LeetCode: 292. Nim Game

LeetCode: 292. Nim Game

You are playing the following Nim Game with your friend: There is a
heap of stones on the table, each time one of you take turns to remove
1 to 3 stones. The one who removes the last stone will be the winner.
You will take the first turn to remove the stones.

Both of you are very clever and have optimal strategies for the game.
Write a function to determine whether you can win the game given the
number of stones in the heap.

For example, if there are 4 stones in the heap, then you will never
win the game: no matter 1, 2, or 3 stones you remove, the last stone
will always be removed by your friend.

Credits: Special thanks to @jianchao.li.fighter for adding this
problem and creating all test cases.

答案：

public class Solution {
    public boolean canWinNim(int n) {
        return n % 4 != 0;
    }
}

解释：
Theorem: all 4s shall be false

Theorem: The first one who got the number that is multiple of 4 (i.e.
n % 4 == 0) will lost, otherwise he/she will win. Proof:

the base case: when n = 4, as suggested by the hint from the problem,
no matter which number that that first player, the second player would
always be able to pick the remaining number.

For 1* 4 < n < 2 * 4, (n = 5, 6, 7), the first player can reduce the
initial number into 4 accordingly, which will leave the death number 4
to the second player. i.e. The numbers 5, 6, 7 are winning numbers for
any player who got it first.

Now to the beginning of the next cycle, n = 8, no matter which number
that the first player picks, it would always leave the winning numbers
(5, 6, 7) to the second player. Therefore, 8 % 4 == 0, again is a
death number.

Following the second case, for numbers between (2*4 = 8) and (3*4=12),
which are 9, 10, 11, are winning numbers for the first player again,
because the first player can always reduce the number into the death
number 8.

Following the above theorem and proof, the solution could not be
simpler:

public boolean canWinNim(int n) {
return n % 4 != 0 ;
}