The history of pi
Approximating pi
I'm getting dizzy...
Pi in the modern world
Pi Day
100
What came first: the approximation of it, or the symbol π?
The approximation! The symbol π was only first used in 1706
100
What are the first 3 digits of pi?
3.14
100
What shape is pi related to?
A circle!
100
True or false: scientific calculators have a pi button on them?
True!
100
When is pi day?
March 14th!
200
True or false? Some believe that calculating pi was necessary for the creation of the Great Pyramids.
TRUE! Most scholars do not believe it was necessary however there is a curious coincidence... If you divide the pyramid's base perimeter by twice its height, you get a very close approximation of pi!
200
Why do we need an approximation of pi? Why not just know the digits?
It never ends!
200
If you know the circumference and the radius of a circle, how can you calculate pi?
200
What invention has greatly helped with determining a large number of digits of pi?
Computers! Previously, all calculations were done by hand
200
Give 2 reasons why we eat pie on pi day
Pi sounds like the baked dessert, and they are circular!
300
Where are the earliest written approximations of pi found?
Babylon and Egypt
300
What fraction do we use to estimate pi?
22/7
300
Which digit is completely missing from the first 30 places of pi?
0
300
What dorky main character from a popular TV show is able to recite up to 100 digits of pi?
Sheldon Cooper from the Big Bang Theory!
300
In the last 20 years, which year was the most important for celebrating pi day?
2015!
3.14.15
400
About how long ago did humans begin approximating pi?
About 4000 years! The earliest recorded form was from a clay tablet in ancient Babylon from approximately 4000 years ago, within 1% of accuracy
400
Who were the first mathematicians to "unlock" the first 7 digits of pi, and when?
In the 400s, by Chinese mathematicians!
400
According to the Guiness Book of World Records, it took Rajveer Meena 9 hours and 27 minutes to set the current record for listing the digits of pi. How far did he get?
70,000! This was recorded in 2015. Allegedly a Japanese engineer Akira Haraguchi has been able to recits 100,000 digits but it was not verified by Guiness.
400
In what 80s sci-fi show does the main character destroy a rogue computer by demanding it compute the final, infinite digit of pi?
Star Trek!
400
What mathematican was born on pi day?
Einstein!
500
Prior to being recorded, when was pi explained orally (as in, by word of mouth?)
In the Shulba Sutras of Indian mathematics (an ancient Indian Sanskrit geometry manual) it is noted that pi was approximated as early as 2000 BCE, with being about 99% accurate!
500
What is it called to practice memorizing large numbers of digits of pi? hint: it ends in -ology!
Piphiology!
500
How many trillion digits were calculated by a super computer in 2021?
62.8, that's 62,800,000,000,000
500
True or False: There is an entire language based on pi
Some people loved pi enough to invent a dialect based on it. In “Pi-lish” the number of letters in each word match the corresponding digit of pi. This first word has three letters, the second has one letter, the third has four letters, and so on. Software engineer Michael Keith wrote an entire book, called Not a Wake in this language.
500
What famous mathematician died on pi day in 2018?
Stephen Hawking