Nerd Alert: Want a Piece of the Pi?

For most people, March 14 is just another almost-spring day. But for the subculture that is Nerd-dom, 3/14 is the one day to stop and smell the pi. Pi Day is the occasion for celebrating the mere existence of that mysterious number represented by the Greek letter π. Pi is a mathematical constant defined as the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter: 3.1415926535897… A constant is the same no matter when or where it is calculated; it’s unaffected by altitude, hot/cold, CO2 levels, and such—though don’t expect it to behave in curved (non-Euclidean) geometries! Mathematicians call pi a transcendent number, which means, in part, that its wonderful qualities transcend anything most non-nerds can comprehend. In 2011, thanks to supercomputers, pi was calculated to more than 10 trillion (1013) digits, which is a lot.

The concept was known to the ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, and Indians, but it was Archimedes (ca. 250 B.C.), the great ancient Greek mathematician and inventor, who first estimated pi with some precision. He was able to calculate pi as greater than 223/71 but less than 22/7. According to mythology, Archimedes was so inspired he invented baklava (which is Greek for “pie”). J The Chinese mathematician Liu Hui arrived at an even more accurate estimation for pi in the A.D. 200s. In the 1700s the symbol π began to be popularized in the Western world, thanks to Leonhard Euler.

Pi Day 2013 may turn out to be a special celebration for anyone who is successful in hacking the new Chrome operating system (OS) produced by Google. The company is offering $3,141,590 in prize money to hackers who can find security flaws in the new Chrome OS.

For non-nerds, let’s enjoy Pi Day as an opportunity to sincerely thank all the geeks and nerds who have contributed so much to the making of the modern technological world. And share a slice of pie with a friend.

Image credit: © AP Photo/Chitose Suzuki

Related Links

  • One Million Digits of Pi
    Here you can see the first 1 million digits of pi—try scrolling to the bottom! More fun are the links to the video “Pi Rap” and the various “Pi sightings”; includes teacher’s activity plans for Pi Day.
    (Source: piday.org; accessed February 28, 2013)
  • Pi
    Learn all you need to know about pi here. Honestly, without nerds, there wouldn’t be a Wikipedia!
    (Source: Wikipedia.org; accessed February 28, 2013)
  • In Honor of Pi Day: Nerds on TV
    Celebrate your inner geek by perusing this photo gallery of famous TV nerds.
    (Source: BuddyTV.com; accessed February 28, 2013)
  • Pi Day: A Celebration from “Talk Nerdy to Me!”
    Check out this brief video from Pi Day 2012 featuring a reflection on the beauty of numbers by Daniel Tammet, who recited pi from memory to 22,514 decimals—a true nerd’s nerd; includes a link to the song “Pi.”
    (Source: Huffington Post, March 13, 2012)
  • Google Challenges Hackers to Take on Chrome OS
    Read about Google’s bold offer to pay out a pi-sized reward to anyone who can hack vulnerabilities in its new operating system.
    (Source: ZDNet.com, January 29, 2013)

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