AdventOfCode/2017/07/7.md
2024-11-16 08:05:16 +01:00

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## \-\-- Day 7: Recursive Circus \-\--
Wandering further through the circuits of the computer, you come upon a
tower of programs that have gotten
themselves into a bit of trouble. A recursive algorithm has gotten out
of hand, and now they\'re balanced precariously in a large tower.
One program at the bottom supports the entire tower. It\'s holding a
large disc, and on the disc are balanced several more sub-towers. At the
bottom of these sub-towers, standing on the bottom disc, are other
programs, each holding *their* own disc, and so on. At the very tops of
these sub-sub-sub-\...-towers, many programs stand simply keeping the
disc below them balanced but with no disc of their own.
You offer to help, but first you need to understand the structure of
these towers. You ask each program to yell out their *name*, their
*weight*, and (if they\'re holding a disc) the *names of the programs
immediately above them* balancing on that disc. You write this
information down (your puzzle input). Unfortunately, in their panic,
they don\'t do this in an orderly fashion; by the time you\'re done,
you\'re not sure which program gave which information.
For example, if your list is the following:
pbga (66)
xhth (57)
ebii (61)
havc (66)
ktlj (57)
fwft (72) -> ktlj, cntj, xhth
qoyq (66)
padx (45) -> pbga, havc, qoyq
tknk (41) -> ugml, padx, fwft
jptl (61)
ugml (68) -> gyxo, ebii, jptl
gyxo (61)
cntj (57)
\...then you would be able to recreate the structure of the towers that
looks like this:
gyxo
/
ugml - ebii
/ \
| jptl
|
| pbga
/ /
tknk --- padx - havc
\ \
| qoyq
|
| ktlj
\ /
fwft - cntj
\
xhth
In this example, `tknk` is at the bottom of the tower (the *bottom
program*), and is holding up `ugml`, `padx`, and `fwft`. Those programs
are, in turn, holding up other programs; in this example, none of those
programs are holding up any other programs, and are all the tops of
their own towers. (The actual tower balancing in front of you is much
larger.)
Before you\'re ready to help them, you need to make sure your
information is correct. *What is the name of the bottom program?*
To begin, [get your puzzle input](7/input).
Answer: