Pi day,2018 @ Maths2Art

March 14 marks Pi Day, an annual celebration of the mathematical sign Pi.

Ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes of Syracuse, who lived in the third century B.C. and is considered the greatest mathematician of the ancient world, is credited with doing the first calculation of pi.

One of our old article might be a good read on Pi day Sneak-peek-into-the-life-of-pi

After about two millennia (2000 years) , this number got its name : Pi in 18th century

British mathematician, William Jones came up with the Greek letter and symbol π for the figure in 1706. In fact, the word “Pi” itself was actually derived from the first letter of the Greek word ‘perimetros’, which means circumference.

In 1988, physicist, Larry Shaw founded March 14 as Pi day because the numerical date (3.14) represents the first three digits of pi, and it also happens to be Albert Einstein’s birthday—the perfect pi-incidence.

Think about other possible dates using these digits 3,1 & 4 – 31st april, 13 april, 34 jan, 43 jan, 14 march, 41 march, 3×2 = 6 ways 

In 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution designating March 14 as “National Pi Day” to encourage schools and educators to observe the day with appropriate activities that teach students about Pi and engage them about the study of mathematics.

After history, it is time to see the applications around us. Here are some interesting & engaging exercises on this website to show how NASA scientists and engineers use the mathematical constant pi. Below is a sample of problems from this website.

References

http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/where-did-pi-day-come-from 

http://time.com/4699479/pi-day-2017-history-origins/

https://www.cnet.com/news/national-pi-day-congress-makes-it-official/

https://www.google.com.sg/search?q=pi+day&rlz=1C5CHFA_enSG772SG772&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwirtceW7L3ZAhVIpJQKHaikAIoQ_AUICigB&biw=1612&bih=903#imgrc=7nxJYHx4dDeuUM: (image credit)

https://www.google.com.sg/search?q=pi+day&rlz=1C5CHFA_enSG772SG772&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwirtceW7L3ZAhVIpJQKHaikAIoQ_AUICigB&biw=1612&bih=863#imgrc=4JuFMlWZ34TutM: (image credit)