CustomCC0-1.0#cp008-7001500
Minimal Cuts for Equal Segment Sums
Summary
- •Phase 5 / prefix sums, greedy
- •Reasoning-first competitive programming drill
Problem Description
Given an array of n positive integers, find the minimal number of cuts (partitions) such that all resulting segments have equal sum.
How to read this problem in plain language:
- This is a Phase 5 reasoning drill focused on prefix sums, greedy.
- Typical lenses to test first: prefix sums, partition, greedy.
- Constraints reminder: 1 <= n <= 2*10^5, 1 <= ai <= 10^4
Mini examples for mental simulation:
1) Boundary example: Describe why this case is tricky. Explain expected behavior and why naive logic may fail.
2) Adversarial example: Adversarial case where naive greedy/local decision looks correct but fails globally.
Lite-mode writing target:
- Write 1~2 observations that shrink the search space.
- Name one final algorithm and state target complexity explicitly.
- Validate with at least 2 edge cases and one hand simulation.
Constraints
- •1 <= n <= 2*10^5, 1 <= ai <= 10^4
Analysis
Key Insight
The goal is to force explicit intermediate reasoning before revealing more.
prefix sumspartitiongreedy