THE SEARCH FOR THE NEXT SUDOKU

'Google Goggles' takes challenge out of puzzle

(NEWSER) - Sudoku fans might love or hate this: The updated Google Goggles phone app can solve even the most difficult of the numeric puzzles in seconds. The phone's camera takes an image of the puzzle and sends it to Google, whose central servers make quick work of it and send back the completed image, explains the Telegraph . The main purpose of the app, however, is to scan bar codes and print ads. The servers return info to help shoppers find bargains. More»

Mental puzzles can help you shed a few pounds, says brain trainer

(NEWSER) - Hunkering down with a Sudoku puzzle could help you shed some pounds. Tim Forrester, the man behind brain training website cannyminds.com, says mental exercise doubles as real exercise, with the body burning 90 calories for every hour spent working on crossword puzzles or brain teasers. A passive brain requires 0.1 calories a minute to survive, Forrester tells the Daily Telegraph , while an active brain burns 1.5 a minute. See, that gym membership was a waste of time. More»

(NEWSER) - A mathematician has devised a foolproof method for solving Sudoku puzzles, USA Today reports. The stimulating mental challenge of the game has attracted millions of fans all over the world, but, from a mathematical perspective, “the interesting fact about Sudoku is that it is a trivial puzzle to solve," says JF Crook of Winthrop University, whose Suduko-busting formula appears in Notices of the American Mathematical Society. More»