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Which Switch Puzzle

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Which Switch Puzzle

Puzzle_Three_Switches_and_One_Light.jpg

You have just purchased a giant mansion with a wine cellar in the basement. 

On the main floor, next to the staircase, are 3 light switches that control light bulbs in different parts of the house. 

You would like to know which one turns on the light in the wine cellar.

How can you determine which light switch is wired to the wine cellar by making a SINGLE trip to the basement and nowhere else? 

You can do whatever you like with the switches, but once you go down into the wine cellar you need to know for sure which switch is for the wine cellar.

Note that this is not a trick question. You are alone in the house, the wiring is hidden behind the wall, and the rooms controlled by the three switches are not visible from where you are standing. The solution is strictly in the manipulation of the light switches. 

Hint

Spoiler

The problem is that two of the three switches produce the same effect in that they do not turn the lightbulb on.

Try to find a way to create THREE states (one state is on, one state is off, now find a clever way to create a third state).

Answer

Spoiler

Turn on switch #1 for several minutes, and then turn it off. 

Now turn on switch #2 and immediately go down to the wine cellar.

If the light is on, then switch #2 turns on the light in the wine cellar.

If the light is off, TOUCH the light bulb. 

If the light bulb is warm, switch #1 (the one that you left on for several minutes before switching it off) turns on the light in the wine cellar. 

If, however, the light bulb is cool, switch #3 turns on the light in the wine cellar.
 

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