Ellen McAllister
Creative Editor
Pi Approximation Day, a lesser-known holiday associated with pi that is just as exciting as Pi Day itself, happened this past Sunday on Feb. 27. When written out numerically, the date is 2-27 and can be rewritten and converted to 22/7, which equals 3.1428, an approximation of pi. Pi Day falls on March 14 and represents the first three digits of pi which are 3.14. The first few digits of pi are 3.14159265359, but the number continues indefinitely.
Since the College will be on spring break on actual Pi Day, the Mathematical and Computational Sciences Club or MCS Club (previously known as the Student Mathematical Association of America Club or SMAAC), decided to celebrate Pi Approximation Day so everyone would be on campus to enjoy the day. The group set out 10 different kinds of pie in Knowlton Commons on Sunday afternoon for students to eat, with flavors ranging from chocolate to cherry crumb and pumpkin from Troyer’s Home Pantry, a bakery in Wooster.
Not only is the play on words a fun element of Pi Day, but “pi is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter” remarks Rekik Ziku ’23, president of the MCS Club, so pie is the perfect food to eat to represent pi. Ziku also wanted to mention that pi is an irrational number, meaning that it is infinite and a non-recurring decimal that has no pattern. 22/7 is used to represent pi in a rational and more understandable way.
When asked about why he liked Pi Approximation Day, Brendan Dufty ’22 replied that “pi is such a fascinating number and pie is so scrumptious. How could we not celebrate?” Cecelia Bagnoli ’22 also enjoyed the free pie in Knowlton on Sunday and stated, “I’m not exactly sure what Pi Approximation Day is but I do know I love a good pumpkin pie!” She was excited for the opportunity to try so many different kinds of homemade pie. Pi Approximation Day is just one of a few fun math holidays that happen every year. To learn more about them, check out the MCS Club’s weekly meetings in Taylor 206 or Babcock Lounge on Thursdays at 6 p.m. Later in the semester, the MCS Club will hold the Taylor Bowl, a bowling competition against the Physics Department, aptly named since both the departments are in Taylor Hall.
If you’d like to learn more about the fun events that the MCS Club holds, look for an email or flyers up around campus.