Introduction

In this blog post, we will explore how to solve the LeetCode problem "896" using AI. LeetCode is a popular platform for preparing for coding interviews, and with the help of AI tools like Chatmagic, we can generate solutions quickly and efficiently - helping you pass the interviews and get the job offer without having to study for months.

Problem Statement

An array is monotonic if it is either monotone increasing or monotone decreasing. An array nums is monotone increasing if for all i <= j, nums[i] <= nums[j]. An array nums is monotone decreasing if for all i <= j, nums[i] >= nums[j]. Given an integer array nums, return true if the given array is monotonic, or false otherwise. Example 1: Input: nums = [1,2,2,3] Output: true Example 2: Input: nums = [6,5,4,4] Output: true Example 3: Input: nums = [1,3,2] Output: false Constraints: 1 <= nums.length <= 105 -105 <= nums[i] <= 105

Explanation

Here's a breakdown of the solution:

• Determine Monotonicity: Check if the array is either monotone increasing or monotone decreasing.
• Iterate and Compare: Iterate through the array, comparing adjacent elements to determine the trend. If a trend is violated, return False.

• Early Exit: Exit early if both increasing and decreasing conditions are violated.

• Time Complexity: O(n), where n is the length of the array. Space Complexity: O(1).

Code

    def isMonotonic(nums: list[int]) -> bool:
    """
    Determines if an array is monotonic (either monotone increasing or monotone decreasing).
    """
    increasing = True
    decreasing = True

    for i in range(1, len(nums)):
        if nums[i] < nums[i - 1]:
            increasing = False
        if nums[i] > nums[i - 1]:
            decreasing = False

    return increasing or decreasing