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Comment by gowld | Hacker News Reader

Picking up and putting down a cube from a known location, and visually analyzing it, are both solved problems. It's a boring and arbitrary restriction. One could just as well require the manipulators start 100 yards away, which would be biased toward fast-moving robots.

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>> Picking up and putting down a cube from a known location, and visually analyzing it, are both solved problems. It's a boring and arbitrary restriction.

In that case, solving a Rubik's cube is a solved problem. It's become boring thing to watch machines do it. These machines are somewhat impressive in their own way, but the task they are doing has no point. I'd even say because "solving" is no longer relevant, the machines should be manipulating the cube in known (non random) patterns since we're down to comparing speeds.

There is no point to solving a Rubik's cube in the fastest manner possible for humans either. It's just a challenge that some people do for fun. Just like this project is a challenge with slightly different constraints.

Similarly, building a robot that has shafts fixed to the cube’s centres is a solved problem. Quite boring indeed.

Replying to myself to add: maybe we could see a triathlon with three stages of intellectual pursuit added to the three stages of physical activity.

Run one hundred meters, solve a Rubik’s Cube, swim one hundred meters, solve a riddle, cycle five kilometres, then the first two who complete that have to head off in a game of Go.

Why not? There’s people advocating eSports be included in the Olympics, so I’m open to anything at this stage.

See also Chess Boxing: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_boxing

Amazing! Thank you! I'd not seen this before.

And Turing’s “round-the-house” chess: after you move, run around the house, if you get back before your opponent's move you are entitled to a new move.

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