2019 Dec Platinum Problem 1 Greedy Pie Eaters

Official Problem Statement

Greedy Pie Eaters

Problem Statement:

Greedy Pie Eaters is a USACO problem that requires you to determine the maximum number of pies that can be eaten by a group of people. The pies are arranged in a circle, and each person can only eat the pies that are directly in front of them.

Solution:

The solution to this problem involves using a greedy algorithm. We can iterate through the pies in the circle, and for each pie, we can check whether the person in front of it has already eaten a pie. If not, we can add one to the total number of pies eaten. This process is repeated until all pies have been checked.

In C++, this can be implemented as follows:

int maxPies(vector<bool> pies) {
    int count = 0;
    for (int i = 0; i < pies.size(); i++) {
        if (!pies[i]) {
            count++;
            pies[(i+1) % pies.size()] = true;
        }
    }
    return count;
}