Princeton Gears Up For Pi Day, Einstein's Birthday With Fun, Learning

PRINCETON, NJ — Are you ready for a slice of Pi Day? In Princeton, Pi Day is special as it also happens to be the birthday of Albert Einstein, one of the most famous residents of the Municipality.

On March 14, the Municipality will celebrate Pi Day and Einstein's birthday with a host of fun and educational events.

Princeton Pi Day is held in collaboration with the Princeton Tour Company, the Arts Council of Princeton/Paul Robeson Center for the Arts, Princeton Public Library, the University , Princeton Mercer Regional Chamber and local businesses.

The first Pi Day in Princeton was held in 2009, when resident Mimi Omiecinski called local organizations and businesses to put together the event. That year, Pi Day attracted 4,000 residents to Princeton.

“Over the years, crowds grew so large we had to move the events to various downtown locations,” Omiecinski said in a media statement.

This year’s Pi Day events are being held throughout downtown Princeton and Princeton Shopping Center.

The popular Einstein look-alike and Pi Recitation contests will be held on Saturday at the Arts Council of Princeton. There will be Pie Judging Experience at LiLLiPIES , you can take a Dinky train ride with Einstein and go on an Einstein self-guided walking tour.

Celebration are scheduled for two days – Saturday and Pi Day, which is March 14.

Here is a list of events:

Saturday

• Pie Flight Experience, 8 a.m. at LiLLiPIES at Princeton Shopping Center
• Youth Einstein Look-A-Like Contests, 10:30 a.m. at Arts Council of Princeton
• Learn to recite Pi from the first person to achieve 10,000 digits 11:30 a.m. at Arts Council of Princeton
• Pi Recitation Contest 12 p.m. at Arts Council of Princeton (Pi-Rade immediately follows)
• Einstein exhibition 12 p.m. at Historical Society of Princeton at Updike Farmstead (open until 4 p.m.)
• Princeton School Gardens Cooperative Fundraiser 1 p.m. at The Bent spoon and LilliPies
• Children’s author Dan Gutman appears via ZOOM at 1:30 p.m. to discuss his children’s book with Historical Society staff at Princeton Public Library
• Dinky Train Rides with Albert Einstein, 2 p.m., meet up is at the station Wawa
• Einstein Open Archives Event for families with crafts and STEM activities, 2:30 p.m. at Princeton Public Library 3rd Floor
• Einstein Self-Guided Walking Tour, 3:14 p.m. available to all attending the Einstein Look A Like or Pi Recitation Event.
• Adult Look-alike Contest and Pi Day Pub Crawl (adults Only) 5 p.m., begins at Yankee Doodle Tap Room

Tuesday, PI DAY

• PSGC Fundraiser, 1 p.m. at the bent spoon & LilliPies
• Guided Walking Tour of Albert Einstein’s famous homes and hangouts, 3:14 p.m. (registration currently full)
• Albert Einstein Memorial Lecture, 5 p.m. at Robertson Hall, Princeton University
• Adult Look-Alike Contest and Pi Day Pub Crawl, 7 p.m., starts at Winberie’s on Palmer Square
• Einstein Open Archives, 7:00 p.m., Princeton Public Library

For more information, click here.

Omiecinski said the celebration is meant to honor "Pi, mathematics, science, famous Princeton geniuses, local merchants and, of course, Einstein’s big day."

What Is Pi Day

Pi (Greek letter “π”) is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant — the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — which is approximately 3.14159. Pi Day gives math enthusiasts an opportunity to recite the infinite digits of Pi, talk to their friends about math, and eat lots of pie.

Larry Shaw of the San Francisco Exploratorium organized the first official “Pi Day” on March 14, 1988, to celebrate mathematics, Michael D. Gordin, Historian of Science at Princeton University, wrote in a blog for Princeton University Press.

In 2009, ahead of that year’s Pi Day, the United States Congress passed a resolution commemorating the festivities.

So what did Einstein think about his birthday coinciding with Pi Day?

"I think Pi Day caught people’s imagination because it happens to be Einstein’s birthday, but I haven’t seen any comments from him about it," Gordin said in an interview with Princeton University.

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