Happy π Day

Okay, well obviously it's not a pie. But I did try and recite Pi to the 25th decimal place while I was baking! Why do I care about Pi? Because math and science are the divine languages of the universe! The universe communicates to us through all kinds of beautiful and complicated equations. For instance: 

Fractal pattern, defined as following inherently unpredictable yet generally deterministic rules based on nonlinear iterative equations. In other words, one sees chaos when looking closely, yet order when looking from afar. A useful concept don't you think?

Honeycomb. This hexagonal structure provides the maximum amount of space while using the least amount of beeswax possible. Nice urban planning!

The golden ratio of Phi. Because I couldn't figure out a way to say it differently, I will quote the following from http://mumathinnature.blogspot.com: If we multiply 1 over Phi squared by the 360 degrees in a circle we will get the 137.5 degree of separation that most plant employ. This angle is continued from the last sprouted section as the plant continues to grow upward and in doing so creates a spiral type pattern. This precise pattern produces the lease amount of overlap with respect to the plants leaves and therefore is the most beneficial for the collection of sunlight by the plant. The human body also exemplifies the fascinating occurrence of Phi in the natural world, for example the bones in our fingers are related to each other by a ratio of Phi:

Many seed heads of flowers are examples of Fibonacci numbers (1 1 2 3 5 8 13...) where each number in the sequence is the sum of the previous number. This arrangement forms an "optimal packing" of the seeds, which each seed having equal maximum room from the others.

And here is an example of a Fibonacci spiral. It is composed of a series of quarter-circular arcs, whose radii steadily increase in accordance with the Fibonacci number sequence.

Consider taking some time out of your day to appreciate these special patterns and sequences. Notice the clouds, a spiderweb, the feathers of a bird, or raindrops on a window. What do you notice? You won't have to go any further than your own backyard!