c - find palindrome - c

I'm a newcomer to programming, and I chose C as my first language(been learning it for a month or so).
I've been trying to solve this palindrome question for hours and still couldn't come up with a satisfying solution.
The question is here (from SPOJ), and here's my code:
#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>
void plus_one(char *number);
int main(void)
{
char number[1000001];
int i, j, m, k, indicator;
int a;
scanf("%d", &j);
for (i = 0; i < j; i++) {
scanf("%s", number);
k = 1;
while (k != 0) {
plus_one(number);
a = strlen(number);
indicator = 1;
for (m = 0; m < a / 2; m++) {
if (number[m] != number[a - m - 1]) {
indicator = 0;
break;
}
}
if (indicator != 0) {
printf("%s\n", number);
k = 0;
}
}
}
return 0;
}
void plus_one(char *number)
{
int a = strlen(number);
int i;
number[a - 1]++;
for (i = a; i >= 0; i--){
if (number[i - 1] == ':') {
number[i - 1] = '0';
number[i - 2]++;
}
else
break;
}
if (number[0] == '0') {
number[0] = '1';
strcat(number, "0");
}
return;
}
My idea was to examine every number greater than the input until a palindrome is found, and it worked well on my computer. But SPOJ responded "time limit exceeded", so I guess I need to find the next palindrome possible myself instead of using brute force. Can someone please give me a hint about how I can make this go faster? Thanks!

Since you're asking for a hint and not for C code (which I'm notoriously bad at), here's what I would do:
Determine if the number k has an even or odd number of digits, store that in a boolean called odd.
Take the first half of the number k, including the middle digit if odd is true, and store it in a variable called half.
808 -> 80
2133 -> 21
Mirror the half variable, taking care to not duplicate the middle digit if odd is true, and store it in a variable called mirror.
80 -> 808
21 -> 2112
Check if mirror > k
If true: you found your result
If false: increment half and start over from step 3.
(After maximum one increment you're guaranteed to have found your result.)
80 -> 81 -> 818
21 -> 22 -> 2222
Here's a JavaScript implementation for your reference:
const palin = (k) => {
const mirror = (half, odd) => half + Array.from(half).reverse().join('').substring(odd);
const s = k.toString();
const odd = s.length % 2;
const half = s.substring(0, Math.floor(s.length / 2) + odd);
let mirrored = mirror(half, odd);
if (+mirrored <= k) {
mirrored = mirror((+half + 1).toString(), odd);
}
return mirrored;
}
console.log(palin(5));
console.log(palin(808));
console.log(palin(2133));

Welcome to the site. What you have posted is commendable for someone who has only been using C for a month! Anyway ... I think your suspicion is correct. Using 'brute force' to find the next palindrome is probably the not to way go.
This question is as much about algorithm design as about C. Nonetheless, how you handle char[] representations of integers in C is interesting and relevant. FWIW, my attempt is pasted below.
It accepts a char[] representation of the number (n) and the number of digits (k) as arguments, and returns 1 on success or 0 on failure (another pass needed).
static int next_palindrome(char *n, size_t k) {
unsigned i = 0, carry = 0;
char tmp = 0;
int finished = 1;
for (i = 0; i < k; i++) {
if (carry) {
finished = 0;
*(n + k - i - 1) = *(n + k - i - 1) + 1;
if (*(n + k - i - 1) == 10) {
*(n + k - i - 1) = 0;
carry = 1;
} else
carry = 0;
continue;
}
if (i >= k / 2) continue;
if (*(n + k - i - 1) == *(n + i)) continue;
tmp = *(n + k - i - 1);
*(n + k - i - 1) = *(n + i);
if (tmp > *(n + i)) {
carry = 1;
}
}
return finished;
}
I have only tested it on numbers with < 64 digits so far, but have no reason to believe it will fail for larger numbers of digits.
Sample usage: http://codepad.org/3yyI9wEl

Related

How to find all the palindromes in a large array?

