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From: lindsay@comp.vuw.ac.nz (Lindsay Groves)
Newsgroups: comp.ai
Subject: Re: 15-puzzle
Message-ID: <1990Oct05.010238.9554@comp.vuw.ac.nz>
Date: 5 Oct 90 01:02:38 GMT
References: <1491@meaddata.meaddata.com> <20930@well.sf.ca.us>
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In article <20930@well.sf.ca.us>, nagle@well.sf.ca.us (John Nagle) writes:
|> gordon@meaddata.com (Gordon Edwards) writes:
|> 
|> >I would like references on the 15-puzzle and various approaches to
|> solving it.
|> 
|>      One simple approach is to get the top row and left column in
|> order by
|> suitable manipulation.  Having done this, which is easy, you have
|> reduced the
|> 4x4 15-puzzle to the 3x3 8-puzzle.  Repetition of this process
|> reduces the
|> 8-puzzle to the 2x2 3-puzzle.  A final repetition solves the puzzle.
|> Who needs AI?
|> 
|> 					John Nagle

I'd like to see a system that, given a description of the puzzle, could
find this way of solving the puzzle, rather than just finding *a*
solution.  Then I'd think there might be something intelligent going
on!

Lindsay