Following my post last week about the infinity of Pi / π, the record for reciting its infinite sequence of numbers from memory has been broken, by a Japanese mental health counsellor no less! According to the BBC News website:

"Akira Haraguchi, 59, managed to recite the number's first 83,431 decimal places, almost doubling the previous record held by another Japanese." - link

At the simplest level π is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, and at its most complex, it is an irrational number that has an apparently random decimal string of infinite length. By accessing its infinity are we somehow peeking under the hood of reality? π has cropped up in some amazing places, and caused some monumental historical debates to take place. Why is it so interesting?

So far, pi has been calculated to 1.24 trillion decimal places with the aid of a supercomputer and yet if one were to find the circumference of a circle the size of the known universe, accurate to within the radius of one proton, only 39 decimal places of Pi would be necessary! The infinite Pi pops up everywhere:

"Physicists have noted the ubiquity of pi in nature. Pi is obvious in the disks of the moon and the sun. The double helix of DNA revolves around pi. Pi hides in the rainbow, and sits in the pupil of the eye, and when a raindrop falls into water pi emerges in the spreading rings. Pi can be found in waves and ripples and spectra of all kinds, and therefore pi occurs in colours and music. Pi has lately turned up in superstrings." - link

The most astounding reference to Pi I have ever come across made the entirety of reality itself seem but a fleeting reference to that infamous infinite sequence. Here is an extract from Fermat's Enigma, by Simon Singh:

"Professor Hans-Henrik Stolum, an earth scientist at Cambridge University has calculated the ratio between the actual length of rivers from source to mouth and their direct length as the crow flies. Although the ratio varies from river to river, the average value is slightly greater than 3, that is to say that the actual length is roughly three times greater than the direct distance. In fact the ratio is approximately 3.14, which is close to the value of the number pi... The ratio of pi is most commonly found for rivers flowing across very gently sloping planes, such as those found in Brazil or the Siberian tundra."

Does this have something to do with the curvature of the Earth? It seems the only possible explanation. The infinite patterns of Pi roll in and out of reality without fanfare, the circle, the spiral, the infinite loops the universe unravels from its depths are all homages to Pi.

My personal belief is that reality is truly infinite, that is to say that however deep science can delve into the fabric of the universe there will only ever arise yet more levels of complexity. The material, perceived world around us gives way to the level of molecules, then atoms, electrons, quarks and at the forefront of modern theoretical science, the idea of Superstrings mentioned earlier. Pi is relevant, even necessary, to all these levels of complexity. Pi plots the circle, draws the spiral that has no beginning or end. The spiral is forever, why not reality itself?

For more on the fascinating world of Pi check out the links dotted around this post, there is also a superb 15 minute documentary you can listen to at the BBC Radio 4 website. Lastly, for the movie buffs amongst you, who can forget Darren Aronofsky's psychological masterpiece 'Pi' - watch it soon...

Categories: Japan, Pi, Mathematics, News, Links, Science, Reality, Physics, Philosophy, Books, Movies, String-Theory

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