I need to find all the palindromes of π with 50 million digits 3.141592653589793238462643383279502884197169399375105820974944592307816406286... (goes on and on...)
I've stored all the digits of π in a char array. Now I need to search and count the number of 'palindromes' of length 2 to 15. For example, 535, 979, 33, 88, 14941, etc. are all valid results.
The final output I want is basically like the following.
Palindrome length Number of Palindromes of this length
-----------------------------------------------------------------
2 1234 (just an example)
3 1245
4 689
... ...
... ...
... ...
... ...
15 0
pseudocode of my logic so far - it works but takes forever
//store all digits in a char array
char *piArray = (char *)malloc(NUM_PI_DIGITS * sizeof(char));
int count = 0; //count for the number of palindromes
//because we only need to find palindroms that are 2 - 15 digits long
for(int i = 2; i <= 15; i++){
//loop through the piArray and find all the palindromes with i digits long
for(int j = 0; j < size_of_piArray; j++){
//check if the the sub array piArray[j:j+i] is parlindrom, if so, add a count
bool isPalindrome = true;
for (int k = 0; k < i / 2; k++)
{
if (piArray [j + k] != piArray [j + i - 1 - k])
{
isPalindrom = false;
break;
}
}
if(isPalindrome){
count++;
}
}
}
The problem I am facing now is that it takes too long to loop through the array of this large size (15-2)=13 times. Is there any better way to do this?
Here is a C version adapted from the approach proposed by Caius Jard:
void check_pi_palindromes(int NUM_PI_DIGITS, int max_length, int counts[]) {
// store all digits in a char array
int max_span = max_length / 2;
int start = max_span;
int end = NUM_PI_DIGITS + max_span;
char *pi = (char *)malloc(max_span + NUM_PI_DIGITS + max_span);
// read of generate the digits starting at position `max_span`
[...]
// clear an initial and trailing area to simplify boundary testing
memset(pi, ' ', start);
memset(pi + end, ' ', max_span);
// clear the result array
for (int i = 0; i <= max_length; i++) {
count[i] = 0;
}
// loop through the pi array and find all the palindromes
for (int i = start; i < end; i++) {
if (pi[i + 1] == pi[i - 1]) { //center of an odd length palindrome
count[3]++;
for (n = 2; n <= max_span && pi[i + n] == pi[i - n]; n++) {
count[n * 2 + 1]++;
}
}
if (pi[i] == pi[i - 1]) { //center of an even length palindrome
count[2]++;
for (n = 1; n <= max_span && pi[i + n] == pi[i - n]; n++) {
count[n * 2]++;
}
}
}
}
For each position in the array, it scans in both directions for palindromes of odd and even lengths with these advantages:
single pass through the array
good cache locality because all reads from the array are in a small span from the current position
fewer tests as larger palindromes are only tested as extensions of smaller ones.
A small working prefix and suffix is used to avoid the need to special case the beginning and end of the sequence.
I can't solve it for C, as I'm a C# dev but I expect the conversion will be trivial - I've tried to keep it as basic as possible
char[] pi = "3.141592653589793238462643383279502884197169399375105820974944592307816406286".ToCharArray(); //get a small piece as an array of char
int[] lenCounts = new int[16]; //make a new int array with slots 0-15
for(int i = 1; i < pi.Length-1; i++){
if(pi[i+1] == pi[i-1]){ //center of an odd length pal
int n = 2;
while(pi[i+n] == pi[i-n] && n <= 7) n++;
lenCounts[((n-1)*2+1)]++;
} else if(pi[i] == pi[i-1]){ //center of an even length pal
int n = 1;
while(pi[i+n] == pi[i-1-n] && n <= 7) n++;
lenCounts[n*2]++;
}
}
This demonstrates the "crawl the string looking for a palindrome center then crawl away from it in both directions looking for equal chars" technique..
..the only thing I'm not sure on, and it has occurred in the Pi posted, is what you want to do if palindromes overlap:
3.141592653589793238462643383279502884197169399375105820974944592307816406286
This contains 939 and overlapping with it, 3993. The algo above will find both, so if overlaps are not to be allowed then you might need to extend it to deal with eliminating earlier palindromes if they're overlapped by a longer one found later
You can play with the c# version at https://dotnetfiddle.net/tkQzBq - it has some debug print lines in too. Fiddles are limited to a 10 second execution time so I don't know if you'll be able to time the full 50 megabyte 😀 - you might have to run this algo locally for that one
Edit: fixed a bug in the answer but I haven't fixed it in the fiddle; I did have while(.. n<lenCounts.Length) i.e. allowing n to reach 15, but that would be an issue because it's in both directions.. nshould go to 7 to remain in range of the counts array. I've patched that by hard coding 7 but you might want to make it dependent on array length/2 etc
Well, I think it can't be done less than O(len*n), and that you are doing this O(len^2*n), where 2 <= len <= 15, is almost the same since the K coefficient doesn't change the O notation in this case, but if you want to avoid this extra loop, you can check these links, it shouldn't be hard to add a counter for each length since these codes are counting all of them, with maximum possible length:
source1, source2, source3.
NOTE: Mostly it's better to reach out GeekForGeeks when you are looking for algorithms or optimizations.
EDIT: one of the possible ways with O(n^2) time complexity and O(n)
Auxiliary Space. You can change unordered_map by array if you wish, anyway here the key will be the length and the value will be the count of palindromes with that length.
unordered_map<int, int> countPalindromes(string& s) {
unordered_map<int, int> m;
for (int i = 0; i < s.length(); i++) {
// check for odd length palindromes
for (int j = 0; j <= i; j++) {
if (!s[i + j])
break;
if (s[i - j] == s[i + j]) {
// check for palindromes of length
// greater than 1
if ((i + j + 1) - (i - j) > 1)
m[(i + j + 1) - (i - j)]++;
} else
break;
}
// check for even length palindromes
for (int j = 0; j <= i; j++) {
if (!s[i + j + 1])
break;
if (s[i - j] == s[i + j + 1]) {
// check for palindromes of length
// greater than 1
if ((i + j + 2) - (i - j) > 1)
m[(i + j + 2) - (i - j)]++;
} else
break;
}
}
return m;
}

