Pi Day Live - 14 March 2013

Zero

"Pi is historically one of the very first numbers mathematicians started trying to calculate and explore," says Marcus du Sautoy of Oxford University. So why not have a go yourself this pi day?

Link to experiment tomorrow:

http://oxfordconnect.conted.ox.ac.uk/


Needles falling on paper will calculate pi, everyone's favourite mathematical constant.

The constant – the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter – is a string of numbers beginning 3.14159, although it goes on forever.

Computers have crunched pi to trillions of digits. But this pi day, beginning at 1.59 pm GMT, Marcus du Sautoy of the University of Oxford will run Pi Day Live, an online experiment to get people to calculate the constant using a 200-year-old method called Buffon's needle, which anyone can take part in.

The technique involves dropping a needle onto paper marked with evenly spaced parallel lines that are further apart than the needle's length. The probability of the needle crossing a line is linked to the value of pi.

A single needle drop won't give an accurate estimate, so the idea is to pool results from as many participants as possible.

karasti

Will have to check it out, though I have a hate/hate relationship with math. In my son's algebra class, they get extra credit for bringing pie to school on pi day. Seems a bit silly to me.

vinlyn

Our math department always celebrated Pi Day, and I have to admit I thought it was kinda dumb. They always bragged about math being pure critical thinking, and then they celebrated something that was pure memorization.

chela

This is interesting, but I think I'll pass because I am pretty sure I have a brain allergy to math!

Zero

@chela - they assure us that, "Anyone can join-in and you don’t need to be a maths genius to take part".

I hadn't heard of Pi day until I read this article - sorry - thought it was novel!

What happens on your average Pi day in school? Is it experiments like this?

...and why didn't I ever have a Pi day? I remember Pi and pie but never a day dedicated to either! shame

black_tea

Math puts my brain into total shut down mode (and that is not an exaggeration!). I have a hard time even understanding the described experiment. This is the kind of thing that sounds (I think) like it could be neat if one understands math above the balancing one's checkbook level. However, it's beyond me.

MaryAnne

I can find my way through the most complicated mazes, I can visualize complex string sculptures and abstract art perspectives.... I can read through pages of flowery, overwrought language, with precision and patience... But I can't for the life of me get my brain to work with anything more than the most basic math.
Seriously, forget calculus or geometry AND yes, Pi. It's all like a foreign movie to me- without subtitles.

karasti

I can do math when I don't realize I'm doing math. Like, building my garden beds, doing home projects, installing tile, measuring for carpet, that kind of stuff. If you take the exact information and put it solely in math form on paper, I can't do it anymore. I think I just have a mental block to math because I told myself I couldn't do it. I was horrible at it, I got straight As, and then had to work really hard to pull a C in algebra. I can do applied math. Just not normal math. I have to ask my 16 year old to help the 10 year old with math homework, because they don't even do it the same anymore. Now they have lattice multiplication and such and it makes even less sense to me than normal math, LOL.