Ancient PI ( π ):
22/7
3.142857142857142857142857142857142857142857......
Today, 3/14 is officially designated as "PI DAY"
Pi Day and Pi Approximation Day are two holidays held to celebrate the mathematical constant π (pi) (in the mm/dd date notation: 3/14); since 3, 1 and 4 are the first three digits of π. March 14 is also the birthday of Albert Einstein and the two events are sometimes celebrated together.
Pi Approximation Day is observed on July 22, because of Archimedes' popular approximation of π being 22/7. However, this may be considered misleading, as all cited dates are "approximation days" (as π is an irrational number) and 22/7 is actually a closer approximation of π than 3.14 is. Typically, March 14 is more popular for countries using the month/day format and the 22nd of July is more popular for countries using the day/month format.
Sometimes Pi Minute is also celebrated; this occurs twice on March 14 at 1:59 a.m. and 1:59 p.m. If π is truncated to seven decimal places, it becomes 3.1415926; making March 14 at 1:59:26 p.m., Pi Second (or sometimes March 14, 1592 at 6:53:58 a.m.). If 24-hour time is used, Pi Minute occurs once, on March 14 (3/14) at 1:59.
There are a large variety of ways of celebrating Pi Day and most of them include eating pie and discussing the relevance of π. The first Pi Day celebration was held at the San Francisco Exploratorium in 1988, with staff and public marching around one of its circular spaces, then consuming fruit pies. The museum has since added pizza to its Pi Day menu.
The founder of Pi Day was Larry Shaw, a now-retired physicist at the Exploratorium who still helps out with the celebrations.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology often mails its acceptance letters to be delivered to prospective students on Pi Day.
Some also celebrate alternative Pi Days and/or Pi Approximation Days in addition to the two listed above; these can fall on any of several dates:
March 4: When 14% of the 3rd month has elapsed.
April 26: The Earth has traveled two radians of its orbit on this day (April 25 in leap years), reckoning from the start of the calendar year on January 1. Thus the entire orbit divided by the distance traveled equals π; two radians equals 1⁄π of our orbit. This is celebrated exactly on the 41st second of the 23rd minute of the 4th hour on April 26 or the 116th day. (In leap years, it is celebrated exactly on the 3rd second of the 2nd minute of the 12th hour on April 25 or the 116th day.) This celebration is not a Pi Approximation Day.
[the second occurs 116 days later on August 20, (8/20 day 232) - astute observers will note that the 2 days fall in the only 2 months of the calendrical year to begin with the letter "A" in the english language...
Letter "A" is symbolic representation of the COMPASSES, a tool used to draw a perfect circle.]
November 10: The 314th day of the year
(or 11/9 (mm/dd - USA) or 9/11 (dd/mm - EU/CANADA) in leap years).
December 21, 1:13 p.m.: The 355th day of the year (December 20 in leap years), celebrated at 1:13 for the Chinese approximation 355/113.
On Pi Day 2004, Daniel Tammet recited 22,514 decimal digits of π.
On 12 March 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution (HRES 224), recognizing March 14, 2009 as National Pi Day.
So a big Thank You to the House and Resolution number 224 (HRES 224) for the USA National PI DAY!
On Pi Day 2010, Google celebrated by changing the logo on the search engine's home page into a Pi related sketch up featuring Pi and other mathematical symbols.
Happy PI DAY to all the Strange Eye readers over the past year!
(and Happy PI DAY to you Mr. Shaw!)
Here's a couple of links to past PI related work on Strange Eye:
Let Me Introduce You to...
6 Days of Creation - the Ring, the Sphere, and Jimi Hendrix
22/7
and
142857
(The Synch Wholers will immediately recognize the 142 half of 142,857)
See also:
Wikipedia page on PI
Here's some Beyonce singing TINa Turner [T=2 x 2 = 4]...
"PROUD MARY"
(If you only watched it once you should watch it again... if fact, 3.14 times would be perfect!)
AND...
In honor of PI DAY, PI ( π ) and its role in orbital calculations...
Here's a list of interesting dates for ASTRONOMERS to have a look at:
(Note: the Venus crossing and Orion loop at 2012-05-09 to 2012-06-05 ***
and the "Archangel Michael" conjunctions)
Dates @ noon from Washington, DC
--------------------------------
(yyyy-mm-dd)
2011-05-05
2011-05-20
2011-08-16
2011-09-29
2011-10-13
2011-11-09
2012-03-13
2012-03-22
2012-05-09
2012-05-19
2012-05-22
2012-05-27
2012-06-01
2012-06-05 ***
2012-07-04 ***
2012-09-11 ***
2012-12-21 *****
2013-01-01 *****
----------------
~SE~ NOTE:
I'd really love to hear some feedback from the more practiced astronomers on their observations of the dates listed above - Drop some comments in the POST COMMENTS!
(I'd especially like some feedback from you NASA and JPL Strange Eye readers! For ALL: If you don't want to comment here as always you can send me an email through my profile link found in the right column -----> )
Here's a Canadian project by some Young Artists for Haiti:
Song is K'NAAN's "Wavin Flag"
facebook.com/youngartistsforhaiti
And if you still haven't read it, I suggest you find the time to read (or even re-read) Sidney, Crosby, Patrick, KANE and ABE L - from March 8 on Strange Eye...
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