For many people Monday, March 14th may have seemed like any other day; however, to the members of Mu Alpha Theta, the date stood out due to its relation to the mathematical constant “pi.” Pi is an infinite number that represents the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, starting with the digits 3.14, just like the date 3/14. In honor of this mathematical holiday, the society decided to plan fun pi-related activities for students to participate in during lunch waves to get them interested in the subject.
Gentiana Ukaj, Math Honors society advisor, explained the goals of the Mu Alpha Theta, “Our goal this year, and every year, is to get students excited about math. We want to celebrate students who do well in their math classes and hold an induction for them at the end of the year.”
Similar to years prior, there were circle drawing, hula hooping, pie-eating, and pi recitation competitions. There was also a raffle for a $25 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card.
“The only difference between this year and previous years was that we were able to do a pie-eating contest this year,” said Ukaj. “For the past few years, we weren’t able to do the pie-eating contest due to COVID.”
Using a pencil and paper, Ken Arnold drew the best circle with Isa Mejias and Maddy Harte close in second and third place. Emily Laput won the hula hooping contest by keeping the hoop up and in motion the longest. Not far behind was Yasmeen Galal in second place and Vanessa Krasnicki in third. Nate Swercewski and DJ Mulligan ate their apple pies the fastest and won the pie-eating contest. Ken Arnold won the pi recitation contest by listing off 544 digits. Maddy Harte came in second place for remembering 63 digits, and not far behind was Ervin Owuso in third with 59 digits. The last lucky winner was Branden Burns for the $25.00 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card.
Ukaj hopes that students learned more about pi and the Math Honors Society through participating in these activities.
“We celebrate Pi Day to help students understand what pi is and its significance in math,” said Ukaj. “We also hope that students learn about the Mu Alpha Theta and what we stand for.”
