by Math enthusiasts around the world, from college kids to rocket scientists, celebrate Pi Day on Thursday, which is March 14 or 3/14 – the first three digits of an infinite number with many practical uses.
All over the world many people will celebrate the day with a slice of pie – sweet, savory or even pizza.
Simply put, Pi is a mathematical constant that expresses the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. It is part of many formulas used in physics, astronomy, engineering and other fields, dating back thousands of years to ancient Egypt, Babylon and China.
Pi Day itself dates back to 1988, when physicist Larry Shaw started celebrating at the Exploratorium science museum in San Francisco. It wasn’t until twenty years later that the holiday really gained national recognition. In 2009, Congress designated every March 14 as the big day – in the hope of encouraging more interest in maths and science. Fittingly, it is also Albert Einstein’s birthday.
Here’s a little more about the origins of the holiday and how it is celebrated today.
WHAT IS PI?
Pi can calculate the circumference of a circle by measuring the diameter — the distance directly across the center of the circle — and multiplying that by the number 3.14 plus.
It is considered a constant number and is also infinite, which means it is mathematically irrational. Long before computers, historical scientists such as Isaac Newton spent many hours calculating decimal places by hand. Today, using sophisticated computers, researchers have come up with a trillion digits for pi, but there is no end.
WHY IS PI ON IT?
It was not given its name until 1706, when the British mathematician William Jones began using a Greek symbol for the number.
Why that letter? It is the first Greek letter in the words “edge” and “circumference,” and pi is the ratio of the edge – or circumference – of a circle to its diameter.
WHAT ARE SOME PRACTICAL USES?
The number is critical to accurately pointing an antenna towards a satellite. It helps determine everything from the size of the giant cylinder needed in refinery equipment to the size of the paper rolls used in printers.
Pi is also useful in determining the required scale of tanks serving heating and air conditioning systems in buildings of various sizes.
NASA uses pi on a daily basis. It is essential for calculating orbits, the position of planets and other celestial bodies, aspects of rocket propulsion, spacecraft communications and even the proper deployment of a parachute when a vehicle splashes down on Earth or lands on Mars.
Using just nine digits of pi, scientists say it can calculate the Earth’s circumference so accurately that it makes errors of only about a quarter inch (0.6 centimeter) for every 25,000 miles (about 40,000 kilometers).
It’s just GOOD, BUT
Every year the San Francisco museum that made the holiday organizes events, including a parade around a circular plaque, called the Pi Shrine, 3.14 hours – and then, of course, a festival with lots of pies.
Across the country, many events are now taking place on college campuses. For example, Nova Southeastern University in Florida will host a series of activities, including a game called “Mental Math Bingo” and a free pizza (pie) event – and for dessert, the requisite pie.
“Pi Day provides us with a way each year to celebrate math, have fun and recognize how important math is in all of our lives,” said Jason Gershman, chair of NSU’s math department.
At Michele’s Pies in Norwalk, Connecticut, manager Stephen Jarrett said it’s one of their biggest days of the year.
“There are hundreds of pies going out for orders (Thursday) for companies, schools and individuals,” Jarrett said in an interview. “Pi Day is a fun, silly holiday because it’s a mathematical number that people love to make fun and tasty. So people celebrate Pi Day with sweet pies, savory pies, and it’s just an excuse to drink a little.”
NASA has an annual “Pi Day Challenge” online, which offers people plenty of games and puzzles, some straight from the space agency’s own playbook, such as calculating the orbit of an asteroid or the distance that would be a lunar rover travels to it every day. to survey a certain lunar area.
WHAT ABOUT EINSTEIN?
Perhaps the most famous scientist in the world, Einstein was born on March 14, 1879, in Germany. The infinite number of Pi has been used in many of his breakthrough theories and now Pi Day gives the world another reason to celebrate his achievements.
In a bit of mathematical symmetry, the famous physicist Stephen Hawking died on March 14, 2018, at the age of 76. Still, Pi is not a perfect number. He once had this to say:
“One of the basic rules of the universe is that nothing is perfect. There is no such thing as perfection. Without imperfection, you and I would not exist.”
___
Associated Press video journalist John Minchillo of Norwalk, Connecticut assisted.
