The light board consists of light bulbs. Each light can turn on either red or green. If the display has 4 lights

The light board consists of light bulbs. Each light can turn on either red or green. If the display has 4 lights, what is the maximum number of signals that can be transmitted? And if you add more blue?

The wording of the assignment does not indicate whether the lights can be turned off. Therefore, there are two options: a) bulbs cannot stay lit: 2 colors, 4 bulbs => 2 ^ 4 = 16 3 colors, 4 bulbs => 3 ^ 4 = 81 b) Bulbs may not light up: 3 colors, 4 bulbs => 3 ^ 4 = 81 4 colors, 4 lights => 4 ^ 4 = 256