Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Sudoku


Anyone out there a big Sudoku fan? I've always loved working crossword puzzles or any kind of word game, especially if the clues are tricky and make you think in creative ways. But lately I've also become enamored with Sudoku. The name is a Japanese word combining "number" and "single." Its origin stems from an 18th century game by a Swiss Mathematician. Some newspapers print a daily puzzle, but if yours doesn't you can work one online.

I like Sudoku because it wakes up the analytical part of my brain. The puzzles are ranked for difficulty by stars. Only one or two stars means most choices will be logical if you scan the numbers already provided. The harder ones require thinking ahead by several moves--carrying the consequences of one choice to later conclusions to see if a number will cause a conflict down the road. You have to literally "think outside the box."

Isn't life a lot like that? Some choices are obvious. If I do this, then that will happen. Others require more analysis. If we don't want to hit a dead end down the road, we have to take a different course. If we make the bad choice anyway, we wind up having to backtrack and try to "erase" all the other problems our original choice caused.

Next time you're faced with a dilemma and aren't sure what choice to make, pray for wisdom and ask yourself what the logical consequences will be. Maybe the better choice will be to go home and play a game of Sudoku! :)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've been seeing Sudoku puzzles everywhere! I get them for extracredit in math and my home room teacher gives them to us to keep us busy. They've like exploded everywhere and now everyone's doing them.

Anonymous said...

Yay for Sudoku! These puzzles are a great way to get the analytical part of your brain stronger. You don't even have to be a mathmatician to do them - otherwise, I'd be toast!!

Anonymous said...

I love Sudoku