Problem Statement:
In the final AoC puzzle of 2023 we're tasked with resolving a system overload error in a massive snow-producing apparatus. The apparatus consists of numerous interconnected components, and the challenge is to disconnect a minimal number of components to reduce the system overload.
Objective:
To identify the least number of connections (wires) to disconnect that will split the system into two separate groups, thereby reducing the overload. The goal is to find a solution that results in the smallest possible product of the sizes of these two groups.
Step 1: Parsing the Puzzle Input
- The puzzle input is a list of connections between different components.
- Each line in the input represents a component and the components it is connected to.
- The script reads this input and builds a representation of the entire system as a network of interconnected components.
Step 2: Creating a Graph
- So, I cheated and chose to use the networkx library to create a graph from the input data.
- In this graph, each node represents a component, and each edge (a line between two nodes) represents a connection between two components.
Step 3: Finding the Minimum Edge Cut
- The key part of the script is identifying the minimum number of edges (connections) that, if removed, would split the graph into two separate groups.
- It's trivial to use networkx's
minimum_edge_cutfunction to find this minimal set of edges. - This function calculates the smallest set of connections to remove, ensuring the system is split into two groups while minimizing the number of disconnections.
Step 4: Calculating the Result
- After removing the identified edges, the script calculates the sizes of the two resulting groups of components.
- It then multiplies these sizes together to get the final result.
- This result represents the minimized product of the sizes of the two groups, indicating the reduced overload on the system.
Step 5: Output
- The script outputs the final result, which is the product of the sizes of the two groups after the disconnections.
Push the Big Red Button!
lol
I feel sort of ripped off- there's no part two for this last puzzle. I suppose I could have instead tried to find a better solution than "use a library" for part 1... but I didn't...
I thought for sure that there'd be a part two so we'd have 50 stars to start the system but instead:
--- Part Two ---
You climb over weather machines, under giant springs, and narrowly avoid a pile of pipes as you find and disconnect the three wires.
A moment after you disconnect the last wire, the big red reset button module makes a small ding noise:
System overload resolved!
Power required is now 50 stars.
Out of the corner of your eye, you notice goggles and a loose-fitting hard hat peeking at you from behind an ultra crucible. You think you see a faint glow, but before you can investigate, you hear another small ding:
Power required is now 49 stars.
Please supply the necessary stars and
push the button to restart the system.
And then there's link to "Push the Big Red Button" and that's it...
I feel mildly ripped off, as I said, but I'm still pleased to have finished all the puzzles for this year's Advent of Code!