This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Paul August (talk | contribs) at 19:49, 23 July 2004 (→Pi Approximation Day: link edit). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 19:49, 23 July 2004 by Paul August (talk | contribs) (→Pi Approximation Day: link edit)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)There are two days held in honour of Pi: Pi Day and Pi Approximation Day.
Pi day
March 14, written 3/14 in the USA date format, is the official day for Pi day derived from the common three-digit approximation for the number π: 3.14. It is usually celebrated at 1:59 PM (in recognition of the six-digit approximation: 3.14159). Some geeks, realizing 1:59 PM is actually 13:59, claim to celebrate it at 1:59 AM instead. Parties have been held by mathematics departments of various schools around the world.
March 14th is also Albert Einstein's birthday.
Pi Approximation Day
Pi Approximation Day is one of two days: either July 22 (written 22/7 in some date formats, and the fraction is a common approximation to π), or it is April 26, the day on which planet Earth completes approximately two Astronomical units' worth of its annual orbit: on this day the total length of Earth's orbit, divided by the length already travelled, equals π.
This holiday, while considered silly to some, has been celebrated in a variety of ways over the years. Groups of people, typically pi clubs, give thought to the role that the number π has played in their lives and imagine the world without π. During the event, pi celebrants devise alternative values for π, eat pi (cake), often play pi (piñata), and perhaps drink pi (Piña Colada).
See also: Mole Day, Programmer's day, A simple proof that 22/7 exceeds Pi