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Odd and Even Measurements [Google SQL Interview Question]
This is the same question as problem #28 in the SQL Chapter of Ace the Data Science Interview!
Assume you're given a table with measurement values obtained from a Google sensor over multiple days with measurements taken multiple times within each day.
Write a query to calculate the sum of odd-numbered and even-numbered measurements separately for a particular day and display the results in two different columns. Refer to the Example Output below for the desired format.
Definition:
- Within a day, measurements taken at 1st, 3rd, and 5th times are considered odd-numbered measurements, and measurements taken at 2nd, 4th, and 6th times are considered even-numbered measurements.
Effective April 15th, 2023, the question and solution for this question have been revised.
Table:
| Column Name | Type |
|---|---|
| measurement_id | integer |
| measurement_value | decimal |
| measurement_time | datetime |
Example Input:
| measurement_id | measurement_value | measurement_time |
|---|---|---|
| 131233 | 1109.51 | 07/10/2022 09:00:00 |
| 135211 | 1662.74 | 07/10/2022 11:00:00 |
| 523542 | 1246.24 | 07/10/2022 13:15:00 |
| 143562 | 1124.50 | 07/11/2022 15:00:00 |
| 346462 | 1234.14 | 07/11/2022 16:45:00 |
Example Output:
| measurement_day | odd_sum | even_sum |
|---|---|---|
| 07/10/2022 00:00:00 | 2355.75 | 1662.74 |
| 07/11/2022 00:00:00 | 1124.50 | 1234.14 |
Explanation
Based on the results,
- On 07/10/2022, the sum of the odd-numbered measurements is 2355.75, while the sum of the even-numbered measurements is 1662.74.
- On 07/11/2022, there are only two measurements available. The sum of the odd-numbered measurements is 1124.50, and the sum of the even-numbered measurements is 1234.14.
The dataset you are querying against may have different input & output - this is just an example!
p.s. read this blog post for more Google SQL Interview Questions
Solution
To solve this question, we follow these steps:
Step 1: Ordering and Partitioning
We first order the measurements based on their measurement time and partition them by day using the window function. This helps us establish the order of measurements within each day:
It is important to use in the ORDER BY clause of the window function to ensure that the measurements are ordered within each day based on the actual measurement's time. This will ensure that the row numbering () is accurate and reflects the chronological order of the measurements within each day.
Showing the first 5 rows of output:
| measurement_day | measurement_value | measurement_num |
|---|---|---|
| 07/10/2022 00:00:00 | 1109.51 | 1 |
| 07/10/2022 00:00:00 | 1662.74 | 2 |
| 07/10/2022 00:00:00 | 1246.24 | 3 |
| 07/11/2022 00:00:00 | 1124.50 | 1 |
| 07/11/2022 00:00:00 | 1234.14 | 2 |
Step 2 & 3: Filtering and Summing
To filter for odd and even numbers, we can use the following two methods:
- Modulus operator (): Use to check if the result is 1, indicating odd numbers or with a result of 1 for even numbers.
- : Use to find odd results and for even results.
Note: The modulus operator returns the remainder of a division. When we divide an even number by 2, the remainder is always 0, whereas dividing an odd number will result in a non-zero value.
Finally, we can apply the modulus concept to the aggregate function along with the clause, summing over the corresponding .
Results:
| measurement_day | odd_sum | even_sum |
|---|---|---|
| 07/10/2022 00:00:00 | 2355.75 | 1662.74 |
| 07/11/2022 00:00:00 | 2377.12 | 2480.70 |
| 07/12/2022 00:00:00 | 2903.40 | 1244.30 |
PostgreSQL 14