Archimedes used the Pythagorean theorem to find the areas of two polygons. to 212 B.C.), according to the Exploratorium. One of the first calculations of pi was carried out by Greek mathematician Archimedes of Syracuse (287 B.C. There is even a biblical verse where it appears pi was approximated, according to a correspondence published in 1999 in the journal Nature:Īnd he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it about. In this document, the Egyptians calculated the area of a circle by a formula giving pi an approximate value of 3.1605. People in ancient Egypt were making similar discoveries, as evidenced by the Rhind papyrus of 1650 B.C. found pi to be 3.125, according to the Exploratorium in San Francisco. A tablet dating to somewhere between 1900 B.C. Pi has been known for nearly 4,000 years and was discovered by the ancient Babylonians. Pi (π) is the 16th letter of the Greek alphabet and is used to represent the widely known mathematical constant.
No matter how large or small a circle is, pi will always work out to be the same number. Conversely, the circumference of a circle is equal to pi times the diameter (c = πd). In other words, pi equals the circumference divided by the diameter (π = c/d). Some equations on the geometry of circles (Image credit: Barry Barnes via Shutterstock)īy definition, pi is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter.
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