adventofcode2024/day01-1.py

# https://adventofcode.com/2024/day/1
# Calculate the sum of the distances between the smallest values in each
# list, then the second-smallest, then the third-smallest, and so on.
# The lists are the same length.

FILENAME = "input01.txt"

def main():
    with open(FILENAME, "r") as file:
        lines = [line.strip().split() for line in file.readlines()]
    first_list, second_list = [], []
    for line in lines:
        first_list.append(int(line[0]))
        second_list.append(int(line[1]))
    sorted_first = sorted(first_list)
    sorted_second = sorted(second_list)
    print(f"""First list: {first_list[:10]}...
First list sorted: {sorted_first[:10]}...
Second list: {second_list[:10]}...
Second list sorted: {sorted_second[:10]}...
""")
    sum_dists = 0
    for i, el in enumerate(sorted_first):
        s_el = sorted_second[i]
        dist = abs(el-s_el)
        sum_dists += dist
        if i%5 == 0:
            print(f"Current locations {el} and {s_el}, current distance {dist}, accumulated distance {sum_dists}.")
    print(f"Total accumulated distance: {sum_dists}")
    return sum_dists



if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()