Puzzle

[pogertt]

Figure this out if you can.


There is a room with three ON - OFF toggle switches in it. (Switch 1, Switch 2, and Switch 3)
Each of these switches control a single light bulb. (Bulb A, Bulb B, and Bulb C)
The light bulbs are in a different room on a different floor of the house, and there is no way to see if the lights are on or off from the room with the switches.
Your job is to determine which switch controls which light bulb in the fewest number of trips between the rooms.

Walking from the Switch Room to the Bulb Room and back to the Switch Room counts as 2 trips.

I know how to solve the puzzle in one trip.

Oh, and I need to mention that one of the bulbs is burned out.

[Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)]

Replace each bulb with a different frequency siren, then walk down to the switch room (one trip) and flip each switch in turn, listening for the sirens.

No? Oh.

-Phil

[erco]

IIRC, this puzzle only works with incandescent lights that get hot and stay hot for a while even after they're turned off. But since incandescents are practically banned everywhere, the old solution might not work with compact flourescents, which run much cooler. :)

[pogertt]

erco

Under 10 minutes..........foiled again.
The only part of the solution you missed was the part where after turning on two of the switches, you sat down for a donut and a cup of coffee before making the trip.

[Martin_H]

Phil solution reminds of this puzzler.

Q: How do, you measure the height of a building using a sextant?

Give up?

A1: Drop it off the top of the building and time how long the fall takes.

Don't like that one?

A2: Offer to give it to the superintendent if he'll tell you the height of the building.

[erco]

A3: Because he was stapled to a chicken!

[pogertt]

A3 Is why the Punk Rock Star crossed the road.

[erco]

Precisely!