tau is more fundamental than pi because it’s the period of functions satisfying f''-f. in other words it’s the very special distance it takes for these functions to get back to where they started.
once we're using tau instead of pi, the next step is to stop defining tau in terms of circles, but rather as this special distance. its association with circles can then be seen as a consequence of that.
Kevin Houston makes a very good case. Oddly enough I have wondered idly from time to time if there shouldn't be some way of encapsulating 2pi in one symbol. As Kevin says many formulae make a lot more sense, especially the integration with respect to r (radius) to get the area of a circle. And of course a sine wave goes from 1 to tau, not 1 to 2pi - surprised this wasn't mentioned as the sine function's so basic.
All hail the mighty tau! I haven't started using a lot of the formulas you discussed in the video for pi in my math class yet, but from my understanding, it looks better than pi. Im going to start using tau...
All the comments about his speech pattern are pretty silly. We're all different so people need to learn tolerance. It will benefit you to learn and accept his speech pattern. I'm sure if you speak in a "weird" manner you would hope people aren't rude.
I do support tau. Finally I find somebody thinking right like me.
btw you won't understand all the wonders of tau unless you use it in real problems. Seriously, the amount of confusing factors that cancel (specially in potential theory and signal processing) is definitely worthy.
Informative, thank you. But please speak differently. You speak really fast then stop, then really fast then pause. It makes it hard for non native english speakers to understand. Speak in a rhythm, please.
"A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom." -Thomas Paine
Very interesting video, I watched it to the end, but just barely.... I gotta be honest, your voice was kinda annoying to listen to. It's nothing personal, it's just that you speak really quickly and make awkward pauses... If you wanna get more views, I'd suggest someone else narrating the video.
@SpinachInquisition You've probably moved on - I should have replied sooner. Can you tell me where in the video there are awkward pauses? I really want to know the answer, I'm not being defensive. Thanks!
@DrKevinHouston I'm guessing he means how you pause very briefly every few words. My brother said it annoyed him too, but I don't think it's too big of a deal. It kind of gives your narration a distinct feel that I don't think is unpleasant at all. Plus you have some type of accent or something, I dunno. Sounded fine to me.
@DrKevinHouston Your intonation is stilted and seems frequently to say "easy-peasy". This is charming towards the beginning, but after a while repetition makes it uncomfortable to hear. See Ira Glass: youtu.be/BI23U7U2aUY#t=3m
"A mile is a unit of length, most commonly 5280 feet (1760 yards, or about 1609.3 metres). The mile of 5280 feet is sometimes called the statute mile or land mile to distinguish it from the nautical mile "
While not directly linked to mathematics, I was asking, how much sense does it make for people to continue to use the imperial system when there is a metric system that is more natural and much more simple: you've got 1km = 1000m instead of 1 mile = 5280
It is what the video brought to mind - replacing the previous way of doing things for the sake of added simplicity.
@TheoryXI Using eta does make some formulae look nicer but does it really bring deeper understanding? I can't see how the fundamental number to associate to a circle is the one defined using a quarter of a circle. He's joking anyway...
@DrKevinHouston oh... i didnt know he was joking... but it sounded really convincing. yea tau is the correct fundamental number we have been searching for.
@TheoryXI Well, I assume he was joking. Sometimes it's hard to tell anymore. I wish I could find the Simpson's clip where Homer gets hit by cannonballs at Hullabalooza. Two slacker teens have a conversation "Oh, here comes that cannonball guy. He's cool." "Are you being sarcastic, dude?" "I don't even know any more" is the dismayed reply.
and if you allow me some little advice, with all due respect of course!: get rid of the obvious talk , you know, the chapters on how to read this and that or how to study..., I mean, they're ok, but I think you should shorten them a bit and with the pages gained you should make some the real good chapters longer! :) like the chapter on techniques of proof... well that's just what a reader thinks, and I say it in good faith my friend, because I think your book's awesome! Greetings from México.
@nestorlovesguitar Well, the study chapters are quite short already - I could have written a whole book on how to study. The point is that many students don't realize that they should write maths so that someone else can understand it and some don't know that they should read maths with a pen and paper close by so they can check things and play with the maths. That's why I put it in.
Hey, I just read your book "How to think like a mathematician"... let me tell you: Fucking awesome work, man! I'm an undergraduate physicist with a mathematician's soul and it has helped me a lot and has helped me clarify many things. I'd never read something like it... it's like the perfect beginners' "tool-box" for making mathematics. Everything is meaningful: quotes, your own thoughts, the examples and exercises... everything! Congratulations, Kevin!
