Question Details
Given an array of integers, implement a function to calculate the sum of all elements in the array. The task consists of the following three parts:
Part 1
Implement a function `calculate_sum(arr:
Full Details
Given an array of integers, implement a function to calculate the sum of all elements in the array. The task consists of the following three parts:
Part 1
Implement a function calculate_sum(arr: List[int]) -> int, which takes an array of integers as input and returns the sum of all elements.
Part 2
Write test cases for the above function to ensure it works correctly for various inputs. Test cases should cover positive numbers, negative numbers, and empty array scenarios.
Part 3
Extend the function to exclude duplicate elements' contribution when calculating the total sum. For example, for array [1, 2, 2, 3], it should return 6 instead of 8.
Sample Input
[1, 2, 3]
Test Cases
Case 1
Input:
[1, 2, 3]
Output:
Case 2
Input:
[-1, -2, -3]
Output:
Case 3
Input:
[]
Output:
Case 4
Input:
[0, 0, 0, 0]
Output:
Case 5
Input:
[5, -5, 5, -5]
Output:
Topics
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This question was reported by a candidate who interviewed at Rippling. LeakCode aggregates interview reports from 10+ sources, including 1Point3Acres, Glassdoor, LeetCode Discuss, Blind, Reddit, Indeed, and Nowcoder. Each report is translated where necessary, deduplicated against existing entries, and tagged by company, role, round type, and reporting date.
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How To Practice This Type of Question
Solve similar problems on LeetCode under timed conditions (25-35 minutes per medium difficulty). The goal is pattern recognition: recognize the underlying technique (sliding window, two-pointer, BFS, memoized recursion, etc.) within 60-90 seconds of reading. Strong candidates verbalize their hypothesis out loud before coding, then iterate based on feedback. Weak candidates dive into implementation immediately, lose time on the wrong approach, and run out of time for follow-ups.
Companies update their question pools every 2-4 months. The exact wording of any given question may have been retired by the time you interview. Focus your prep on the pattern, not the specific problem. The patterns that appear in Rippling reports consistently are the ones worth investing in; one-off niche problems are not.
During Your Rippling Round
Apply the standard interview round template: clarify requirements (2-3 minutes), state your approach out loud and confirm direction with the interviewer (3-5 minutes), code with narration (15-25 minutes), test with concrete examples including edge cases (5 minutes), discuss optimization or trade-offs if time permits (5 minutes). This template is universally accepted across FAANG and adjacent companies; deviating from it produces weaker interviewer feedback signal.
The single most predictive failure mode in Rippling reports tagged "no hire": not asking clarifying questions. Interviewers are explicitly trained to weight this. Strong candidates ask 3-5 clarifying questions even on problems that look obvious; weak candidates dive into code immediately. The clarifying-question check is often the first signal recorded in the interviewer's written notes.