The Infinite Adventure of Pi
Once upon a time there was a special number so unique that it never gave away all its secrets. It was called pi written as the Greek letter π and its journey began thousands of years ago
Long ago in the age of pyramids and clay tablets brilliant minds in Babylonia modern day Iraq and Ancient Egypt tried to understand circles. They asked How long is the edge of a circle if we know the distance straight across the middle?
The Babylonians estimated it as 3.125 and the Egyptians based on the Rhind Papyrus from around 1650 BCE calculated pi as about 3.16. Not exact but an amazing first step on a journey that would last for thousands of years.
Then came Ancient Greece. Here we meet Archimedes of Syracuse a genius from the 3rd century BCE. Using clever geometry he estimated pi to be between 3.1408 and 3.1429 incredibly accurate for his time! That’s why he is often called the father of pi.
Pi’s journey continued. In India, the brilliant mathematician Madhava of Sangamagrama discovered around 1400 CE how to calculate pi using infinite series. He was far ahead of his time.
Later in Europe during the Renaissance mathematicians like Ludolph van Ceulen from the Netherlands! worked hard to calculate pi. He reached 35 digits and was so proud he had them engraved on his tombstone.
Today, computers have calculated billions of digits of pi. But what makes pi so exciting is that it never ends and never repeats. It’s a mysterious magical number a kind of infinite compass that travels through time with us as its explorers.
So next time you draw a circle think of pi. Not just a number, but a story that spans thousands of years across Babylonia Egypt Greece India the Netherlands and far beyond.
And who knows? Maybe you will be the next to uncover a piece of pi’s mystery...