Can you solve my problem and simplify my code? I could not find out with the clean solution for this specific problem

Problem: To display the sum of this pattern for n terms like 1+11+111+1111+11111..n terms
Test Data:
Input the number of terms: 5.
Expected Output:
1 + 11 + 111 + 1111 + 11111
The Sum is : 12345
I am trying this way->
//To display the sum of series like 1+11+111+11111
#include <stdio.h>
int
main(void){
//Here i declared some variables for storing information
int number,iteration,value=1,j,summation=0;
//Message to user
printf("Input the number of terms : ");
//taking input from the user
scanf("%d",&number);
//this condition will work till the iteration reaches to the inputted number
for(iteration=1; iteration<=number; iteration++){
for(j=1; j<=iteration; j++){
//To display the series like 1 11 111 1111 11111
printf("%d",value);
if(j==1){
summation=summation+value;
}
else if(j==2){
summation=summation+value*10;
}
else if(j==3){
summation=summation+value*100;
}
else if(j==4){
summation=summation+value*1000;
}
else if(j==5){
summation=summation+value*10000;
}
}
printf(" ");
}
printf("\n");
//To display the summation
printf("The summation is : %d",summation);
return 0;}
Now my problem is: This code does not work according to my expectation. It is working up to input value 5. But when I want to give input 6 times then I need to add an else if condition additionally in my code. I need to do this task whenever I increase the input value.
When the input value is 6 and i need to add and make the condition like that->
else if(j==6){
summation=summation+value*100000;
}
So I think, this is not the way of a proper solution to a problem. Every time I need to do the same thing for the inputted value. How can I solve this problem?. After that how can I simplify the solution? I believe that you guys are expert than me. Please share your knowledge with me. Thank you in advance.
Pass the input number to this function.
int findSum(int n)
{
int sum=0, cnt= 1;
for (int i = 1; i <= n; i++) {
sum += cnt;
cnt = (cnt * 10) + 1;
}
return sum;
}
If you want to make this work for large N (say, 1,000 or 20,000,000), you won’t be able use int or long long values. Instead, you could allocate an array of uint8s, and do your own digit-by-digit addition arithmetic, including the carry operation. Then print the results at the end. It wouldn’t be fast but it would work.
To keep your code simple, think right-to-left. Start with the least significant digit in the zero-th array element.
Here's an example that uses uint64_t to represent larger numbers. It shows the output you want for 1 up to 20 digits (longer causes an overflow).
The trick is to generate the numbers 1, 11, 111, and so on from the previous one by multiplying by 10 and adding 1. For example, 11111 = 1111 * 10 + 1.
#include <inttypes.h>
#include <stdio.h>
void sum(int n) {
uint64_t t = 0;
uint64_t x = 1;
for (int i = 0; i < n; i++) {
if (i > 0) printf(" + ");
printf("%" PRIu64, x);
t += x;
x = (x * 10) + 1;
}
printf(" = %" PRIu64 "\n", t);
}
int main() {
for (int i = 1; i < 21; i++) {
sum(i);
}
}
Here's a version that works for any n. It computes the total in time linear in n, although printing the terms being summed necessarily requires O(n^2) time.
The code works by noting that the last digit of the total consists of n 1s being added, the next-to last n-1 1s and so on. Plus carry of course. Note that the result is always exactly n digits long.
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
void sum(int n) {
for (int i = 1; i <= n; i++) {
if (i > 1) printf(" + ");
for(int j = 0; j < i; j++) putchar('1');
}
printf(" = ");
char *s = malloc(n + 1);
s[n] = '\0';
int t = 0;
for (int i = n - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
t += i + 1;
s[i] = '0' + (t % 10);
t /= 10;
}
printf("%s\n", s);
free(s);
}
int main() {
sum(50);
}
Output (wrapped):
1 + 11 + 111 + 1111 + 11111 + 111111 + 1111111 + 11111111 + 111111111 + 1111111111 + 11111111111 + 111111111111 +
1111111111111 + 11111111111111 + 111111111111111 + 1111111111111111 + 11111111111111111 + 1111111111111111 11 +
1111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111 + 111111111111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111 +
111111111111111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111 1111111111111111 +
1111111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111111 + 111111111111111111111111111111 +
1111111111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111111111 + 111111111111111111111111111111111 +
1111111111111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111111111111 + 111111111111111111111111111111111111 +
1111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111111
