How to Celebrate Pi Day

Pi is a mathematical constant that is the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter, and it is also one of the most revered mathematical constants in the known world.^[1] Pi Day was first officially celebrated on a large scale in 1988 at the San Francisco Exploratorium.^[2]Since then, Pi Day has been celebrated by millions of students and math-lovers. The holiday is celebrated on 14th March, since 3, 1, and 4 are the three most significant digits in the decimal form of pi. If you'd like to learn how to celebrate pi in due fashion, read on and it will be as easy as pi.

EditSteps

Eat pi foods. Eating pi foods may be the easiest and the most fun way to celebrate pi. If you're in school, everyone can bring in a pi-themed food for a pi-pot luck, and if you're just celebrating with friends, you can all enjoy a pi-themed meal together. Here are some creative ideas for pi-related foods:
- Eat any type of pie. Try key lime pie, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, or apple pie.
- Put the pi symbol on a variety of cookies, pies, and cupcakes. You can even make the foods in advance and write pi on them in icing in a big group.
- Make a pie day pie in honor of the special day.
- Take the punny approach. Eat pineapple, pizza, or pine nuts, and drink piña coladas or pineapple juice.
- Use the shape method. Make cookies, cakes, loaves of bread, or pancakes that are shaped like pi.
- Pi foods don't have to be limited to desserts. Eat shepherd's pie or chicken pot pie.

Create some pi ambiance. Just as people display a tree and mistletoe, wear Christmas gear, and sing Christmas songs around Christmas, there is a lot of room for making the environment around you reminiscent of pi. Here are some Pi Day ideas:
- Wear a pi T-shirt.
- Wear pi accessories. This idea can be taken further to include pi jewelry, such as a necklace whose beads represent the numbers in pi, carrying around a pi mug or clock, or other pi paraphernalia.
- Put on a pi temporary tattoo.
- Put pi stickers all over your stuff.
- Give away pencils with Pi symbols.
- Make your computer or phone background into something related to pi.
- Change your Internet browser into something pi-related.

Don't forget to celebrate pi when it's 1:59 PM on Pi Day. Take a minute to acknowledge pi in whatever way you see fit. During this minute, you can cheer wildly, or even have a countdown leading up to "pi minute" the minute before.
- For added effect for a countdown, have a "pi drop" where you drop a big pie off a balcony or another elevated structure. You can even add a lot of sprinkles to the pie to make it look like a disco ball.
- You can also be more serious and have a minute of silence. Every person can think about what pi means to him, and consider where the world would be without pi. If you're in school, someone can even announce the minute of pi over the loud speaker.
- If you've written a pi song or made a pi dance, this would be the perfect minute to share your art.
  - There is some debate regarding the exact time that Pi Day should be celebrated. Though 1:59PM is probably the most common, some believe that the 24 hour clock should be used instead, which would mean that Pi Day should be celebrated at 1:59AM or 15:09PM.

Convert things into pi. This step is absolutely necessary for two reasons: first, to utterly confuse people who have no idea what you're talking about, and secondly, to have fun seeing how many things can be referenced with pi. This will help you reach an even higher appreciation for the amazing number that is pi. Consider two approaches:
- Use pi to tell the time. Convert naturally circular things into radians, like the hours on the clock. Instead of it being 3 o'clock, now it's 1/2 pi o'clock. Or, instead of it being 3 o'clock, convert the inclination of the sun into radians and describe that as the time.
- Simply use 3.14 as a unit of measure. Instead of being 31 years old, you are 9pi years old. With this same approach, you can find out your next pi birthday (don't forget to celebrate it when it comes!).

Play pi games. Pi games will not only be fun, but they will improve your understanding of pi and will make everyone around you have a deeper appreciation of pi.
- There are plenty of traditional games that are appropriate on Pi Day, like a piñata, a pie-eating contest, or a pie-in-the-face fundraiser.
- Answer math questions. Come to Pi Day with at least ten math questions you can spring on people. They should be related to geometry, trigonometry, or other fields where pi is particularly useful.
- Play Pi Day versions of "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?" or "Jeopardy."
- Conduct a Pi Day Scavenger Hunt.
- Remember that Pi Day also happens to be the birthday of Albert Einstein. Play an Einstein-themed trivia game, or have an Einstein impersonator contest.
- Have a pi memorization or recitation contest. As soon as someone loses, you can hit him in the face with a pie. If you want to really show your dedication on Pi Day, learn to memorize pi in advance by studying as many of the digits of pi as you can.
- Discuss the different ways to derive pi.
- Write as many digits of pi on a blackboard as you can, and then try to find your name, birthday, ATM pin, or pi, in pi.

Use your artistic side to celebrate pi. You don't have to be a left-brained thinker to fully celebrate pi. You can use your creative side show how much you love and appreciate pi. And even if you're not the world's most talented poet or writer, you can still have fun while being silly. You don't have to create art to celebrate pi; you can also just appreciate art that already celebrates it. Here are a few ways to celebrate pi artistically:
- Write poetry. Write either a pi-ku (haiku) or a regular pi-em (poem) to show how much you love pi.
- Write a pi-themed song.
- Write a short pi-themed play and act it out.
- Paint a picture of pi.
- Watch the film π.^[3] It's a dark movie about a mathematician who goes crazy. It's very interesting, but intended for an adult audience only.
- Listen to Kate Bush. Progressive rock musician Kate Bush performed a song titled π on her 2005 album Aerial.
  - Bush sings pi to its 137th decimal place, but omits the 79th through 100th decimal places of pi for unknown reasons.
- Watch the film Life of Pi.^[4] Technically "Pi" is only the protagonist's name, but it has gotten people thinking about pi.

Get physical with pi. You can also use your physical prowess, or even your car, to show your love for pi. Here are a few things you can do to celebrate pi:
- Do a pi mile run. Run 3.14 miles, which is just a tiny bit longer than a 5K. You can take this a step further by organizing a pi mile run with friends or colleagues.
- Lay down in pi formation and take a picture. If you're bold, have two people standing up while holding up a third person who is laying sideways in between them. Make sure the lightest person is on top.
- Drive exactly 3.14 miles.
- March in a circle to show your love for pi.

Help the tradition continue. Don't let this be a one-time thing — you owe it to pi to celebrate again and again. Set the date for next year and create a pi club or website in the process.
- Talk about your plans for Pi Day the following year. This will help generate enthusiasm.
- Take notes after your Pi Day celebration. What can you do next year to make your celebration even more incredible?
- Next year, talk about the day months in advance so your skeptical friends can be convinced to join in. You can even advertise for the event by emailing your closer friends or even setting up a Pi Day Facebook page.

EditTips

Note that Pi Approximation Day is held on July 22, because when you use the DD/MM format, it is shown as 22/7, the fraction for pi.

Show your love for pi by getting married on Pi Day. There's nothing more romantic than being married to the one you love at 1:59:26 PM on March 14th to show that, like pi, your love will continue forever.

Pi continues indefinitely, and so far it has been tracked out to 2,576,980,377,524 (over 2 trillion) digits after the decimal place using a computer. ^[5]