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* * * NEW PRODUCT
ANNOUNCEMENT * * *
Company Contact:
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Press Contact: |
Jim
Lewis
Quirkle.com
201-447-9120
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Tom Wolf
Ascend Public Relations
206-903-1730
twolf@ascendpr.com |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 10, 2004
Inventor creates
"Quzzle" - a
unique puzzle
balancing extreme simplicity and complexity
Inventor turns to
computer science to help design simple yet difficult puzzle
Midland Park, NJ - November 10, 2004 - Quirkle.com announces the release of
Quzzle(tm) - the result of inventor Jim Lewis' goal to design
the most
difficult puzzle with the fewest possible pieces. The resulting
puzzle had to appear very simple on the surface, yet prove very
difficult to actually solve. Indeed, the 9-piece Quzzle has a
deceptively simple task: Move one block from one corner to
another. Despite this seemingly easy task, it can take
experienced puzzle solvers hours to find the solution. Mr. Lewis
studied puzzle design, learned an advanced programming language and
wrote computer software to design Quzzle.
With the goal to design the most difficult puzzle with the fewest
moving pieces, Mr. Lewis turned to the high-tech world of computers and
computer science. After extensive research on puzzle design, Mr.
Lewis settled on the classic "Dad's Puzzle" sliding block format to see
if he could improve on its design. A Dad's Puzzle is so named
because it reflects the task of the head of the family rearranging
pieces of furniture in a room. In puzzle design, difficulty
relates to puzzle size and number of pieces. Simply, puzzles with
fewer pieces are easier than puzzles with more pieces. However,
due to a mathematical problem called "combinatorial explosion," adding
too many pieces can make the puzzle impossible even for a computer to
solve.
To achieve his design goals, Mr. Lewis turned his programming skills to
the task of writing a computer program to test his designs. To
design the Quzzle, Mr. Lewis wrote a program he dubbed the "Computer
Assisted Puzzle Analyzer" (CAPA) in Haskell, a little-known advanced
programming language. After several months of programming and
running his tests, Mr. Lewis arrived at a puzzle that is the optimal
combination of simplicity and complexity - the sign of a great puzzle.
The Quzzle is available through http://www.quirkle.com
for $19.95.
A complete online Media kit for the Quzzle is available at:
http//www.ascendpr.com
END
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Ascend Public Relations
High Impact Technology Public Relations
157 Yesler Way, Suite 520
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (206) 903-1730
Toll Free: (866) 903-1730
Fax: (On Request)
info@ascendpr.com
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