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Introduction to Sudoku
Steve Hall
Have you ever played with a Rubik's Cube? You may have mastered
the Rubik's cube and are looking for a greater challenge. Try the
puzzle game called Sudoku. Sudoku is a number placement puzzle
that requires logic skills and patience. It is a fantastic puzzle
game that can be found in newspapers, books, and at even here at
this website.
How do you play Sudoku?
The Sudoku puzzle consists of a series of grids. The grids
include one large 9 x 9 grid that houses, nine 3 x 3 smaller
grids. The purpose of the game is to place a number from 1-9 in
each of the grid cells. You don't have to worry about finding the
sum of the numbers of the rows, columns, like in Magic Squares.
No addition is involved; however there are three conditions that
rely on each other and must be followed. Each number 1-9 can
appear only once in each column, once in each row, and once in
each small 3 x 3 grid. Mathematically, Sudoku puzzles are a
derivation of Latin Squares.
The famous mathematician Leonard Euler created Latin Squares.
They are a prevalent part of discrete math. Basically, a Latin
Square consists of an n x n table filled with numbers, letters,
or symbols. Each symbol can only appear exactly once in each row
and exactly once in each column. Sudoku puzzles take the Latin
Square one step further with the 3 x 3 smaller grid constraints.
The fact that you have to make sure that each small 3 x 3 grid
contains each number 1-9 only once significantly increases the
complexity of the puzzle.
Sudoku puzzles come in varying levels of difficulty. The amount
of numbers given initially in the 9 x 9 matrix varies. One would
think that the more numbers you are given initially, the easier
the puzzle would be to solve. This is not always the case because
the "placement" of the numbers has a profound effect on the
complexity of the puzzle.
Where did Sudoku puzzles originate?
Sudoku is the Japanese word for "placement puzzle". Sudoku swept
Japan in the mid-1980's. Before that, however, a puzzle
constructor in the United States named Howard Garnes created the
first puzzle of this type in 1979. It was called "Number Place"
instead of Sudoku. It was published in the Dell Magazine Math
Puzzles and Logic Problems.
How do you solve a Sudoku puzzle?
Good question! The key is to have patience and use your logic
skills. Don't just use a trial and error method. Many players
construct their own puzzle solving techniques and methods, which
they share in Sudoku player online forums.
You can start anywhere in the puzzle, but as a beginner start by
focusing on the top three smaller 3 x 3 grids. Look at the
initial numbers and start with the number "1". Check to see if a
"1" appears in the other two smaller 3 x 3 grids. Then find cells
in these smaller grids where you can possibly place a "1" while
still adhering to the rules. You will also need to take into
consideration 3 x 3 grids that are attached to the given grid. It
is like dancing on eggshells, but the key is to look for
patterns. Logically, you need to prove why a number should go in
a certain cell.
Sudoku is a clever puzzle game that will sometimes make you feel
like you are going around in circles. However, practicing on
different puzzles will help you to understand certain techniques
that work and those that lead you to a dead end. The beauty of
the game is that there are a great number of Sudoku puzzles to
solve. Time yourself. Many puzzle solvers can finish a puzzle in
10 to 30 minutes. Get out your stopwatch and see how fast you can
solve a Sudoku puzzle.
Steve is a member of the GrandMatrix team. They provide a broad
range of games, puzzles, articles and reviews. Read more
articles, download and play the latest PC games for free plus
enjoy thousands of user submitted puzzles, quizzes and word games
at: http://www.grandmatrix.com
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