Celebrate math with a tasty pi(e)

Pi Day celebrating mathematical constant began in 1988

Today marks the most delicious mathematical celebration of all … Pi Day!

“Pi is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159,” according to www.PiDay.org.

Pi is a fascinating figure. So far, it has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point, and its decimal representation continues indefinitely without repetition or pattern, PiDay.org reports.

And here’s a fun fact: Because it is a constant number, regardless of the size of the circle, Pi will always be the same.

Pi Day — March 14 — was first observed by physicist Larry Shaw in 1988, according to TimeAndDate.com, because the month and day were the same as the first three digits of Pi (3.14).

The History channel notes that the first celebration took place at the Exploratorium, where Shaw worked in San Francisco. The event featured a circular parade and pies. The celebrations spread, and in 2009, Pi Day became an official national holiday when the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation, History reports.

The Exploratorium notes that Pi has been known for almost 4,000 years. The ancient Babylonians calculated an approximation of it, as did the ancient Egyptians.

Archimedes of Syracuse devised the first known theoretical calculation of pi, coming up with a very close approximation of it in the 3rd century B.C., and mathematicians through history have continued to work on Pi.

Today, Pi is a critical component of a wide spectrum of formulas, from geometry to physics.

So what makes this day so delicious? People often choose to celebrate it with pie!

And while you’re celebrating today, raise a fork to perhaps the most well-known theoretical physicist out there, Albert Einstein, who was born on this date in 1879.

Happy Pi Day, readers!

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