Winn's fingers flew.
The little cube in his hands twisted and turned.
Bright, colorful squares moved at a rapid pace.
"Oh, a Rubik's Cube puzzle!" said Anika.
"I just got one for my birthday."
"I'm trying to solve it quickly," said Winn.
He stopped turning the cube and studied it for a moment.
Then he turned the top layer clockwise and studied it again.
Finally he sighed and set the puzzle on the table.
"I wish I'd invented the Rubik's Cube," he said.
"Then I could solve it easily!"
Anika laughed. "I'm not so sure about that.
It took the inventor a month to solve it the first time!"
"Really?" said Winn. "Who invented it?"
"A man named Erno Rubik," said Anika.
"He was an architecture professor."
Winn scratched his head. "Why did he invent a toy?"
"Rubik didn't think of the cube as a toy at first," said Anika.
"He invented it in 1974 to test out a design idea.
But then he realized people really liked playing with the cube.
He decided to manufacture and sell it."
"He sold a lot of them, right?" asked Winn.
"Rubik's Cube was extremely popular in the 1980s," said Anika.
"Today it's still popular.
In fact, it's one of the world's top-selling toys."
Winn grinned. "Well, someday I'm going to be the world's speed-cubing champion!"
"Oh, really?" asked Anika.
"Yep," said Winn.
"There are speed-cubing competitions all over the world.
The first world championship was held in 1982.
People try to solve the Rubik's Cube as fast as they can.
And there are different types of competitions too.
Some people solve it with one hand.
Others solve it blindfolded.
Some people even solve it with their feet!"
Winn picked up the cube and started twisting it again.
"A lot of people can solve it in less than ten seconds," he said.
"How fast are you?" asked Anika.
Winn gave a sheepish grin.
"Actually, I haven't solved it at all yet."
"Don't feel bad," said Anika.
"It's not easy to solve.
There are billions of ways a Rubik's Cube can be scrambled."
Winn put the cube down again.
"This is taking me forever!"
Anika picked up the cube and started twisting it.
"A Rubik's Cube can always be solved in fewer than twenty moves."
"Impossible," said Winn.
"I'm serious," said Anika as she continued to move the sides around.
"Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen . . . done!"
Anika held out the Rubik's Cube.
Winn's eyes grew wide. "You solved it!"