Cubing 1- or 2-Digit Numbers

Cubing a number is the raising of the number to the third power. In other words, the cube of a number is when you multiply a number times itself twice more (X * X * X).

This method of cubing numbers is rather unusual, as there is no calculation required at all. Instead, the cubes of all the numbers from 0-99 are memorized.

Cubing Numbers from 0 to 9

Cubing both 0 and 1 are simple. They are their own cubes (0^3^ is 0 and 1^3^ is 1), so no links are really needed. 2^3^ is 8, and that's easily remembered, as well. Before remembering any more of the numbers, you should be comfortable with using the MajorSystem. The phonetic alphabet from the Major System will be used to create links from the numbers 3-99 to their respective cubes. Each association will be made to be as natural and memorable as possible.

Starting with the numbers from 0 to 9, here are the cubes and their links:

Number	Number^3^		Original Link	Cube Link
3	27		Ham	An Egg
4	64		Rye	Sherry
5	125		Lie	Denial
6	216		Hash	On A Dish
7	343		Key	My Room
8	512		Hive	Wild Honey
9	729		Bee	Go Nip

Cubing Multiples of 10

Cubing 2-digit multiples of 10 is easy. The number from the tens place is cubed as above, and then you simply add three zeros. For example, 3^3^ is 27, so 30^3^ is 27,000 (27 thousand). 8^3^ is 512, so 80^3^ is 512,000 (512 thousand).

Cubing the Remaining 2-Digit Numbers

Here are the links for the remaining numbers from 11 to 99:

Number	Number^3^		Original Link	Cube Link			Number	Number^3^		Original Link	Cube Link
11	1,331		Date	With My Maid			56	175,616		Lash	Tackle Judge
12	1,728		Dine	Take Enough			57	185,193		Look	To Evil Witty Poem
13	2,197		Item	Notebook			58	195,112		Loaf	Doubled Weight Now
14	2,744		Author	Ink Hirer			59	205,379		Slap	When I Sell My Cup
15	3,375		Tell	Me Meekly			61	226,981		Shoot	An Inch By a Foot
16	4,096		Dish	Rose Bush			62	238,328		Jane	Name Of New Wife
17	4,913		Talk	Ripe Theme			63	250,047		Chime	Only Uses a Rock
18	5,832		Theif	Love Money			64	262,144		Chair	No China Drawer
19	6,859		Daub	Shave Lip			65	274,625		Shallow	Niagra Channel
21	9,261		Hand	Punched			66	287,496		Judge	No Fake Rubbish
22	10,648		Nun	Does Show Her Vow			67	300,763		Joke	Amuse a Sick Chum
23	12,167		Name	Dandy Joke			68	314,432		Shave	May Draw Your Moan
24	13,824		New Year	Time, Fine Rye			69	328,509		Shop	Woman Feels Happy
25	15,625		Nile	Dull Channel			71	357,911		Goat	Milk By Today
26	17,576		Wench	Took All Cash			72	373,248		Coin	Make Men Rave
27	19,683		Nag	To Buy Each Wife a Home			73	389,017		Come	Move Up a Stake
28	21,952		Knave	Neat Plan			74	405,224		Choir	Rose Hill Nunnery
29	24,389		Nob	No Army Fop			75	421,875		Quill	Worn Out Of Gall
31	29,791		Mad	In a Big Pout			76	438,976		Coach	Remove Baggage
32	32,768		Money	May Now Catch a Foe			77	456,533		Cook	Relish Oily Mummy
33	35,937		My Home	Home Will Be a Mohawk			78	474,552		Cuff	Our Cruel Line
34	39,304		Mary	May Be a Miser			79	493,039		Cop	Rip a Museum Up
35	42,875		Mule	Ruin a Vehicle			81	531,441		Food	Well Made Arrow Root
36	46,656		Mash	Rich Jewel Show			82	551,368		Fine	Loyalty May Shave
37	50,653		Mug	Lose Rich Home			83	571,787		Foam	Liquid Coughing
38	54,872		Move	Lower a Heavy Can			84	592,704		Fire	Albany Gas Ray
39	59,319		My Pay	Help Me To Buy			85	614,125		Fall	Shatter Town Hall
41	68,921		Road	Chief Point			86	636,056		Fish	Shame a Choice Leach
42	74,088		Run	Across a Five			87	658,503		Fake	Shall a Fool Swim
43	79,507		Rum	Keep Losing			88	681,472		Five	Shaved a Raccoon
44	85,184		Rower	Awful Diver			89	704,969		Fop	Kiss Our Bishop
45	91,125		Rail	Bad Tunnel			91	753,571		Butt	Gloomy Lookout
46	97,336		Rich	Big Mummy Show			92	778,688		Pony	Kick a Fish Off a Hive
47	103,823		Rake	Hits My Wife Numb			93	804,357		Poem	Of Sour Milk
48	110,592		Rough	Too, Head Sea Will Open			94	830,584		Bar	Famous Loafer
49	117,649		Rube	To Take a Chair Up			95	857,375		Pill	Vile Chemical
51	132,651		Lad	To Man Child			96	884,736		Page	Favoring a Mash
52	140,608		Lion	Dares Chase Foe			97	912,673		Pack	Beaten Each Game
53	148,877		Lamb	Drove Off Cook			98	941,192		Puff	Part To Bin
54	157,464		Liar	Idol Crusher			99	970,299		Pup	Big As a Nabob
55	166,375		Lily	Dutch Show My Equal

Other Resources

CubeRoots
FifthRoots

Etymology of the Table

It is an interesting diversion to compare the word links in the table above to those presented in a 1910 book on magic, Mnemonics as Applied to Conjuring. The somewhat outdated entries in the table above (what's a mash, or a nabob??) are also present in the 1910 book, but it is apparent that someone has updated a few of the above entries from the older list. As an example, the 1910 book has "Tackle a Schottische" for the cube of 56 (or 175,616), while the table above has "Tackle Judge," no doubt because so few know of the Scottish dance form. But a soft "dg" represents a single digit 6 in the MajorSystem, not a separate d and g representing 16, so in fact the newer entry is incorrect. A few other updates have been made, e.g., "liquid coughing" for "liquid quaffing." "Gloomy Outlook" is now paired with "Butt" rather than "Piety," perhaps an indication of a decline in modern sensitivities. A more ambitious and very recent attempt to modernize and streamline this table (including the baffling "Albany Gas Ray" entry), and one that also adds the squares of the numbers, can be found in the paper Mnemonics for Squares and Cubes of Two-Digit Numbers.

Rubik's Cube

WikiPedia:Rubik'sCube

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