11111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111 +
111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111111
1111111111111111111 + 111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 +
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 +
1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 + 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 =
12345679012345679012345679012345679012345679012340
For handling numbers greater than int/long limits, you can use an array to get the sums per digit and print the output as a string.
#include <stdio.h>
int
main (int argc, char *argv[])
{
int n, i, j;
scanf("%d", &n);
char ones[n];
char sum[n + 1]; // + 1 index in case of a carry out
char output[n + 2]; // +1 more index than sum for null byte
// initialize to 0s
for (i = 0; i < n; i++) {
ones[i] = sum[i] = output[i] = 0;
}
sum[n] = output[n] = output[n+1] = 0;
for (i = 0; i < n; i++) {
ones[i] = 1;
output[i] = '1';
for (j = 0; j <= i; j++) { // add the current number of ones to sum
sum[j] += ones[j];
if (sum[j] >= 10) { // if theres a carry
sum[j + 1] += (sum[j] / 10); // add the carry to the next index
sum[j] %= 10; // keep the last digit
}
}
if (i == n - 1) {
printf ("%s ", output);
} else printf ("%s + ", output);
}
if(sum[n] == 0) {// leading digit is 0
i = n - 1;
} else i = n;
for (j = 0; i >= 0; i--, j++) {
output[j] = sum[i] + '0';
}
printf ("The sum is: %s\n", output);
return 0;
}
Given your user input variable number, the code may look something like this:
//...
if (number < 0)
{
// do some error handling
return -1;
}
int value_to_add = 1;
int sum = 0;
while (number--)
{
sum += value_to_add;
value_to_add = value_to_add * 10 + 1;
}
// ... (result is in "sum")
You also may consider the possibility of overflow (when the result gets so big that it does not fit in an int). You could, for instance, limit the user input (number).
glad to help!
(it seems like a homework, so hope you can learn something)
You're doing this with many 'if's to decide how much it should plus. And another way is to use *10+1 every time.
Please see the code:
#include <stdio.h>
long long sum,tmp=1,n;
int main(void){
scanf("%lld",&n);
for(int i=0;i<n;i++){
if(i<n-1)printf("%lld + ",tmp);
else printf("%lld ",tmp);
sum+=tmp;
tmp=tmp*10+1;
}
printf("= %lld",sum);
return 0;
}
That's it.
Wish you a good day:)
If I understood correctly you want to be able to programmatically add new terms without having to use an if statement. To do it I suggest you
for (j=0; j<=iteration; j++){
int powerOf10 = (int) pow((double) 10,j); //power elevation: notice 10^0=1, 10^1=10..
summation+=value*powerOf10;
}
This was just to give you an idea. Obviously, this code can be further refined.
If you don't understand all the casting I performed to compute powerOf10 I leave you this post: Why is my power operator (^) not working?
Paul Hankin's answer shows how to solve this problem for values of n greater than the number of digits storable in a long long.
That approach could be combined with another, based on a simple observation. If we write the sum starting from the greatest number, we can note an emerging pattern.
111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111...111 +
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111...111 +
...
1111111111111111111111111111111111111...111 =
----------------------------------------------------
123456789999999999999999999999999999999999999...999 +
111111111111111111111111111111111111...111 =
----------------------------------------------------
123456790111111111111111111111111111111111111...110 +
11111111111111111111111111111111111...111 +
...
1111111111111111111111111111...111 =
----------------------------------------------------
123456790123456789999999999999999999999999999...998 +
111111111111111111111111111...111 =
----------------------------------------------------
123456790123456790111111111111111111111111111...109 +
11111111111111111111111111...111 +
...
1111111111111111111...111 =
----------------------------------------------------
123456790123456790123456789999999999999999999...997 +
111111111111111111...111 =
----------------------------------------------------
123456790123456790123456790111111111111111111...108 +
^ ^ ^ ^ ...
In practice, we can start by "filling" the number (represented as a string of n characters) with the repeating pattern "123456790" from left to right (the most significant digit beeing always '1').
Then, starting from the least significant digit, we can apply the algorithm of the sum with carry, but only as long as the calculated digit is different from the one already there (except the last one, which is always n % 10).
Only a few steps are needed, just around the number of decimal digits of n.