I told my college daughter about this and she was SHOCKED! She invented "Ti" (rhymes with Pi) to represent "two Pi" when she was in middle school. She thinks that she deserves some credit for this Tau thing. Or maybe in your quest you could make use of a powerful and thought-provoking slogan along the lines of: "So obvious that even an Honors English major thought of this in middle school!" Would look great on a mug or a mouse pad! I'd definitely get the t-shirt (tau-shirt?)
@drmarvin613 That is just great! We should have gone with Ti. Using tau we lost lots of puns. With Ti we have a new set. Mathematicians ti-ed up in knots, Ti-red of pi? etc, etc.
I do not see why you use such pointed and strong language. Why not convey your point with substance rather than heavy words?
Euler's identity is usually written as e^{i pi} + 1 = 0, in fact it is also written in this way to stress the use of the five unique numbers in mathematics: e, i, pi, 1, and 0. No one writes it the way you have written, e^{i pi} = -1. It appears you present it this way as a contrivance to motivate a cleanliness in positivity with the adoption of tau. Please be candid
@vaprsnake21 Sorry, didn't realize the language was strong. My intention was to go with kinda jokey (hence the sound effects, newspaper headline, etc).
Also, look at the comments below, people do use e^{i pi}=-1 and are very passionate about losing it, it wasn't just a contrivance.
I do also have to point out one of the benefits of Pi over Tau is when you talk about the oscillatory action of Sin. The roots of sin are more easily expressed in terms of Pi. It is simply n*pi instead of n*tau/2. Which appears a lot more frequently in partial differential equations than the roots of Cos which is more easily expressed in Tau.
I do have to say you sort of pick apart one of your own arguments. You say the lone pi is an accident of sorts in the area of a circle, but at the same time the 2pi in the formula for the normal distribution is an accident as well. The area under e^-(x^2) is sqrt(pi). The 2 comes from the fact the normal distribution has a 1/2 in the exponential. When you perform a "z" substitution the two is a consequence of the substitution. If it were a 1/3 it would be a 3pi.
I have few questions: is it possible to directly obtain the decimals of tau as 6,28318531...? Which are the changes in the methods for decimals of pi? And what about of irationality of tau? Another one could be ... what happens with all the simetries with pi, nou will be with tau/2 (in trigonometric formulas, functions, graphics, periods)...hmm.Thank you!
Euler's Formula is not the same as Euler's identity (you called the identity the formula). I believe that both your new identity, e^(i*tau)=1, and the classic identity, e^(i*pi)=-1, are not "better" than the original formula, e^(i*x)=cos(x) + i*sin(x). However, I also believe that your new identity is not as beautiful as the classic one. Considering the formula, you simply stated that cos(tau) + 0 is 1. Not very impressive compared to cos(pi) + i*sin(pi) = -1.
@bjo885 Hello! Thanks for your comment. I think that tau is better in this case because of the geometric interpretation of e^{ix} (where x is real). See Vi Hart's video for a good explanation. Her rather excellent video is probably listed on the right under suggestions.
pi, tau, who cares. Sure I will start using tau instead, which does look more natural. I won't learn 100 tau decimals though, which I did with pi. But that was just to beat dad anyway..
the problem with this, according to my bro, tau makes more sense, but how many people will know about this? I'm probably one of the few, if not only, people in my school that knows about this. It's like using e in a equation, and nobody knows what it stands for.
@M3aaaqHD e is approx. 2.718. It is also known as Euler's (a famous mathematician) constant. It is an irrational number, like pi. e is equal to the limit(as n goes to infinity) of (1+(n^-1))^n. Though e has many uses, one of them is that e is used to find rates of continuous compound interest. In addition the slope of a graph at x of y=e^x is e^x. I know that it is used in many other ways, but I don't know what they are.
Here is the thing. No matter how far this goes, you made a good job. It's really cool to publish such a paper with radical ideas. And the main reason to make me feel overwhelmed is that it's such an easy and simple idea to come up with.
@jiberish001 The coin is a valid example. Search online for "curves of constant width" or read Alex Bellos' book Alex's Adventures in Numberland (called Here's Looking at Euclid in USA).
The outer edge is rounded so that width (diameter) is constant and yes a true heptagon would not have constant diameter but then again I never said it did or even mention them in the video...
@DrKevinHouston I now see where I was confused. I thought you were using it as an example because of its inner heptagon shape. The rounded edges of the coin tricked me into thinking that it's edge was circular. I've never held a Pence before.
