cubes, direction
Keyword location: Paragraph B and C, lines 7-10
Explanation: As mentioned in the last two lines of paragraph 2 and the first two lines of paragraph 3.Rubik was determined to identify the functioning of the three-dimensional cube made of various smaller cubes. Hence, he arranged various small cubes in a layer to form a three-dimensional cube.

Question: 3

Answer: Diagonally
Supporting sentence: His design consists of a cube made up of layers of individual smaller cubes, and each smaller cube could be turned in any direction except diagonally. To ensure that the cube could move independently, without falling apart, Rubik first attempted to join them together using elastic bands.
Keywords: layer, smaller cube, direction, elastic bands
Keyword location: Paragraph C, lines 9-11
Explanation: The first two lines of paragraph 3 indicate that Rubik designed a three-dimensional cube by arranging various smaller cubes in a layer. The layer arrangement allows the smaller cube to move independently in all directions except diagonally. Rubik prevented the diagonal movement and separation of smaller cubes from each other through elastic bands.

Question: 4

Answer: Interior
Supporting sentence: To ensure that the cube could move independently, without falling apart, Rubik first attempted to join them together using elastic bands. However, this proved to be impossible, so Rubik then solved the problem by assembling them using a rounded interior. This permitted them to move smoothly and easily.
Keywords: elastic band, assembling, rounded interior
Keyword location: Paragraph 3, lines 11-13
Explanation: In lines 12 and 13 it is mentioned that even by using the elastic bands Rubik could not arrange the smaller cubes together. Hence, he decided to assemble the smaller cubes using a rounded interior which allowed them to move smoothly.

Question: 5

Answer: Identical
Supporting sentence: He experimented with different ways of marking the smaller cubes but ended up with the simple solution of giving a different colour to each side. The object was to twist the layer of small cubes so that each side of the large cube was an identical colour.
Keywords: marking, each side, colour
Keyword location: Paragraph C, lines 14-16
Explanation: Rubik tried various ways to mark the small cubes to make the Rubik cubes interesting. However, he used the simplest way of colouring each side of smaller cubes with a different colour to make it more interesting. He painted each side of the large cube with identical colours.

Question: 6

Answer: Inventor
Supporting sentence: The cube came to the attention of a Hungarian businessman, Tibor Laczi, who then demonstrated it at the Nuremberg Toy Fair. When British toy expert Tom Kremer saw it, he thought it was amazing and he persuaded a manufacturer, Ideal Toys, to produce 1 million of them in 1979. Ideal Toy was renamed the Cube after the toy's inventor, and in 1980, Rubik's cube was shown at toy fairs all over the world. It won that year's prize in Germany for Best Puzzle.
Keywords: Rubik, patent for the cube, toy renamed
Keyword location: Paragraph C, lines 17-20
Explanation: in 1979, Tom Kremer, a British toy expert got hold of the Magic cube and believed it to be an amazing toy. He persuaded Ideal Toys manufacturer in the same year to produce 1 million Magic cubes. The cube was then renamed by the Ideal Toys Rubik's cube after the toy's inventor.

Question: 7

Answer: Puzzle
Supporting sentence: Ideal Toy renamed the Cube after the toy's inventor, and in 1980, Rubik's cube was shown at toy fairs all over the world. It won that year's prize in Germany for Best Puzzle. Rubik's Cube is believed to be the world's best-selling puzzle; since its invention, more than 300 million Cubes have been sold worldwide.
Keywords: Rubik's cube, toy fair, Best Puzzle
Keyword location: Paragraph C, lines 21-23
Explanation: Here in the last two lines provides the answer. Rubik's cube was awarded Best puzzle in Germany at a toy fair. Nearly 300 million cubes have been sold all over the world since the Rubik's cube was invented. This gave the Rubik's cube the privilege of being called the best selling puzzle.

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