Which mathematician discovered pi

Around BC, the Greek mathematician Archimedes drew polygons both around the outside and within the interior of circles. Measuring the perimeters of those gave upper and lower bounds of the range containing pi. He started with hexagons; by using polygons with more and more sides, he ultimately calculated three accurate digits of pi: 3. Independently, around AD , Chinese mathematician Liu Hui created another simple polygon-based iterative algorithm.

He proposed a very fast and efficient approximation method, which gave four accurate digits. This record held for another years. In , Austrian astronomer Christoph Grienberger arrived at 38 digits, which is the most accurate approximation manually achieved using polygonal algorithms. The first written description of an infinite series that could be used to compute pi was laid out in Sanskrit verse by Indian astronomer Nilakantha Somayaji around AD, the proof of which was presented around AD.

In , English mathematician and physicist Isaac Newton used infinite series to compute pi to 15 digits using calculus he and German mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz discovered. After that, the record kept being broken. It reached 71 digits in , digits in , and digits in —the best approximation achieved without the aid of a calculator or computer. P E Trier, Pi revisited, Bull. Additional Resources show. Zu Chongzhi. Van Ceulen. Sharp used Gregory 's result to get 71 correct digits.

Machin used an improvement to get digits and the following used his methods:. It was not until the 18th century — about two millennia after the significance of the number 3. In other words, the Greek letter used to represent the idea was not actually picked by the Ancient Greeks who discovered it.

Pi Day as holiday for math whizzes to eat pie and dress up in pi-themed hats and costumes originated much later, about 30 years ago, at the Exploratorium , a science museum in San Francisco, where physicist Larry Shaw organized such a celebration.

In , the U. Write to Olivia B. Waxman at olivia. By Olivia B. Support: support embibe. General: info embibe. Exams Engineering How was Pi Invented? History of Pi. So if you consider a circle with a 1 meter diameter as shown below and you open it up what do you find check below to know more: As you see you get the value of pi. For those of you who are religious the bible also has mentioned pi in its description format 1kings KJV verion The architects of the pyramids also in the BC knew about pi.

There were several others who were instrumental in discovering of Pi and its further usage.