I don't think you should use diameter and width interchangeable when talking about curves of constant width. It will create some confusion in laymen.
@jiberish001 I think you're right about diameter and width! I honestly didn't think it would be a problem when I was writing the script so didn't pay enough attention to it.
If you can't make yourself known for the quality of your research, I guess posting a video called "Pi is wrong" would be the best way to achieve that goal.
As someone who just graduated with a degree in Math, I think it makes sense from the standpoint of simplifying the math. This isn't uncommon in Math and Science to define a new constant to avoid having to write several constants over and over again. At the same time I feel Pi would be one of the hardest constants to replace because of how integrated it is in society.Everyone has been using Pi forever. In the US we can't even get off the English system when metric for the most part is better.
Dr. Houston's argument for tau and area can be made far stronger (worth redoing the video) Area of a circle = (tau r-squared)/2 and Volume of a sphere = (tau r-cubed)/3. and area of a sphere is simply tau r-squared These are appealing formulas. Great work Dr. Houston is publicizing this!
This even make any sense people. It's good that you don't need to write 2pi but when you want to caculate with a number like pi, you'll have to write 1/2tau. It take even longer
I do think tau makes more sense over using pi. However my concern for tau is that it's already used for torque in physics, where finding trig & circular motion is pretty much a given. I had enough of a headache in physics last year without trying to keep torque and 2pi straight. =/
@DrKevinHouston Hmm... In this video they show lines only pointing to the outwards pointing places and the ones which are flat. Lets say those outward places are numbered as from 1 to 7 (7th is the 12 o'clock). What if you put line on 0.8? It looks like the diameter would be different.
@DrKevinHouston it doesnt have constant diameter everywhere, only at the points you have stated,(point to midpoint of the opposite side) if the diameter is constant, half the diameter is constant.
@enderbantoo Hmmm. I should perhaps have made that bit of the video clearer. Maybe I should have taken random points. I was originally going to do an animation to show the constant width but didn't have time. (Too many exams to mark, etc.)
A 50p coin has constant diameter. the radius changes as you go round it, but the radius on the other side also changes to compensate. As one increases the other decreases. Took me a minute to realize that too, pretty cool ^^
@DrKevinHouston i don`t get it all this tau thing, pi is pie, i`m the one who does` not like standart, but just to change something just becouse it would be changed is stupid. it`s not like t = 5 or anything, it`s still loong and iracional number
A circle is an ellipse and in a ellipse the sum of the distances from any point on the ellipse to the two foci is constant and equal to the major diameter, so using the diameter to define pi makes sense.
Tau makes sense now that I see it. Back in the day....I learned Trig using degrees not radians, that was about 35 yrs ago. I just missed the sliderule classes by 5 or 6 yrs. Math and science are always in flux as we gain more understanding and knowledge.
@helveticalouie There's a tau Facebook page? Whatever next! I hadn't noticed a tau Facebook page. I'll have to search for it next time I use Facebook.
Pi and Tau are irrational and thus insane, so get rational with Rational Trigonometry:
Search for "paths to knowledge rational trigonometry and a new foundation for math".
The entire notion of using irrational numbers for trig is what is wrong over the past thousands of years. Use Rational Trigonometry that does not use pi or tau!!!
@DrKevinHouston Nope, they are not needed for trigonometry at all Rational Trigonometry literally proves. Algebra is all you need for Rational Trig!
Of course if one is addicted to Irrational Trigonometry, tau might give you a hit for a high for a while but in the end it'll just be like a meth addict in providing an irrational experience... best to learn how to get off the drugs of pi and tau and keep rational!
@DrKevinHouston Life is interesting, there's always something new to learn, something new and revolutionary to discover... and Math Professor Norman J. Wildberger sure made a huge discovery with Rational Trigonometry, that's for sure. An algebraic way to do trig that keeps the answers rational. He also has a series of educational videos that explains it quite well too.
Search for "paths to knowledge rational trigonometry and a new foundation for math".
@DrKevinHouston By the way your video above explaining pi and tau and why tau is a more natural way to do irrational trig is quite well done. Excellent work! [;)]
For real values of angles & distances, "Rational Trigonometry" will still produce a lot of irrational numbers. Irrational numbers are a fact of mathematics. Get used to it. :P
@jursamaj Yes "irrational" numbers are a fact of mathematics. I was playing with the double meaning.
To quote N.J. Wildberger: "Rational trigonometry works over the rational numbers, and allows us a more elementary and logical approach to the basics of trigonometry." - watch?v=m3o2X7Xs6G4.
