Omid - Challenge 49

data-challenges
advanced-exercises
🔰 Assignment Assignment Problem is a well-known problem for assigning tasks to different people by the minimum cost and we want to solve it with The Hungarian method withi…
Published

March 24, 2026

Illustration for Omid - Challenge 49

Challenge Description

🔰 Assignment Assignment Problem is a well-known problem for assigning tasks to different people by the minimum cost and we want to solve it with The Hungarian method withi…

Solutions

library(tidyverse)
library(readxl)

input = read_excel("files/CH-049 Assignment Problem Part 1.xlsx", range = "C2:F6") 
step2 = read_excel("files/CH-049 Assignment Problem Part 1.xlsx", range = "P2:S6")

result = input %>%
  rowwise() %>%
  mutate(across(everything(), ~ . - min(c_across(everything())))) %>%
  ungroup() %>%
  mutate(across(everything(), ~ . - min(.)))

identical(result, step2)
#  [1] TRUE

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

    • Builds the intermediate columns that drive the final result

  • Strengths:

    • The R solution stays close to the workbook rule and keeps the transformation compact.

  • Areas for Improvement:

    • The code assumes the sheet structure and source ranges remain stable.

  • Gem:

    • The strongest part of the solution is choosing the right intermediate representation before shaping the final output.
import pandas as pd

input = pd.read_excel("CH-049 Assignment Problem Part 1.xlsx", usecols="C:F", skiprows=1).values
test = pd.read_excel("CH-049 Assignment Problem Part 1.xlsx", usecols="P:S", skiprows=1).values

input = [[val - min(row) for val in row] for row in input]
input = list(map(list, zip(*input)))
input = [[val - min(row) for val in row] for row in input]
input = list(map(list, zip(*input)))

print(input == test)    # True

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

    • Applies the rule iteratively until the output stabilizes

  • Strengths:

    • The Python version follows the same rule in a direct dataframe-oriented implementation.

  • Areas for Improvement:

    • The code assumes the workbook layout remains stable, so any sheet redesign would require small adjustments.

  • Gem:

    • The implementation stays close to the original workbook rule instead of adding unnecessary abstraction.

Difficulty Level

This task is moderate:

  • The business rule is readable, but the workbook still requires careful implementation to reach the expected layout.