neodarko Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Hi everyone, I once read a story that a man calculated the value of PI upto a substantial number of decimal places manually. It was later discovered (after his death) that after a certain number of places - the calculation was wrong. I sort of need to find the story. Google search didn't turn up anything. Any help is much appreciated. Thanks. [PS: sorry if this is the wrong forum - this seemed like the best fit] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michel123456 Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 (edited) William Shanks. "The pinnacle of hand computation of π was achieved in the nineteenth century. William Shanks was a mathematician who spent a great amount of time compiling logarithm tables, prime number tables, and the like; in the days before calculating machines, large tables of such values were essential for work in engineering or physics. He did try his hand at π, using Machins formula, and in 1873, after many years of labor, presented 707 digits of the number. But π can be a cruel and fickle muse. It was later discovered that Shanks had made a mistake, and that after the 527th digit, his calculations were wrong. Nevertheless, it was the best value of π available until the advent of high-speed digital computers." from here Edited December 20, 2010 by michel123456 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neodarko Posted December 20, 2010 Author Share Posted December 20, 2010 Hi, Thanks a lot for your reply. I really appreciate it. - Aron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michel123456 Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 You're welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monarch Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 William Shanks. "The pinnacle of hand computation of π was achieved in the nineteenth century. William Shanks was a mathematician who spent a great amount of time compiling logarithm tables, prime number tables, and the like; in the days before calculating machines, large tables of such values were essential for work in engineering or physics. He did try his hand at π, using Machin’s formula, and in 1873, after many years of labor, presented 707 digits of the number. But π can be a cruel and fickle muse. It was later discovered that Shanks had made a mistake, and that after the 527th digit, his calculations were wrong. Nevertheless, it was the best value of π available until the advent of high-speed digital computers." from here Nobody bothered to recalculate it for all those years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michel123456 Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 Nobody bothered to recalculate it for all those years? Continuously. Here is the last one to date. Pi is simultaneously a very interesting subject and a waste of time. IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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