Amazon Interview Question for Software Developers


Country: United States
Interview Type: Phone Interview




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4
of 6 vote

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SOLUTION:

int assignBalls(int m, int n) {
        if (m == 0 || n == 1) {
            return 1;
        }
        if (n > m) {
            return assignBalls(m, m);
        } else {
            return assignBalls(m, n - 1) + assignBalls(m - n, n);
        }
    }

- aonecoding June 24, 2018 | Flag Reply
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0
of 0 vote

def part(m, n):
    if n < 2: 
        return 1 
    n = min(m, n)
    dp = [[0]*n for _ in xrange(m)] 
    for i in xrange(m): 
        dp[i][0] = 1
    for i in xrange(1, m): 
        for j in xrange(1, min(i+1, n)): 
            dp[i][j] = dp[i-1][j-1] + dp[i-j-1][j] 
    return sum(dp[m-1][j] for j in xrange(n))

- adr June 24, 2018 | Flag Reply
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0
of 0 vote

@ranapratapchandra, counter example: 4 balls, 2 bins. The answer is 3, not 2 (4+0, 3+1, 2+2).
The original question can be rephrased as follows: how many ways a positive integer M can be written as a sum of N non-negative (we allow empty bins) integers where the order of addendums does not matter.

- Anonymous June 26, 2018 | Flag Reply
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0
of 0 vote

Anyone understand this line

return assignBalls(m, n - 1) + assignBalls(m - n, n)

?

- roshan June 20, 2019 | Flag Reply
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0
of 0 votes

When n>m
Total number of ways to assign balls = number of ways to assign balls in bins where at least one or more bins are empty + number of ways to assign balls in bins where no bins are empty.

number of ways to assign balls in bins where at least one or more bins are empty = assignBalls(m, n - 1) - explanation: since we are using recursion assume when 1 less bin was there, then no of ways will be assignBalls(m, n - 1). Now with every combination you add a new empty bin.

number of ways to assign balls in bins where no bins are empty = assignBalls(m - n, n) - explanation: you assign 1 ball in each bin so that no bin is empty and then assign remaining m-n balls among n bins.

- Saurabh September 10, 2019 | Flag
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0
of 0 votes

assignBalls(m, n - 1)

- Saurabh September 10, 2019 | Flag
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-1
of 3 vote

Points to be noted :
1. Bucket has no order
2. Only one type of ball is present.

This means , the question can be re-phrased as 'How many ways n bins can be re-arranged for 1 type of ball ?' . The number of ball in this question can be ignored as all balls are same.

This is a pure mathematical question - no coding required. It is asking the value of nC1 which is n.

The answer will always be = number of bins = n.

- ranapratapchandra June 25, 2018 | Flag Reply
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-1
of 1 vote

isn't this nchoosek(m+n-1, m) ?

- dude July 03, 2018 | Flag Reply


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