How to find all possible 5 dots alignments in Join Five game

I'm trying to implement the Join Five game. It is a game where, given a grid and a starting configuration of dots, you have to add dots in free crossings, so that each dot that you add forms a 5-dot line with those already in the grid. Two lines may only have 1 dot in common (they may cross or touch end to end)
My game grid is an int array that contains 0 or 1. 1 if there is a dot, 0 if there isn't.
I'm doing kinda well in the implementation, but I'd like to display all the possibles moves.
I made a very long and ugly function that is available here : https://pastebin.com/tw9RdNgi (it was way too long for my post i'm sorry)
here is a code snippet :
if(jeu->plat[i][j] == 0) // if we're on a empty spot
{
for(k = 0; k < lineSize; k++) // for each direction
{
//NORTH
if(jeu->plat[i-1-k][j] == 1) // if there is a dot north
{
n++; // we count it
}
else
{
break; //we change direction
}
} //
This code repeats itself 7 other times changing directions and if n or any other variable reaches 4 we count the x and y as a possible move.
And it's not even treating all the cases, if the available spot is between 2 and 2 dots it will not count it. same for 3 and 1 and 1 and 3.
But I don't think the way I started doing it is the best one. I'm pretty sure there is an easier and more optimized way but i can't figure it out.
So my question is: could somebody help me figure out how to find all the possible 5-dot alignments, or tell me if there is a better way of doing it?
Ok, the problem is more difficult than it appears, and a lot of code is required. Everything would have been simpler if you posted all of the necessary code to run it, that is a Minimal, Complete, and Verifiable Example. Anyway, I resorted to putting together a structure for the problem which allows to test it.
The piece which answers your question is the following one:
typedef struct board {
int side_;
char **dots_;
} board;
void board_set_possible_moves(board *b)
{
/* Directions
012
7 3
654 */
static int dr[8] = { -1,-1,-1, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0 };
static int dc[8] = { -1, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0,-1,-1 };
int side_ = b->side_;
char **dots_ = b->dots_;
for (int r = 0; r < side_; ++r) {
for (int c = 0; c < side_; ++c) {
// The place already has a dot
if (dots_[r][c] == 1)
continue;
// Count up to 4 dots in the 8 directions from current position
int ndots[8] = { 0 };
for (int d = 0; d < 8; ++d) {
for (int i = 1; i <= 4; ++i) {
int nr = r + dr[d] * i;
int nc = c + dc[d] * i;
if (nr < 0 || nc < 0 || nr >= side_ || nc >= side_ || dots_[nr][nc] != 1)
break;
++ndots[d];
}
}
// Decide if the position is a valid one
for (int d = 0; d < 4; ++d) {
if (ndots[d] + ndots[d + 4] >= 4)
dots_[r][c] = 2;
}
}
}
}
Note that I defined a square board with a pointer to pointers to chars, one per place. If there is a 0 in one of the places, then there is no dot and the place is not a valid move; if there is a 1, then there is a dot; if there is a 2, then the place has no dot, but it is a valid move. Valid here means that there are at least 4 dots aligned with the current one.
You can model the directions with a number from 0 to 7 (start from NW, move clockwise). Each direction has an associated movement expressed as dr and dc. Moving in every direction I count how many dots are there (up to 4, and stopping as soon as I find a non dot), and later I can sum opposite directions to obtain the total number of aligned points.
Of course these move are not necessarily valid, because we are missing the definition of lines already drawn and so we cannot check for them.
Here you can find a test for the function.
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
board *board_init(board *b, int side) {
b->side_ = side;
b->dots_ = malloc(side * sizeof(char*));
b->dots_[0] = calloc(side*side, 1);
for (int r = 1; r < side; ++r) {
b->dots_[r] = b->dots_[r - 1] + side;
}
return b;
}
board *board_free(board *b) {
free(b->dots_[0]);
free(b->dots_);
return b;
}
void board_cross(board *b) {
board_init(b, 18);
for (int i = 0; i < 4; ++i) {
b->dots_[4][7 + i] = 1;
b->dots_[7][4 + i] = 1;
b->dots_[7][10 + i] = 1;
b->dots_[10][4 + i] = 1;
b->dots_[10][10 + i] = 1;
b->dots_[13][7 + i] = 1;
b->dots_[4 + i][7] = 1;
b->dots_[4 + i][10] = 1;
b->dots_[7 + i][4] = 1;
b->dots_[7 + i][13] = 1;
b->dots_[10 + i][7] = 1;
b->dots_[10 + i][10] = 1;
}
}
void board_print(const board *b, FILE *f)
{
int side_ = b->side_;
char **dots_ = b->dots_;
for (int r = 0; r < side_; ++r) {
for (int c = 0; c < side_; ++c) {
static char map[] = " oX";
fprintf(f, "%c%s", map[dots_[r][c]], c == side_ - 1 ? "" : " - ");
}
fprintf(f, "\n");
if (r < side_ - 1) {
for (int c = 0; c < side_; ++c) {
fprintf(f, "|%s", c == side_ - 1 ? "" : " ");
}
fprintf(f, "\n");
}
}
}
int main(void)
{
board b;
board_cross(&b);
board_set_possible_moves(&b);
board_print(&b, stdout);
board_free(&b);
return 0;
}

