esr@iheds.UUCP (E. Rieback) (08/31/84)
This may not be the original solution to the puzzle, but it would seem to work: Let's call the three unknowns A B and C. My first question, asked of A, would be: If I were to ask the diplomat if he was indeed the diplomat, would he say yes? Since the real diplomat could not be guaranteed to say either yes or no to the question of his identity, if A were the liar or truth-teller, he could not answer the first question with a simple yes or no. Therefore, if A gives any sort of answer to the first question, he must be the diplomat, and I then can ask B the following question: If I were to ask C if he was the liar, what would he say? If B answers with yes, B is the liar and C is the truth-teller. If he answers with no, B is the truth- teller and C is the liar. Thus, if A gives any sort of answer to the first question, I can identify all three people with only 2 questions. If, however, A can't answer my first question, I ask B the same question I asked of A. If B can't answer it either, I know C is the diplomat and ask the second question mentioned above to either of A or B to determine who is the liar and who is the truth-teller. If B did answer the first question, I know he is the diplomat, and I ask either A or C the second question to determine which is which. Whew! Whether this solution is allowable or not depends upon whether the yes-or-no questions you pose have to be answerable!! Eileen Rieback, the perpetual puzzle ponderer ihnp4!iheds!esr