Happy Pi Day

Happy Pi Day!

Last year we surprised my colleagues with "Pi Day". Having never celebrated it, and actually only hearing about it 6 months or so prior, it was new to me, and I presumed most of my department. We put out a notice to hold a block of time for a special occasion and let people start wondering and guessing. Then a day or two prior to 3.14, I started sending out "hints". On 3.14, I sent out a word problem having to do with pi, and the fun began.

Peanut, the overexcited dog, makes 40 laps around a stake and travels a total distance of 1 mile. If his bowl of water is 20 feet away from the stake, can he get a drink?*

The programmers shot back the answer right away. Done. The analysts wondered if he got his leash stuck and so his laps would be increasingly smaller, or perhaps there was a big rock in his path and he would run around it every time - but what if it wasn't exactly every time? hmmmm. And what if he decides to back track, or a scent takes him on a different axis. Mostly they decided that was too much work and figured it out like the programmers, but you could sure see the difference in approach.

This year we decided to have Pick a Pi(e) day. We posted a bunch of pie recipes - people tried new pies or brought favorites. I ordered pizza for the crew and we ate. You don't have to do a ton of stuff to have some fun in the workplace.

* from a math forum site