--- description: March 14 is celebrated annually as Pi Day because the date resembles the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter 3.14. title: Why Pi Day 2016 Is Extra Special image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5bfe982d8d37ae8a/698889ff428a9eb070cd1afd/gettyimages-140891270.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Why Pi Day 2016 Is Special  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Mar 14, 2016 2:00 AM CUT  Greek letter Pi, lower case Greek letter Pi, lower caseGetty Images  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Mar 14, 2016 2:00 AM CUT March 14 (3/14) is celebrated annually as Pi Day because the date resembles the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter — 3.14159265359 or 3.14 for short. Archimedes of Syracuse (about 287–212 B.C.) is credited with doing the first calculation of Pi, while British mathematician William Jones came up with the Greek letter and symbol for the figure in 1706 — which was later popularized by Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler, beginning in 1737. Last year’s date — 3.14.2015 — was especially significant because it matched the first four digits after the decimal point. This year, some math lovers have already started calling 3.14.16 [“Rounded Pi Day,”](http://www.teachpi.org/uncategorized/3-14-16-is-upon-us-um-rounded-pi-day/ "undefined") rounding up those four digits. In honor of this math holiday, expect to see a lot of offers for $3.14 slices of pie and [pizzas](https://www.facebook.com/BlazePizza/photos/a.430001300347026.115993.355317937815363/1270600592953755/?type=3&theater "undefined"). The [admissions office at MIT](https://decisions.mit.edu/ "undefined") is famous for handing out decisions on that day, while the Exploratorium in San Francisco has always [thrown a party](http://www.exploratorium.edu/pi/ "undefined"). And because 3.14 is also Albert Einstein’s birthday, [a celebration](http://www.pidayprinceton.com/ "undefined") takes place in Princeton, N.J., in honor of both Pi Day and the mathematical genius, [who lived in the area.](https://www.princeton.edu/~oktour/virtualtour/korean/Hist01-Einstein.htm "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4250116/pi-day-2016/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4250116/pi-day-2016/"},"headline":"Why Pi Day 2016 Is Special","datePublished":"2016-03-14T02:00:17.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:30:46.647Z","description":"If you're looking for an excuse to pig out on pie or pie someone","url":"https://time.com/4250116/pi-day-2016/","keywords":["Newsfeed","society"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5bfe982d8d37ae8a/698889ff428a9eb070cd1afd/gettyimages-140891270.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. Waxman","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5bfe982d8d37ae8a/698889ff428a9eb070cd1afd/gettyimages-140891270.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"140891270","caption":"140891270","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4250116/pi-day-2016/","name":"Why Pi Day 2016 Is Special"}}]}] ```