Square root of 5 one, when traversing the cube "surface" (the shortest distance when traversing through the "inside" of the cube corresponds to the length of the cube diagonal, which is the square root of three times the edge). The number can be algebraically and geometrically related to and , as it is the length of the hypotenuse of a right triangle with catheti measuring and (again, the Pythagorean theorem proves this). Right triangles of such proportions can be found inside a cube: the sides of any triangle defined by the centre point of a cube, one of its vertices, and the middle point
Rubik's Cube followed by another 3×2×1 on the opposite side. Next, the corners of the top layer are solved. The cube can then be solved using only moves of the U layer and M slice. Most beginner solution methods involve solving the cube one layer at a time, using algorithms that preserve what has already been solved. The easiest layer by layer methods require only 3–8 algorithms. In 1981, thirteen-year-old Patrick Bossert developed a solution for solving the cube, along with a graphical notation, designed to be easily understood by novices. It was subsequently published as "You Can Do The Cube" and