世界节假日博览 第47期:圆周率日

 　　Pi Day is on March 14. This is the day when mathematicians² and geometry enthusiasts³ around the world get together and celebrate the mathematical constant of Pi. There are two good reasons to hold Pi Day on March 14. The first is that in the American date format⁴, it is 3/14 and Pi, to two decimal places, is 3.14. The other reason is that March 14 is Albert Einstein’s birthday, and he knew a thing or two about numbers. Pi Day started in 1988 at the San Francisco Exploratorium. The museum staff walked around the circular spaces in the building eating fruit pies. Cherry and apple pies have very little to do with Pi, unless you want to calculate the circumference⁵ of your fruity treat.

　　圆周率日会在每年的3月14日庆祝。这一天，全球的数学家和几何学爱好者会聚集在一起，庆祝数学常数“pi”。在这一天来庆祝该节日有两个原因。第一，在美国日期格式中，3月14日，pi小数点后两位正好是3.14。第二，3月14日也是爱因斯坦的诞辰，他对数字有着深入的了解。1988年，在旧金山科学博物馆举办了第一届圆周率日。博物馆工作人员在馆内作圆周运动，边做边吃水果派。樱桃派和苹果派与圆周率无关，除非你想算一算你水果大餐的周长。

　　Pi is a letter of the Greek alphabet. The symbol was first used in mathematical calculations in 1737 by the Swiss mathematician¹ Leonhard Euler. It is used for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Computers have calculated Pi to over one trillion digits⁶. It has countless⁷ numbers of digits. Perhaps more impressive is the feat⁸ of British autism sufferer Daniel Tammet. He holds the European record for reciting Pi from memory to 22,514 digits in just over five hours. He also suffers from a condition in which he sees numbers as colours. He says Pi is particularly beautiful. The worlds of science, engineering and mathematics would be lost without it. Celebrate today with your favourite pie!

　　pi是希腊字母。1737年，瑞士数学家莱昂哈德·欧拉首次将它运用于数学运算。pi代表着圆周到直径的比例。计算机算出pi圆周率小数点后有1万多亿。pi的数值是无穷无尽的。或许，最让人印象深刻的就是英国自闭症天才丹尼尔·塔梅。他能够在短短5个小时之内记忆小数点后2万2514个数字，而这也保持着欧洲记录。他把数字看成是颜色。他认为圆周率特别美丽。如果没有它，科学界、建筑界以及数学界将不复存在。吃着你喜欢的“派”来庆祝吧。

　　1.mathematical constant 数学常量

　　例句：Write a program that displays the value of the mathematical constant

　　编写一个程序用来显示数学常量的值

　　2.date format 日期格式

　　例句：When this is not specified⁹, the database server uses the date format specified in the DBDATE environment variable.

　　如果不指定这个值，则数据库服务器使用在 DBDATE 环境变量中指定的日期格式。

　　3.hold record 保持记录

　　例句：South Africa's Amateurs hold the record for wins, with three tournament triumphs to their name.

　　南非业余队3夺冠军，保持此项赛事的夺冠纪录。

　　4.suffer from 遭受

　　例句：How long have you been suffering from a headache?

　　你头痛有多久了?

1 mathematician   

n.数学家

参考例句：

• The man with his back to the camera is a mathematician.背对着照相机的人是位数学家。
• The mathematician analyzed his figures again.这位数学家再次分析研究了他的这些数字。

2 mathematicians   

数学家( mathematician的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Do you suppose our mathematicians are unequal to that? 你以为我们的数学家做不到这一点吗？ 来自英汉文学
• Mathematicians can solve problems with two variables. 数学家们可以用两个变数来解决问题。 来自哲学部分

3 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

4 format   

n.设计，版式；[计算机]格式，DOS命令:格式化(磁盘)，用于空盘或使用过的磁盘建立新空盘来存储数据；v.使格式化，设计，安排

参考例句：

• Please format this floppy disc.请将这张软盘格式化。
• The format of the figure is very tasteful.该图表的格式很雅致。

5 circumference   

n.圆周，周长，圆周线

参考例句：

• It's a mile round the circumference of the field.运动场周长一英里。
• The diameter and the circumference of a circle correlate.圆的直径与圆周有相互关系。

6 digits   

n.数字( digit的名词复数 )；手指，足趾

参考例句：

• The number 1000 contains four digits. 1000是四位数。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The number 410 contains three digits. 数字 410 中包括三个数目字。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

8 feat   

n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的

参考例句：

• Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
• He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。

9 specified   

adj.特定的

参考例句：

• The architect specified oak for the wood trim. 那位建筑师指定用橡木做木饰条。
• It is generated by some specified means. 这是由某些未加说明的方法产生的。