It's about SIMPLIFYING trigonometry. Part of that is the ability to keep RATIONAL more often. This leads to keeping FRACTIONS as the answers. Keep the fractions and you'll stay rational more often. [;)]
@jursamaj" Rational trigonometry makes some problems solvable with only addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, with fewer uses of other functions such as square roots, sine, and cosine (compared with classical trigonometry). Such algorithms execute more efficiently on most computers, for problems such as solving triangles." - Wikipedia
@jursamaj "Instead of distance and angle, rational trigonometry uses as its fundamental units quadrance (square of distance) and spread (square of sine of angle).[1] This choice of variables enables calculations to produce output results whose complexity matches that of the input data. For instance, in a typical trigonometry problem if rational numbers are assigned to all quadrances and spreads, then the calculated results will be rational numbers (or roots of rational numbers)." - Wikipedia
Indeed, the *calculated* results will be rational. And then when you want to actually *use* those numbers, you'll still have to convert them to irrational values. For instance, quadrance is mostly useless, you have to take the square root to get the distance. Likewise the spread is not an angle, so you must convert, *and* it can't distinguish acute from obtuse angles, for instance 45° & 135°.
@jursamaj You'll only have to convert the fractions to irrational values IFF they are irrational when divided. Let's you stay rational till the very end. [;)].
Anyway, read the BOOK. Buy it and READ it. I did. It's amazing.
So amazing that you'll be able to invent hyperspace travel! Ok, no you won't be able to do that with the book but heck, buy the book, read it and everything online, study, learn, teach others, oh, and watch ALL the 40 or more videos where he teaches about rational trig.
@jursamaj Actually, he claims that he's been working on rewriting all the fundamental equations of physics (and who knows the other sciences too) with it. I've not reached that level of skill with it yet. But heck, who knows what discoveries could be opened up rewriting Einstein, Newton, Maxwell, et. al.? Maybe something will slip out of the irrational cracks of classic trig covered over with it's pi and tau gunk? Maybe someone could find a way to make some headway in unification of the SM & QG?
@jursamaj "Rational trig makes it possible to do trig over any field ... In abstract algebra, a field is a commutative ring whose nonzero elements form a group under multiplication. As such it is an algebraic structure with notions of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, satisfying certain axioms. Commonly used fields are real numbers, complex numbers, and rational numbers, also finite fields, functions, various algebraic number, p-adic, " - Wikipedia
As for the fields, the only ones the vast majority of people need are real, complex, & rational. Regular trig already covers those. Indeed, it's not even clear trig is meaningful in those others.
@r5asnita Hi! Thanks for your input. I'm glad you agree that we are replacing 2 signs with one. It means we can use 2 strokes of the pen rather than 4 or 5 (depending on how you write 2 of course!).
Fortunately, I won't need to relearn any formulas. Surely that's part of the beauty of this!
Which parts don't make sense? (Please give the time details.)
@DrKevinHouston Well have you thought of the implications where you have PI? What if you would need the value of PI in the future? Will you spell it TAU/2 ? If so I think 2PI is easier to write/read and use in formulas. Maybe I am missing something, but I really do not think this is a useful change.
Here is an example: Circle surface: pi * r^2; in the new notation you will have: tau/2 * r^2
And for cones the new notation would be: tau/2 * r^2 + tau/2 * sqrt(r^2 + h^2)
@r5asnita No problem, just use pi if you need pi. The point is that a lot of the time you need tau.
Also, let's consider your example of area of circle tau/2 *r^2. Well, the formula for the area of a slice of circle is theta/2 r^2 where theta is the angle of the slice. So if you had been brought up with pi, the question arises: where did the 1/2 come from? If brought up with tau, this formula is natural and just obvious!
@r5asnita The point here is a lot of the time the implications of Pi is wrong. There is a useless step in using diameter which really doesn't define a circle as well. No matter how complicated (though it actually is easier most ofthe time) a formula gets it is imortant that constants used are natural and accurate.
Search for "paths to knowledge rational trigonometry and a new foundation for math" and learn the algebraic way of doing rational trig that has NO need for pi or tau at all. (Yes you can convert between the two systems as would practically be needed).
@Kardoxification Thanks for the suggestion. Laurent in fact suggested treating 2pi as one symbol back in about 1889 (according to Bob Palais' website).
Euler's formula isn't made better. What's so interesting about it is that when you learn it, you are like, "Holy crap, it's an exponent that results in a negative! I've never seen that before!" It is life changing. With tau it is like "Oh, it makes 1... I've known exponents can do that since pre-algebra." Not nearly as cool.
