Pi Day. Understanding Pi. (.785)

At 9:26:53 AM/PM today the numbers will stack up to a representation of the factor Pi. While it is generally used to compute the areas of circles or the volumes of pipe, it has many other uses in space exploration, etc. This is partly a re-post from a few years ago; with some portions rewritten.

We all take Pi for granted. It’s loaded into our computers and calculators for us, and we use it in equations all the time without ever thinking of it beyond it formulaic utility. Some years ago, while working as an estimator of utilities, I found it necessary; or maybe desirable; to understand the exact meaning of Pi and how it worked in relation to the circle.

Having failed at the subject all through high school, and even before that, I had this “fear” of math brought on by my parent’s assertions that I was not able to understand the subject, coupled with a school system which was geared to teaching to the test, rather than teaching an understanding the subject at hand.Had they wanted to really engage my passion all they would have had to do was make the problems relevant to real life. 

For example, you are on a ship and headed in any given direction for 8 days at so many miles per hour. How far have you gone? That would have got me interested in math early on. And by high school, rather than teaching geometry and trigonometry to pass a test, using Nautical Astronomy as an example would have proven more effective at teaching not only both of those subjects, but given the student a true perspective of what mathematics is actually used for. Inadvertently, it would also have taught the subject; which was supposed to be the point.

What is Pi? 3.14159 is the most common answer. Then browse Wikipedia for what that means. Ask the “math” student in your family. The answers you get will all be concerned with the number rather than what it really means, or stands for. That was the purpose of charting it, as I did above, almost 30 years ago while estimating the volume of pipe necessary to hold a specific amount of water. I used a 6” pipe for the example, mostly because it was easily equated to decimal form, and I had a boatload of 6” pipe on hand. However, the resultant .785 factor will work with any size of circle for are, or pipe for volume.

I kept running into Pi while figuring things out, and then rechecking my figures. But, like most folks, I never really understood what it represented, apart from an arbitrary factor that worked. And I really wanted to know why it did. So, I did what Captain Ellison used to tell us at the Baltimore School of Navigation; “Draw it out!” Well, I did. And while putting some of my papers in order the other evening; I am actually doing that; I ran across this and decided to post it for posterity.

In short, while Pi represents the factor used to determine the area within a circle, by careful calculation; and drawing the problem out; it becomes apparent that Pi actually represents .785% of the area of any circle. Will this change the world as we know it? I hardly think so. But it is an example of the beauty and perfection of numbers. 

While I have rounded off the number to obtain this new factor, it should not pose any real problems for any calculations confined to construction, travel etc. Would I use it to build a spaceship and plan a trip to Mars? Hardly. But for the average needs of an estimator; or carpenter; this factor works out just fine.

I hope someone finds this useful and lets me know! Pi for now!

Note: Though I was able to find something about the factor .785 referenced on line; and one fellow even describes drawing a square with a circle inside the perimeters; I still find this explanation and diagram easier to follow.

"Beyond the Gates" with John Hurt and Hugh Dancy (2005)

Rwanda; and the Genocide which was allowed to persist there in the 1990’s; was the point at which I stopped believing in the United Nations as the cure for anything. In spite of my own experiences in supplying the so-called “Peacekeeping” forces in Beirut during the early 1980’s I had still held out hope that the UN might be able to do something useful in this world. Rwanda dashed all of that hope for me.

How was it possible for the massacre between Hutu and Tutsi to continue while well-armed UN Peacekeepers were in country facing enemies armed with machetes? The official policy was to observe; and shamefully that is just what they did.

As diplomats spoke over lunch and politicians made speeches, the Peacekeepers were left with no clear directive of what to do when the mass killings began. And, as the killings progressed and the bodies piled up, the officers and men of the Peacekeeping Forces did their job and so did nothing.

In this beautifully made movie which takes place in 1994, just after the Hutu President’s plane has been shot down, the Hutu’s and Tutsi’s come to war over allegations that the plane was shot down by the Tutsi’s. The Hutu’s are more numerous and have every advantage of being the governing tribe in Rwanda. The airplane crash serves as a pretext for the killings to begin.

The film centers around a local school run by a Priest named Father Christopher, played by John Hurt. He is assisted by Joe Connor, played by Hugh Dancy. They have forged a community with the Tutsi’s of the area and introduced them to western style education and Christianity. There are also some Hutu’s living at the school as employees, which makes you think that there is hope for peace between the two tribes; at least in the school itself.

Father Christopher and Joe are able to shelter 2,500 men, women and children at the school as the violence rages just outside the gate and the corpses pile up. The Belgian Peacekeepers assigned to protect them find themselves under siege and a deadly game of cat and mouse ensues; the only question being how long it will take for the Hutu’s to realize that the UN Peacekeepers are under orders not to shoot; under any circumstances.

As the situation spirals way out of control, Father Christopher begins to question whether he has done any good for the students in his charge. They recite the prayers, they eat the wafers of the sacrament; but do they really understand Christianity? But just as he is judging them he and Joe face the larger ethical question of what they should do as individuals. Do they stay and share the fate of their refugees? Or do they flee with the Peacekeepers, leaving them to the fate of the Hutu’s?

Directed brilliantly and performed with intensity, this film will make you look with even more disgust at the United Nations. Having seen the UN in action close hand in Lebanon, I can tell you that this film does nothing to stretch the truth.

Dick, Jane and Sally (1956)

This is where it all began for me; as far as reading goes. Dick and his two sisters, Jane and Sally, taught me how to read by allowing me to look into their little world. In a way they were the first “reality” type of show. They did the things we all do at the age of 5, at least back then. We waited for our Dads to come home from work, while our Moms took care of us. And the luckier kids had dogs, like Spot to play with.

Sue still has her 1^st grade reader, “The New We Look and See” by New Basic Readers. This is the 1956 edition. They say that this system of teaching young people is outdated and inefficient. Of course, I disagree. Upon the average, I read about 100 books per year, more if I were to count the ones which I begin but do not finish, and even more when you add in the number of books I take out from the library in order to read a specific portion, of which I have interest.

I am in favor of any program which teaches children to read; and even more so when it comes to any program urging young people to continue reading past the point of being functional. Dick, Jane and Sally were my first fictional characters; beyond the ones which my mom read to me at bedtime. These were characters to whom I could relate, and; more importantly; access on my own. They were a vehicle to make me want to read beyond the level in which I could merely pass the test.

I don’t know if they are still using these books anymore, but I hope so. If not, someone please tell me; whatever happened to Dick, Jane and Sally? Did they get old, like we did? Are they retired and living in Florida, like my Aunt Gloria? Or, have they gone the way of all things when they are considered obsolete? And if you see them, could you say hello for me? I kind of miss them.