In a mind-boggling feat, a Sunbury Downs College student recited 667 digits of the number Pi to mark Pi Day this month.
International Pi Day is hosted on Friday, March 14 as the date matches the three first digits of the mathematical constant Pi, 3.14 – and is aimed at promoting and celebrating mathematics.
Marking the event, Sunbury Downs College hosted a Pi recital competition, where Year 11 student Joel placed first after sitting down to correctly recite 667 digits of the number in about 15 minutes.
While it is difficult to imagine how someone could remember this many consecutive numbers, Joel said that strategy is key.
“I memorised all the digits in groups of three and then I tried to connect as many of the groups as possible to each other,” he said.
Even more impressive is that Joel only began practising for this competition a week in advance after it was announced – but also competed in the college’s contest in a previous year and successfully remembered 333 digits.
He said that it was a “relief” when staff confirmed that he had correctly recited the digits, as he was worried he might have made a couple of mistakes.
College numeracy learning specialist Lauren Jackson said that staff “could not believe it” when Joel completed the recital.
“It had probably been a couple of years since we last did it, and he did 333 digits back then … to come back with even more just blew us all away really … we celebrated that in the staff room as well,” Ms Jackson said.
As part of Pi Day celebrations, the school also hosted a maths-related scavenger hunt and activities involving the investigation of circles and tessellations.
Oscar Parry
