Using this method, Archimedes showed that Pi is between 3 1/7 and 3 10/71.Īn approach similar to that of Archimedes’ was used by Zu Chongzhi (429–501), a brilliant Chinese mathematician and astronomer. Archimedes knew that he had not found the exact value of Pi, but had a good approximation within those limits. The actual area of the circle lay between the areas of the inscribed and circumscribed shapes, so the areas of the polygons gave the upper and lower bounds for the area of the circle (Fig. In the larger polygon, a circle was circumscribed, and in the other, the smaller polygon was circumscribed. He used the Pythagorean Theorem to find the area of two regular polygons. The first recorded calculation of Pi was performed by Archimedes of Syracuse (287–212 BC), one of the greatest mathematicians of the ancient world. These sources are considered the earliest textual evidence of mathematicians’ intuition of the existence of Pi. 1650 BC), we learned that the Egyptians calculated the area of a circle by a formula that gave the approximate value of 3.1605 for π. With the discovery of the Rhind Papyrus (ca. 1900–1680 BC), indicates a value of 3.125, a much closer approximation. The ancient Babylonians calculated the area of a circle by multiplying the square of its radius, designating the value of Pi as 3. When the perimeter is divided by height, the ratio is 6.286, approximately 2 Pi. For example, the Egyptian Great Pyramid of Giza, built between 25 BC, had a perimeter of 1760 cubits and a height of 280 cubits. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly who first became aware of the constant ratio between the circumference of a circle and its diameter, though human civilizations have used it as early as 2550 BC. Although many know that this number relates the ratio between the circumference of a circle and its diameter, few know the true origins of math’s favorite irrational constant. The Life of Pi Derek Ye ‘21įrom middle school onward, hundreds of millions of math students across the globe have one number drilled into their heads: 3.14… The concept of Pi (π) has existed for almost 4,000 years.
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