Today, March 14th or more appropriately 3/14 is celebrated as Pi Day. This is an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π (pi) because March 14, or 3/14, using the North American convention for writing dates, looks like 3.14, which is pi to two decimal places.

This day was first recognized 30 years ago in 1988 by physicist Larry Shaw. Most recently, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a non-binding resolution on March 12, 2009 recognizing March 14, as National Pi Day.

Pi (symbolized by Greek letter “π”) is used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159 by the formula π=C/2r (r=radius, d=diameter=2r) or the circumference of a circle with radius r is 2πr.

The Pi is an ancient puzzle which has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. As an irrational and transcendental number, it will continue infinitely without repetition or pattern. This  formula  has an  Indian connection as the Indian mathematician and astronomer Aryabhata in the 5th century gave the approximation of pi = 62832/20000 = 3.1416, which is even more accurate. Pi finds its usage in geometry, trigonometry, and various mathematical calculations.

Pi Day observers often celebrate this day with a slice of their favorite pie. A pie is a baked dessert dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that covers or completely contains a filling of various sweet ingredients in honor of the irrational number’s delicious sounding name.

Google's Doodle for Pi Day 2018 is a yummy-looking construct of ingredients that go into a pie. It has been created by award-winning pastry chef and creator of the Cronut® Dominique Ansel - representing the pi formula using the alphabets of GOOGLE. The Google letters in the doodle are constructed from off-cuts of pastry, butter, apple and orange peel, with the pie itself in place of the second letter G. The salted caramel apple pie is sure to be a hit with foodies, mathematicians and internet lovers alike.

Check Behind-the-scenes of 30th Anniversary of Pi Day Google Doodle Below!

The Pi day coincides with the birthday of German physicist Albert Einstein, who was born on 14 March 1879. Einstein is known for his mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc2 (E equals to mc Square).  He received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics. This makes the Pi day celebration double! So folks wish you a Happy Pi Day!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 14, 2018 05:38 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).