Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Be a Sudoku solver and Exercise your brains




Are you familiar with the Rubik’s Cube? Have you mastered it already? If you are one of the persons who are engrossed in playing puzzles like the Rubik’s Cube, then you may get hooked on Sudoku.





This is a huge challenge to puzzle solvers and it is one of the most fantastic games ever created. Being a sudoku solver is one of the things you can be very proud of. Well, what is Sudoku? It is a number placement brainteaser that necessitates skills in logic. But not only that, patience is also a requirement for you to be able to withstand the challenge.





There are many people nowadays who are enjoying and who are curved by this marvelous puzzle. It can be found in newspapers, websites and in some books. So how is it played? It generally consists of a series of grids. The grid has one big 9 x 9 grid that shelters nine smaller grids that are 3 x 3 in size.





The main objective of the game is to place a number from 1-9 in each of the grid cells. But you do not have to sum up the numbers or perform other mathematical operations just like the Magic Squares.





However, there are conditions that must be followed. Each number from 1-9 must only appear once in every column and once also in every row and once in each small 3 x 3 grid. Sodoku is more likely a derivation of the Latin Squares.





The Latin Square has been created by Leonard Euler, a renowned mathematician. Fundamentally, a Latin Square has a n x n table packed with letters, numbers, or symbols. And each symbol can only emerge closely once in each row and precisely once in each column. Sudoku puzzles are therefore a modified Latin Square and is developed one step further with the smaller grid limits. It increases the difficulty of the puzzle by the detail that you have to make sure that each small 3 x 3 grid has each number 1-9 only once.





Moreover, Sudoku puzzles are in a wide range of complexity and difficulty. The quantity of numbers given originally in the 9 x 9 matrix alters. You might think that having more numbers given at the beginning would make the puzzle easier. But in contrast, this is not always applicable because the positioning of the numbers has a great consequence on the intricacy of the puzzle game.





Sudoku is the Japanese word meaning “placement puzzle”. It became popular in Japan in the 1980’s. but before that, there was a puzzle maker in the United States by the name of Howard Garnes who created the very first puzzle which is similar to it. It was formerly called “number place” as an alternative of Sodoku. After that, it was published and featured in Logic problems and math puzzles.





So how can you actually become a sodoku solver? You must have patience and logical abilities to solve the puzzle in no time. The trial and error method is not a good technique in this game. Different persons have various techniques as well as strategies to solve this puzzle game.





Some create their own methods and share it to other Sodoku players around the world. And they communicate through the web. They are many sites online and you can be active in their forums and know more on how to solve it.





Basically, you can begin at any place in the puzzle. But according to many, it is better to start focusing on the top three smaller grids. Then look at the preliminary numbers and start with the number 1.





After that, check if a number 1 appears in the other two smaller grids. Next, locate cells in these minor grids where you can probably place a number 1 while still following the necessary conditions.





Furthermore, you will also have to take into thought 3 x 3 grids that are connected to the specified grid. Sudoku is a very brainy puzzle game that will occasionally make you feel like you are going nowhere.





However, it is good that you practice on various puzzles to make you discover some techniques and methods to efficiently solve the puzzle immediately. A Sodoku solver will continue to work on his strategies to become better.


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