Ugly Number Ii
To solve this coding challenge, you need to compute the nth ugly number, where ugly numbers are defined as positive integers that can only be factored by 2, 3, and 5. The problem requires generating these numbers in sequence until you find the nth one. This can be efficiently managed using a dynamic programming-like approach by maintaining an array of ugly numbers.
Here is a detailed explanation of the approach:
Explanation
- Initialization : Initialize a list with the first ugly number, which is 1 by definition.
-
Three Pointers
: Use three pointers to keep track of the multiples of 2, 3, and 5. Let's call these pointers
i2
i3
i5
-
**Next Ugly Number Calculation**: Use the pointers to calculate the next candidate for the ugly number by taking the minimum of the current ugly number multiples (i.e.,
ugly[i2] * 2
ugly[i3] * 3
ugly[i5] * 5
- Appending the Next Ugly Number : Append this minimum value to the ugly number list.
- Pointer Update : Update the appropriate pointer(s) whenever their corresponding value is used to ensure that the next candidate will come from the next multiple.
- Repeat : Repeat steps 3 to 5 until you have generated the nth ugly number.
- Return the Result : Finally, return the nth ugly number from the list.
- Initialize Array and Pointers :
-
uglyNumbers
[1]
-
Pointers
pointer2
pointer3
pointer5
0
uglyNumbers
- Loop Until nth Ugly Number is Found :
-
Conversely, the loop runs until the number of ugly numbers generated equals
n
- Calculate Next Multiples :
-
nextMultipleOf2
nextMultipleOf3
nextMultipleOf5
- Find Minimum Value :
-
nextUglyNumber
nextMultipleOf2
nextMultipleOf3
nextMultipleOf5
- Append to List :
-
This
nextUglyNumber
uglyNumbers
- Update Pointers :
-
Depending on which multiple was chosen as
nextUglyNumber
- Return nth Ugly Number :
-
Once the loop completes, the nth ugly number will be at index
n-1
Detailed Steps in Pseudocode
# Function to find the nth ugly number
FUNCTION findNthUglyNumber(n):
# Initialize an array to store ugly numbers
uglyNumbers = [1]
# Initialize pointers for multiples of 2, 3, and 5
pointer2 = 0
pointer3 = 0
pointer5 = 0
# Continue generating ugly numbers until we have the nth one
WHILE (length of uglyNumbers < n):
# Calculate next candidates for ugly numbers
nextMultipleOf2 = uglyNumbers[pointer2] * 2
nextMultipleOf3 = uglyNumbers[pointer3] * 3
nextMultipleOf5 = uglyNumbers[pointer5] * 5
# Find the minimum of these candidates to be the next ugly number
nextUglyNumber = MIN(nextMultipleOf2, nextMultipleOf3, nextMultipleOf5)
# Append this minimum value to the uglyNumbers list
APPEND nextUglyNumber TO uglyNumbers
# Update the respective pointer(s)
IF nextUglyNumber == nextMultipleOf2:
pointer2 = pointer2 + 1
IF nextUglyNumber == nextMultipleOf3:
pointer3 = pointer3 + 1
IF nextUglyNumber == nextMultipleOf5:
pointer5 = pointer5 + 1
# End WHILE loop
# The nth ugly number will be the last element in uglyNumbers list
RETURN uglyNumbers[n-1]
END FUNCTION