Happy Pi Approximation Day! Both you readers know that Pi Day (March 14) is a day that I celebrate every year — the day gets it’s name from 3.14, the first three digits of the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. The date, March 14, is written as 3/14 — thus the name.
But today, July 22, when written as 22/7 (the 22nd of July) is a fraction that has a value of 3.132857 — so it also has the same first three digits of Pi.
Even though both 3.14 and 22/7 are only approximations of Pi, 22/7 is really closer to Pi than 3.14.
So if you’re a purist, today is a better Pi Day than March 14.
In case you haven’t been following this blog, I should probably repeat that the March 14 Pi Day looks like 3.14 only for those that write dates in the month, then day format. That format is rarely used outside the Americas. Today, July 22, when written as 22/7, is in line with the European format.
Pi Day was born in the US where the month, then day format is used. Worldwide, by far the most popular date format is day/month/year — Pi Day (March 14) doesn’t work with the world’s most popular format, but the 22nd of July (22/7) does.
Anyhow, today is Pi Approximation Day, also known as Casual Pi Day. Pi has been known for almost 4000 years — it’s believed that mathematicians began to use the Greek letter for Pi (𝛑) in the 1700s. Pi is the mathematical constant with the most acknowledgement and recognition in the world. The Pi (𝛑) symbol has been used regularly in its mathematical sense for the past 250 years. Most scholars and experts also regard Pi as the most significant and interesting number in all mathematics. Pi is also called the “circular constant,” “Ludolph’s number” and “Archimedes’ constant.”
So today, Pi Approximation Day, celebrates the Pi symbol (𝛑) and its importance to mathematics. No matter how you celebrate, recognize Pi to the extent that your belief in mathematics allows.
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