Find the minimum number of steps to decrease N to zero

I'm facing some difficulties in the last few days while trying to finish the following task, I hope you guys can assist :
I'm given a single number N, and I'm allowed to perform any of the two operations on N in each move :
One - If we take 2 integers where N = x * y , then we can change the value of N to the maximum between x and y.
Two - Decrease the value of N by 1.
I want to find the minimum number of steps to reduce N to zero.
This is what I have so far, I'm not sure what is the best way to implement the function to find the divisor (someFindDevisorFunction), and if this 'f' function would actually produce the required output.
int f(int n)
{
int div,firstWay,secondWay;
if(n == 0)
return 0;
div = SomefindDivisorFunction(n);
firstWay = 1 + f(n-1);
if(div != 1)
{
secondWay = 1 + f(div);
if (firstWay < secondWay)
return firstWay;
return secondWay;
}
return firstWay;
}
For example, if I enter the number 150 , the output would be :
75 - 25 - 5 - 4 - 2 - 1 - 0
I see this a recursive or iterative problem.
OP's approach hints at recursive.
A recursive solution follows:
At each step, code counts the steps of the various alternatives:
steps(n) = min(
steps(factor1_of_n) + 1,
steps(factor2_of_n) + 1,
steps(factor3_of_n) + 1,
...
steps(n-1) + 1)
The coded solution below is inefficient, but it does explore all possibilities and gets to the answer.
int solve_helper(int n, bool print) {
int best_quot = 0;
int best_quot_score = INT_MAX;
int quot;
for (int p = 2; p <= (quot = n / p); p++) {
int rem = n % p;
if (rem == 0 && quot > 1) {
int score = solve_helper(quot, false) + 1;
if (score < best_quot_score) {
best_quot_score = score;
best_quot = quot;
}
}
}
int dec_score = n > 0 ? solve_helper(n - 1, false) + 1 : 0;
if (best_quot_score < dec_score) {
if (print) {
printf("/ %d ", best_quot);
solve_helper(best_quot, true);
}
return best_quot_score;
}
if (print && n > 0) {
printf("- %d ", n - 1);
solve_helper(n - 1, true);
}
return dec_score;
}
int main() {
int n = 75;
printf("%d ", n);
solve(n, true);
printf("\n");
}
Output
75 / 25 / 5 - 4 / 2 - 1 - 0
Iterative
TBD
If you start looking for a divisor with 2, and work your way up, then the last pair of divisors you find will include the largest divisor. Alternatively you can start searching with divisor = N/2 and work down, when the first divisor found will have be largest divisor of N.
int minmoves(int n){
if(n<=3){
return n;
}
int[] dp=new int[n+1];
Arrays.fill(dp,-1);
dp[0]=0;
dp[1]=1;
dp[2]=2;
dp[3]=3;
int sqr;
for(int i=4;i<=n;i++){
sqr=(int)Math.sqrt(i);
int best=Integer.MAX_VALUE;
while(sqr >1){
if(i%sqr==0){
int fact=i/sqr;
best=Math.min(best,1+dp[fact]);
}
sqr--;
}
best=Math.min(best,1+dp[i-1]);
dp[i]=best;
}
return dp[n];
}

Finding a brute force algorithm for the following cryptarithm / alphametic puzzle

