On March 11, 2011, the day before Spring Break, Jesuit students and faculty took time out of their daily scheduled classes to celebrate Pi Day. No, not a celebration of the delicious dessert almost everybody loves, although there is widespread eating of pie on Pi Day, but a holiday commemorating the mathematical constant of pi ( ∏ ), which equals the ratio of any circle’s circumference to its diameter, in more precise terms 3.14159265358979…. If you’re interested in learning more digits of pi, you’re going to have to do the research, 15 digits is about all I can do.
The festivities were mainly held in the Terry Center, where speakers talked about their careers in math, students presented their diligently prepared presentations on various math topics, and other students showed off artwork and even poetry relating to the mathematical constant; freshman Grant Uy’s Ode to Pi seemed to be a personal favorite of the crowd, as well as my own. Even if you aren’t obsessed with the funny looking, Greek-derived math symbol–dating farther back than you probably think, as far as 250 B.C. with the help of the famous Archimedes–there seemed to be something for everyone at Pi Day. For one, during the presentations, math teachers awarded $10 gift cards to Sports Authority for a correct answer during the presentations–although pretty much everyone got a card, regardless. And all those with a sweet tooth (myself included) earned moon pies if they recited at least 20 digits of pi. Although some students went a little above and beyond, including Freshmen Grant Uy who recited some 300 odd digits, they received only one pie.
Students learned about how math plays a huge role in many of today’s jobs and got a taste of some careers that seriously pursue math. From the lecture on optimization by the lady from Southwest Airlines, or the man who lectured on Statistics, students discovered that essentially every career or field uses some degree of math. Although this news may have disappointed those who aren’t exactly heads over heels for math, I think the day helped students understand how math is such an amazing thing, that it can relate to almost any field and any student interests, giving us a new appreciation for the subject. In summary, math teacher Mr. Andrew Dondis, who helped organize and set up the Terry Center, said the day gave students a chance to “interact with math in ways they might not do in class and come to appreciate math in new ways.”
At the end of the day, students enjoyed this mathematical holiday, whether for the Sports Authority gift cards and moon pies, for missing traditional math classes, or for simply the love of pi.
Photography by Susan Carringer
