News of the weird: World champion says Rubik’s Cube and violin go hand in hand

Published 8:34 am Tuesday, January 31, 2023

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — A University of Michigan student is one of the world’s foremost “speedcubers,” a person capable of quickly solving a Rubik’s Cube. He also is an accomplished violinist.

Stanley Chapel says the two fields go hand in hand.

Not only does Chapel say he has equal interest in both, but the 21-year-old says the violin has aided in his speedcubing success.

“Repetition, breaking things down into their smallest fundamental elements, all of these different things that we use to improve at an instrument, and being able to take these into the world of cubing has certainly been a huge help to my progression,” said Chapel, a junior majoring in violin performance at the university’s school of music, theater and dance.

Chapel, who grew up in Ann Arbor not far from the Michigan campus, solved his first 3×3 Rubik’s Cube as a 14-year-old. Five weeks later, Chapel entered his first competition, solving the cube in an average of 22 seconds.

Fast-forward a year to 2017 in Paris, with Chapel placing fifth in both the 4×4 blindfolded and 5×5 blindfolded categories at the World Cube Association World Championship.

At the 2019 world championship in Melbourne, Australia, the recent high school graduate won both events.

Factoring in the time it takes for him to review the cube before placing the blindfold over his eyes, Chapel can solve one in around 17 seconds.

“The deeper I go into the realm of cubing technique, the more I find interest in pushing the boundaries of what’s possible there,” he said.

Chapel has certain inherent abilities: He is capable of remembering and applying thousands of algorithms to solve a Rubik’s Cube and performing one of Johann Sebastian Bach’s violin sonatas from memory.

But he also spends hours upon hours honing his craft, including doing regular hand stretches that help Chapel avoid the kinds of aches and pains that come with the frequent and frenetic turning of the cube’s sides.

Chapel says years of playing the violin also has contributed to him having “very, very fine motor control already built up.”

Later this year, Chapel intends to defend his world titles in South Korea. Since the 2021 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chapel is the reigning champion in both heading into the 2023 event in Seoul.

Once he’s done with school, though, Chapel isn’t sure how speedcubing fits into his future plans.

“I guess it’s cool to know that nobody is able to do this,” he said. “But, at the same time, giving myself a little bit of a reality check, it’s like, ‘How much does that actually matter?’”

“It’s not going to pay the bills when I’m older,” Chapel said, laughing.

Man crushed to death under outdoor urinal in London

LONDON — A pop-up urinal crushed a man to death in London’s theater district Friday, Jan. 27, police said.

Firefighters used a winch to free the man after he became trapped under a hydraulic urinal at Cambridge Circus, a busy intersection in the city’s West End.

The Metropolitan Police force said the man “is thought to have sustained crush injuries while working on a telescopic urinal.” The force said that “despite the efforts of emergency services,” he was pronounced dead at the scene.

His identity was not released.

The retractable urinals are dotted throughout London’s entertainment districts, stored below ground during the day and raised at night.

Fully clothed bathing burglar found in Seattle bathroom

SEATTLE — A man suspected of breaking into a Seattle home has refused to come clean about his intentions, even though police found him fully clothed in a bathtub filled with water.

A woman returned to her home Friday, Jan. 27, to find a window smashed and an unknown man inside the house, according to the Seattle Police Department.

She remained outside the home and called police. Upon their arrival, officers instructed anyone inside to come out. When they got no reply, they went in to search the home — and found a suspect in a bathroom.

“The man was clothed but very wet, and the bathtub was full of water,” police said in a statement.

The 27-year-old man was arrested for residential burglary and refused to explain his actions, including his choice of a bathing spot, police said.