Wednesday Wisdom

March 14, also known as PI Day

WHO?

Archimedes was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor, and astronomer who lived from approximately 287 BC to 212 BC. He is considered one of the greatest mathematicians of all time and is known for his contributions to geometry, mechanics, and hydrostatics, which is the study of pressure and density on fluids.

Archimedes was born in the Greek city-state of Syracuse, located on the island of Sicily. He studied in Alexandria, Egypt, where he was influenced by the works of other great mathematicians such as Euclid and Apollonius.

What he produced

Among his many achievements, Archimedes is credited with discovering the principles of buoyancy, which he used to determine the weight and volume of objects. The famous Archimedes principle, states that the volume of a solid can be determined by the amount of water it displaces when submerged.

Archimedes was asked by the king to determine if a golden crown was pure gold or if it had been mixed with other metals. While taking a bath, Archimedes noticed that the water level rose as he got in, and he realized that the volume of water displaced was equal to the volume of his body. He then realized that he could use this principle to determine the density of the crown and determine if it was pure gold. Excited by his discovery, Archimedes reportedly exclaimed "Eureka!" which means "I have found it!" in Greek. The word has since become synonymous with the feeling of discovery and to express excitement or triumph after making a breakthrough.

The constant number of PI has been around for several thousand years presumably first from Ancient Egypt, Persia and India, however, the closet calculation of Pi(π) was 3.16. Pi(π) is the ratio between a circle circumference and its diameter and is always the same no matter the size of the circle. Archimedes is credited with deriving an most accurate approximation of Pi(π) in the 3rd century BC. Archimedes using a method of hexagons was able to calculate that Pi(π) is between 3.1408 and 3.1429. The actual number is 3.14159.... and goes on endlessly which makes it an irrational number. Archimedes used the principles of logic in understanding buoyancy and displacement and in an approach to mathematical problems.

2024 why do we care?

Pi (π) is a mathematical constant that represents the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. It is approximately equal to 3.14159, but its decimal representation goes on infinitely without repeating. The history of pi is a long and fascinating one that spans thousands of years from Babylon, China and Egypt to Einstein.

As with any mathematical calculation, if you have two numbers, one can solve for a third number. For example, dividing the circumference of a circle by the diameter gives you 3.1414… or Pi(π). (C/ D =π) The equation can be rearranged to find the circumference of a circle by multiply Pi by the diameter. (C=π*D)

The development of computers has allowed mathematicians to calculate Pi(π) to billions of decimal places and providing greater accuracy to calculations. Today, Pi(π) has been calculated to over 62.8 trillion decimal places using various algorithms. It is used in everyday technology like GPS, and in scientists exploring galaxies and any measurements of electrostatic forces. Ever wonder how scientists can measure the size of celestial objects light years away? PI(π). Ever wonder how they measure something so small as electrons in an electric field? They are spheres, so the answer logically is Pi(π).

Albert Einstein needed Pi in order to formulate his theory of general relativity in describing the universe itself. His field equation for defining gravity and its force on objects (G=8(π)GT/C4) where Pi as a constant is the cornerstone of modern physics and crucial to understanding the universe.

And, of course, Albert Einstein was born on March 14th.

EUREKA!!!!!

And now you know...

Thanks, Dad, for the gift of curiosity!

Philosophy is the art of thinking, the building block of progress that shapes critical thinking across economics, ethics, religion, and science.

METAPHYSICS: Literally, the term metaphysics means ‘beyond the physical.’ Typically, this is the branch that most people think of when they picture philosophy. In metaphysics, the goal is to answer the what and how questions in life. Who are we, and what are time and space?

LOGIC: The study of reasoning. Much like metaphysics, understanding logic helps to understand and appreciate how we perceive the rest of our world. More than that, it provides a foundation for which to build and interpret arguments and analyses.

ETHICS: The study of morality, right and wrong, good and evil. Ethics tackles difficult conversations by adding weight to actions and decisions. Politics takes ethics to a larger scale, applying it to a group (or groups) of people. Political philosophers study political governments, laws, justice, authority, rights, liberty, ethics, and much more.

AESTHETICS: What is beautiful? Philosophers try to understand, qualify, and quantify what makes art what it is. Aesthetics also takes a deeper look at the artwork itself, trying to understand the meaning behind it, both art as a whole and art on an individual level. A question an aesthetics philosopher would seek to address is whether or not beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.

EPISTEMOLOGY: This is the study and understanding of knowledge. The main question is how do we know? We can question the limitations of logic, how comprehension works, and the ability (or perception) to be certain.