The 数学ematics Office was buzzing with activity early on π的一天, March 14, as Marisa Triola ’24 recited Pi up to the 105th digit as teacher Dr. 纳什沙玛 listened intently. Other students lined up to try to win a great π的一天 T-shirt.

Dr. 斯蒂芬·贝茨 和 数学 Department had organized a day filled with Pi-related activities. Pi, which begins as 3.141592653, represents the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter and is written as the lowercase Greek letter π. π的一天, 成立于1988年, is observed on March 14 because 3, 1, and 4 are the first three significant digits of π.

Pi Trivia Heats Up Commons

During all four of the lunch periods in Commons, Dr. Bates presided over π的一天 Trivia for Middle and 上学校 students. He began by inviting 上学校 students to sign into Kahoot, an educational app, on their phones to join the game. The thrilling competition was filled with various questions from serious to zany. The names of students in the lead appeared on a screen in the front of Commons with their scores. 学生 laughed at questions about “pumpkin pie” and cheered their classmates on as the lead changed. The top three scorers in each lunch period won π的一天 T-shirts. 但 Dr. 玛丽亚迪卡洛, 数学 Department Chair, offered very sweet Whoopie pies for all students to enjoy.

Checking in the 数学 Office later in the day, Beckett Zrihen ’26 was now the leader having recited up to the 135th digit of Pi. 在白天, any student who came to the 数学 Office and could recite Pi up to 10 digits, 得过奖.

π的一天 logic and Sudoku puzzles of increasing difficulty were available from Dr. Sharma for anyone looking for a challenge.

Pi照相亭

Throughout the day, students and faculty holding signs such as “数学lete,” “Problem Solver,” and “Certified 数学 Genius,” stopped by the Pi photo booth to create mementoes of the day.

想象π

In the 数学 Office, students created a Pi construction paper chain to illustrate Pi visually. The digits of Pi were printed out and each number corresponded to a color. For example, 9 was the color black. As students crossed off a digit, they chose the band that corresponded, wrote a message, and added the link to the chain.

π的一天 Recitation Champ

The competition to recite the digits of Pi continued throughout the day, with a steady stream of competitors.

但 in the end, congratulations go to an amazing math student, Annakaecia Clarke ’25, who recited the digits of Pi to 159 digits! 

Pi(e) Eating Contest: A Delicious Test of Endurance

圆周率日2023 at Poly concluded with a Pi Eating Contest in Commons. Dr. Bates moderated the rounds as teams of five Middle or 上学校 students competed. 数学 Department faculty filled paper plates with whipped cream and placed them in front of the Pi mathletes seated at tables. 在博士. 贝茨的信号, the first contestant on each team ate all the whipped cream on his or her plate before their next teammate proceeded.

Commons reverberated with cheering that Chef Lou could hear in his office. The winning teams won π的一天 T-shirts. Who knew math could be so much fun? Poly’s 数学 Department, that’s who!