I'm trying to write a program in C that will solve the following cryptarithm:
one + one = two
seven is prime
nine is a perfect square
Namely, I need to find the numerical values for the words one, two, seven and nine where each letter (o, n, e, t, w, s, v, i) is assigned a numerical value and the complete number also meets all of the above conditions.
I was thinking along the lines of creating an int array for each of the words and then 1) checking if each word meets the condition (e.g is a prime for "seven") and then 2) checking if each integer in the array is consistant with the value of the other words, where the other words also are found to meet their respective conditions.
I can't really see this working though as I would have to continuously convert the int array to a single int throughout every iteration and then I'm not sure how I can simultaneously match each element in the array with the other words.
Perhaps knowing the MIN and MAX numerical range that must be true for each of the words would be useful?
Any ideas?
For a brute-force (ish) method, I'd start with the prime seven, and use the Sieve of Eratosthenes to get all the prime numbers up to 99999. You could discard all answers where the 2nd and 4th digit aren't the same. After that you could move on to the square nine, because three of the digits are determined by the prime seven. That should narrow down the possibilities nicely, and then you can just use the answer of #pmg to finish it off :-).
Update: The following C# program seems to do it
bool[] poss_for_seven = new bool[100000]; // this will hold the possibilities for `seven`
for (int seven = 0; seven < poss_for_seven.Length; seven++)
poss_for_seven[seven] = (seven > 9999); // `seven` must have 5 digits
// Sieve of Eratosthenes to make `seven` prime
for (int seven = 2; seven < poss_for_seven.Length; seven++) {
for (int j = 2 * seven; j < poss_for_seven.Length; j += seven) {
poss_for_seven[j] = false;
}
}
// look through the array poss_for_seven[], considering each possibility in turn
for (int seven = 10000; seven < poss_for_seven.Length; seven++) {
if (poss_for_seven[seven]) {
int second_digit = ((seven / 10) % 10);
int fourth_digit = ((seven / 1000) % 10);
if (second_digit == fourth_digit) {
int e = second_digit;
int n = (seven % 10); // NB: `n` can't be zero because otherwise `seven` wouldn't be prime
for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
int nine = n * 1000 + i * 100 + n * 10 + e;
int poss_sqrt = (int)Math.Floor(Math.Sqrt(nine) + 0.1); // 0.1 in case of of rounding error
if (poss_sqrt * poss_sqrt == nine) {
int o = ((2 * e) % 10); // since 2 * `one` = `two`, we now know `o`
int one = o * 100 + n * 10 + e;
int two = 2 * one;
int t = ((two / 100) % 10);
int w = ((two / 10) % 10);
// turns out that `one`=236, `two`=472, `nine` = 3136.
// look for solutions where `s` != `v` with `s` and `v' different from `o`, `n`, `e`,`t`, `w` and `i`
int s = ((seven / 10000) % 10);
int v = ((seven / 100) % 10);
if (s != v && s != o && s != n && s != e && s != t && s != w && s != i && v != o && v != n && v != e && v != t && v != w && v != i) {
System.Diagnostics.Trace.WriteLine(seven + "," + nine + "," + one + "," + two);
}
}
}
}
}
}
It seems that nine is always equal to 3136, so that one = 236 and two = 472. However, there are 21 possibiliites for seven. If one adds the constraint that no two digits can take the same value (which is what the C# code above does), then it reduces to just one possibility (although a bug in my code meant this answer originally had 3 possibilities):
seven,nine,one,two
56963,3136,236,472
I just found the time to build a c program to solve your cryptarithm.
I think that tackling the problem mathematicaly, prior to starting the brute force programming, will heavily increase the speed of the output.
Some math (number theory):
Since ONE + ONE = TWO, O cant be larget than 4, because ONE + ONE would result 4 digits. Also O cant be 0. TWO end with O and is an even number, because it is 2 * ONE.
Applying these 3 filters to O, the possible values remain O= {2,4}
Hence E can be {1,2,6,7} because (E+E) modulus 10 must be = O. More specificaly, O=2 implicates E={1,6} and O=4 implicates E={2,7}
Now lets filter N. Given that SEVEN is prime, N must be an odd number. Also N cant be 5, because all that ends with 5 is divisible by 5. Hence N={1,3,7,9}
Now that we have reduced the possibilites for the most ocurring characters (O,E,N), we are ready to hit this cryptarith with all of our brutality, having iterations drastically reduced.
