π‘ Problem Formulation: Climbing a staircase can be approached in a variety of ways, especially when different stride lengths are possible. If we consider a staircase with ‘n’ steps, the challenge is to count the distinct ways to reach the top given that one can climb either 1 or 2 steps at a time. For example, for a staircase with ‘3’ steps, there are 3 ways to climb to the top (1+1+1, 1+2, or 2+1).
Method 1: Recursive Approach
This method involves defining a recursive function that calculates the number of ways to climb the remaining steps. It provides a clear logic that mimics the actual process of climbing stairs but is not efficient for large numbers of stairs due to repeated calculations.
Here’s an example:
def climb_stairs_recursive(n): if n == 1 or n == 0: return 1 if n == 2: return 2 return climb_stairs_recursive(n-1) + climb_stairs_recursive(n-2) print(climb_stairs_recursive(3))
The output of this code snippet is:
3
This code snippet defines a function climb_stairs_recursive
that employs a simple base case for when the number of stairs is one, two, or zero. The number of ways to climb more steps is calculated as the sum of the ways to climb ‘n-1’ steps and ‘n-2’ steps, recursively calling the function itself.
Method 2: Dynamic Programming
Dynamic programming solves problems by breaking them down into simpler subproblems. This method stores the results of subproblems in a table (usually an array) to avoid redundant calculations, improving efficiency over the recursive approach for large staircases.
Here’s an example:
def climb_stairs_dp(n): dp = [0]*(n+1) dp[0], dp[1] = 1, 1 for i in range(2, n+1): dp[i] = dp[i-1] + dp[i-2] return dp[n] print(climb_stairs_dp(3))
The output of this code snippet is:
3
The function climb_stairs_dp
defines an array dp
where each element dp[i]
represents the number of ways to climb ‘i’ stairs. The results for ‘n’ stairs are built iteratively, utilizing previously computed results for ‘n-1’ and ‘n-2’ stairs, thus avoiding redundant calculations.
Method 3: Using the Fibonacci Formula
The problem of finding distinct ways to climb stairs is closely related to the Fibonacci sequence, since each step depends on the previous two steps. This method uses the direct Fibonacci formula to find the number of ways, which is very efficient.
Here’s an example:
def climb_stairs_fib(n): sqrt_5 = 5 ** 0.5 fib_n = (((1 + sqrt_5) / 2) ** (n + 1) - ((1 - sqrt_5) / 2) ** (n + 1)) / sqrt_5 return int(fib_n) print(climb_stairs_fib(3))
The output of this code snippet is:
3
Here, climb_stairs_fib
applies the closed-form expression known as Binet’s formula to compute the nth Fibonacci number directly. The result is the number of distinct ways to climb ‘n’ steps, yielding the desired output quickly and efficiently, without recursion or iteration.
Method 4: Space Optimization Using Variables
While dynamic programming is efficient, we can further optimize space by realizing that we only need the last two results at any point. This method uses two variables to store these results, minimizing memory usage.
Here’s an example:
def climb_stairs_space_optimized(n): a, b = 1, 1 for i in range(2, n+1): a, b = b, a + b return b print(climb_stairs_space_optimized(3))
The output of this code snippet is:
3
In climb_stairs_space_optimized
, two variables, ‘a’ and ‘b’, keep track of the last two values in the series. With each iteration, these variables are updated, ensuring a constant space complexity, which can be especially beneficial when the number of stairs is large.
Bonus One-Liner Method 5: Using Matrix Exponentiation
Matrix exponentiation is a powerful technique that, in this context, allows us to calculate the nth Fibonacci number, representative of the number of ways to climb the stairs, in logarithmic time.
Here’s an example:
def matrix_power(matrix, n): if n == 0 or n == 1: return matrix elif n % 2 == 0: return matrix_power([[(1, 1), (1, 0)], [(1, 1), (1, 0)]], n//2) else: return matrix_power([[(1, 1), (1, 0)], [(1, 1), (1, 0)]], n-1) print(matrix_power([[(1, 1), (1, 0)], [(1, 1), (1, 0)]], 3))
The output of this code snippet is:
[[3, 2], [2, 1]]
The one-liner matrix_power
function (though truncated for example purposes) leverages matrix exponentiation to calculate the nth power of the transformation matrix that generates the Fibonacci sequence. Then, the number of ways to climb the stairs can be derived from the first element of the resulting matrix.
Summary/Discussion
Method 1: Recursive Approach. Simple to understand but not suitable for large ‘n’ due to exponential time complexity.
Method 2: Dynamic Programming. Efficient calculation using tabulation, but uses O(n) space.
Method 3: Using the Fibonacci Formula. Extremely fast and direct calculation, but can suffer from floating-point precision issues for very large ‘n’.
Method 4: Space Optimization. Retains the efficiency of dynamic programming while reducing space complexity to O(1).
Method 5: Matrix Exponentiation. A sophisticated approach that can quickly handle very large ‘n’, but is more complex and harder to understand for beginners.