2130. Maximum Twin Sum of a Linked List

Given n a linked list of size n, where n is even, the ith node (0-indexed) of the linked list is known as the twin of the (n-1-i)th node, if 0 <= i <= (n / 2) - 1.

For example, if n = 4, then node 0 is the twin of node 3, and node 1 is the twin of node 2. These are the only nodes with twins for n = 4.

The twin sum is defined as the sum of a node and its twin.

Given the head of a linked list with even length, return the maximum twin sum of the linked list.

 

Example 1:

Input: head = [5,4,2,1]
Output: 6
Explanation:
Nodes 0 and 1 are the twins of nodes 3 and 2, respectively. All have twin sum = 6.
There are no other nodes with twins in the linked list.
Thus, the maximum twin sum of the linked list is 6. 

Example 2:

Input: head = [4,2,2,3]
Output: 7
Explanation:
The nodes with twins present in this linked list are:
- Node 0 is the twin of node 3 having a twin sum of 4 + 3 = 7.
- Node 1 is the twin of node 2 having a twin sum of 2 + 2 = 4.
Thus, the maximum twin sum of the linked list is max(7, 4) = 7. 

Example 3:

Input: head = [1,100000]
Output: 100001
Explanation:
There is only one node with a twin in the linked list having twin sum of 1 + 100000 = 100001.

 

Constraints:

    The number of nodes in the list is an even integer in the range [2, 105].
    1 <= Node.val <= 105

Two Pointers

Approach:

Steps:

Find the Middle of the Linked List:
    Use the fast and slow pointer technique to locate the midpoint of the list efficiently.

Reverse the Second Half of the List:
    Reverse the second half of the linked list to facilitate pairing the twin nodes.

Calculate Twin Sums:
    Traverse both halves simultaneously (one from the start and the other from the reversed list) to compute twin sums.

Find the Maximum Twin Sum:
    Keep track of the maximum twin sum encountered during the traversal.
# Definition for singly-linked list.
# class ListNode(object):
#     def __init__(self, val=0, next=None):
#         self.val = val
#         self.next = next
class Solution(object):
    def pairSum(self, head):
        """
        :type head: Optional[ListNode]
        :rtype: int
        """
        # find the middle of head
        slow, fast = head, head
        while fast and fast.next:
            slow = slow.next
            fast = fast.next.next

        # reverse the second half
        prev = None
        
        while slow:
            temp = slow.next
            slow.next = prev
            prev = slow
            slow = temp
        
        # interate 2 linked list and compute sum
        max_sum = 0
        first, second = head, prev
        while second:
            max_sum = max(max_sum, first.val + second.val)
            first = first.next
            second = second.next
        return max_sum