Hacktoberfest: Add solution to problem 74

project_euler/problem_74/sol1.py

@@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
+""" projectEuler problem 74
+    Starting from any positive integer number
+    it is possible to attain another one summing the factorial of its digits.
+
+    Repeating this step, we can build chains of numbers.
+    It is not difficult to prove that EVERY starting number
+    will eventually get stuck in a loop.
+
+    The request is to find how many numbers less than one million
+    produce a chain with exactly 60 non repeating items.
+
+    Approach:
+    This solution simply consists in a loop that generates
+    the chains of non repeating items.
+    The generation of the chain stops before a repeating item
+    or if the size of the chain is greater then the desired one.
+    After generating each chain, the length is checked and the counter increases.
+"""
+
+# The desired number of items to check for in the non repeating chains
+EXACT_CHAIN_LENGTH = 60
+
+# The maximum number to check in the solution
+MAX_NUMBER = 1000000
+
+
+def factorial(a: int) -> int:
+    """Returns the factorial of the input a
+    >>> factorial(5)
+    120
+
+    >>> factorial(6)
+    720
+
+    >>> factorial(0)
+    1
+    """
+
+    # The factorial function is not defined for negative numbers
+    if a < 0:
+        raise ValueError("Invalid negative input!", a)
+
+    # The case of 0! is handled separately
+    if a == 0:
+        return 1
+    else:
+        # use a temporary support variable to store the computation
+        temporary_computation = 1
+
+        while a > 0:
+            temporary_computation *= a
+            a -= 1
+
+        return temporary_computation
+
+
+def factorial_sum(a: int) -> int:
+    """Function to perform the sum of the factorial
+    of all the digits in a
+
+    >>> factorial_sum(69)
+    363600
+    """
+
+    # Prepare a variable to hold the computation
+    fact_sum = 0
+
+    """ Convert a in string to iterate on its digits
+        convert the digit back into an int
+        and add its factorial to fact_sum.
+    """
+    for i in str(a):
+        fact_sum += factorial(int(i))
+
+    return fact_sum
+
+
+def solution() -> int:
+    """Returns the number of numbers that produce
+        chains with exactly 60 non repeating elements.
+    >>> solution()
+    402
+    """
+
+    # the counter for the chains with the exact desired length
+    chain_counter = 0
+
+    for i in range(1, MAX_NUMBER + 1):
+
+        # The temporary list will contain the elements of the chain
+        chain_list = [i]
+
+        # The new element of the chain
+        new_chain_element = factorial_sum(chain_list[-1])
+
+        """ Stop computing the chain when you find a repeating item
+            or the length it greater then the desired one.
+        """
+        while not (new_chain_element in chain_list) and (
+            len(chain_list) <= EXACT_CHAIN_LENGTH
+        ):
+            chain_list += [new_chain_element]
+
+            new_chain_element = factorial_sum(chain_list[-1])
+
+        """ If the while exited because the chain list contains the exact amount of elements
+            increase the counter
+        """
+        chain_counter += len(chain_list) == EXACT_CHAIN_LENGTH
+
+    return chain_counter
+
+
+print(solution())