Heres the C code:
#include <stdio.h>
#include <math.h>
#define O 0
#define N 1
#define E 2
#define T 3
#define W 4
#define S 5
#define V 6
#define I 7
bool isPerfectSquare(int number);
bool isPrime(int number);
void printSolutions(int countSolutions);
int filterNoRepeat(int unfilteredCount);
int solutions[1000][8]; // solution holder
int possibilitiesO[2] = {2,4};
int possibilitiesN[4] = {1,3,7,9};
int possibilitiesE[4] = {1,6,2,7};
void main() {
int countSolutions = 0;
int numberOne;
// iterate to fill up the solutions array by: one + one = two
for(int o=0;o<2;o++) {
for(int n=0;n<4;n++) {
for(int e=2*o;e<2*o+2;e++) { // following code is iterated 2*4*2 = 16 times
numberOne = 100*possibilitiesO[o] + 10*possibilitiesN[n] + possibilitiesE[e];
int w = ((2*numberOne)/10)%10;
int t = ((2*numberOne)/100)%10;
// check if NINE is a perfect square
for(int i=0;i<=9;i++) { // i can be anything ----- 10 iterations
int numberNine = 1000*possibilitiesN[n] + 100*i + 10*possibilitiesN[n] + possibilitiesE[e];
if(isPerfectSquare(numberNine)) {
// check if SEVEN is prime
for(int s=1;s<=9;s++) { // s cant be 0 ------ 9 iterations
for(int v=0;v<=9;v++) { // v can be anything other than s ------- 10 iterations
if(v==s) continue;
int numberSeven = 10000*s + 1000*possibilitiesE[e] + 100*v + 10*possibilitiesE[e] + possibilitiesN[n];
if(isPrime(numberSeven)) { // store solution
solutions[countSolutions][O] = possibilitiesO[o];
solutions[countSolutions][N] = possibilitiesN[n];
solutions[countSolutions][E] = possibilitiesE[e];
solutions[countSolutions][T] = t;
solutions[countSolutions][W] = w;
solutions[countSolutions][S] = s;
solutions[countSolutions][V] = v;
solutions[countSolutions][I] = i;
countSolutions++;
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
// 16 * 9 * 10 * 10 = 14400 iterations in the WORST scenario, conditions introduced reduce MOST of these iterations to 1 if() line
// iterations consumed by isPrime() function are not taken in count in the aproximation above.
// filter solutions so that no two letter have the same digit
countSolutions = filterNoRepeat(countSolutions);
printSolutions(countSolutions); // voila!
}
bool isPerfectSquare(int number) { // check if given number is a perfect square
double root = sqrt((double)number);
if(root==floor(root)) return true;
else return false;
}
bool isPrime(int number) { // simple algoritm to determine if given number is prime, check interval from sqrt(number) to number/2 with a step of +2
int startValue = sqrt((double)number);
if(startValue%2==0) startValue--; // make it odd
for(int k=startValue;k<number/2;k+=2) {
if(number%k==0) return false;
}
return true;
}
void printSolutions(int countSolutions) {
for(int k=0;k<countSolutions;k++) {
int one = 100*solutions[k][O] + 10*solutions[k][N] + solutions[k][E];
int two = 100*solutions[k][T] + 10*solutions[k][W] + solutions[k][O];
int seven = 10000*solutions[k][S] + 1000*solutions[k][E] + 100*solutions[k][V] + 10*solutions[k][E] + solutions[k][N];
int nine = 1000*solutions[k][N] + 100*solutions[k][I] + 10*solutions[k][N] + solutions[k][E];
printf("ONE: %d, TWO: %d, SEVEN: %d, NINE %d\n",one,two,seven,nine);
}
}
int filterNoRepeat(int unfilteredCount) {
int nrSol = 0;
for(int k=0;k<unfilteredCount;k++) {
bool isValid = true;
for(int i=0;i<7;i++) { // if two letters match, solution is not valid
for(int j=i+1;j<8;j++) {
if(solutions[k][i]==solutions[k][j]) {
isValid = false;
break;
}
}
if(!isValid) break;
}
if(isValid) { // store solution
for(int i=0;i<8;i++) {
solutions[nrSol][i] = solutions[k][i];
}
nrSol++;
}
}
return nrSol;
}
You can try the code yourself if you are still interested in this :P. The result is one single solution: ONE: 236, TWO: 472, SEVEN: 56963, NINE: 3136
This solution is the same as Stochastically's solutions, confirming the correctness of both algorithms i think :).
Thanks for providing this nice cryptarithm and have a nice day!
Brute force FTW!
#define ONE ((o*100) + (n*10) + e)
#define TWO ((t*100) + (w*10) + o)
#define SEVEN ((s*10000) + (e*1010) + (v*100) + n)
#define NINE ((n*1010) + (i*100) + e)
for (o = 1; o < 10; o++) { /* 1st digit cannot be zero (one) */
for (n = 1; n < 10; n++) { /* 1st digit cannot be zero (nine) */
if (n == o) continue;
for (e = 0; n < 10; n++) {
if (e == n) continue;
if (e == o) continue;
/* ... */
if (ONE + ONE == TWO) /* whatever */;
/* ... */
}
}
}

Resources