What would be the least surface area possible?

Question

Four cubes of side 2cm are placed so that at least one side of each cube is touching a side of another cube. The cubes can be arranged in many ways. What would be the least surface area possible?

 

a. 96cm^2           b. 216cm^2              c. 48cm^2         d. 64cm^2

Answer 1

The four cubes form a square on top and bottom.  The top and bottom each have a surface area of 4x4 cm**2 =16 cm**2

 

each side has a surface area of 2x4 cm**2 =8 cm**2

 

the total surface area is 2*16+4*8 = 64 cm**2 

 

d)