@seiferganon An interesting point! On the other hand using pi obscures what e^{i theta} means geometrically. If we have pi as the circle constant then e^{i times circle constant} gives us the point _half_ way round the circle. That's not natural. Isn't it better that e^{i times circle constant times theta} gives us the point that is theta times around the circle? That's what tau does for us.
How many times do mathematicians use π2, compared to student that use π in school?
Seeing as you can only measure the diameter and assuming T replaces π on calculators.
Having to manually enter 3.14 (or T÷2=) on the calculator lets say 50 times per school child taking an average of 2 seconds multiplied by the 1.8 billion school age children in the world, that a potential 5,703.9 years of wasted time this generation.
You can handle the kids after you destroyed 57 centuries of play time...
@andyp315 Hi! Thanks for your comments. I think we waste _more_ using pi. How many times do people tap in 2 and times and then pi into their calculator? With a tau button you save more time.
I would have assumed mathematicians calculate 2π less than the 90,000,000,000 time school students do, sheer number of people. Never had to use π x 2 in my life, passed int2 maths (Scotland)
I was thinking that using Tau was a stupid idea coming in (what's the big deal it is just 2pi), but leaving it I know think that Tau should be used instead. Bravo.
I sure wish we could go back in time and make pi be 2pi. I also wish we could go back in time and reverse the charges of electrons and protons.
The problem is that we don't have enough letters. Right now tau is used as a variable in equations. Often letters are used in textbooks for specific things. Like D for diameter or epsilon for something small. Tau is often used as a time constant. There are many books where tau is already used for something else. It is too late, we're screwed.
tau is more fundamental than pi because it’s the period of functions satisfying f''-f. in other words it’s the very special distance it takes for these functions to get back to where they started.
once we're using tau instead of pi, the next step is to stop defining tau in terms of circles, but rather as this special distance. its association with circles can then be seen as a consequence of that.
abrelosojo 1 month ago
Sorry, trig functions WERE mentioned but only very briefly.
hreader 1 month ago
Kevin Houston makes a very good case. Oddly enough I have wondered idly from time to time if there shouldn't be some way of encapsulating 2pi in one symbol. As Kevin says many formulae make a lot more sense, especially the integration with respect to r (radius) to get the area of a circle. And of course a sine wave goes from 1 to tau, not 1 to 2pi - surprised this wasn't mentioned as the sine function's so basic.
hreader 1 month ago
Oh, and I'm gonna start using tau in school.
guyboy625 2 months ago
All hail the mighty tau! I haven't started using a lot of the formulas you discussed in the video for pi in my math class yet, but from my understanding, it looks better than pi. Im going to start using tau...
xTipshedax 2 months ago
pi * 3(3) / 5.5 = 5.1407879786014798447570528090028
Uh....This was going to be an expression I just discovered. Way to turn me down...
ConspiracyChannel101 3 months ago
As we all know, pi is about 3.14. What is 3.14 mirrored: PIE.
StOnEr4803 3 months ago 2
@StOnEr4803 Spooky. And some people say that the universe doesn't have a sense of humour.
DrKevinHouston 3 months ago 3
@DrKevinHouston Maybe this is done on purpose by some crazy mathematician. (William Jones?) It could hardly be the universe's fault since:
1. It depends on choosing π over τ.
2. It depends on naming it π.
3. It depends on the decimal system.
4. It depends on Arabic numerals.
5. It depends on Latin characters.
6. It depends on ancient Greek.
7. It depends on the English word "pie", its spelling, and its pronunciation.
guyboy625 2 months ago
@DrKevinHouston I don´t get it
MrXasian 3 weeks ago
You should approach Apple about licencing your voice for Siri!!!
orrisachar 4 months ago
@orrisachar Thanks for the advice. They said they'd call me back.
DrKevinHouston 3 months ago
Comment removed
slowflowheat 4 months ago
thank for sharing this video
alisacutie 4 months ago
All the comments about his speech pattern are pretty silly. We're all different so people need to learn tolerance. It will benefit you to learn and accept his speech pattern. I'm sure if you speak in a "weird" manner you would hope people aren't rude.
1hotshon 4 months ago
Great explanation. The Pi Radians compared to quadrants has never made sense to me. For the mathematically challenged I think this is awesome!
1hotshon 4 months ago
duh 2pi= 1pie
leo20789 4 months ago
I do support tau. Finally I find somebody thinking right like me.
btw you won't understand all the wonders of tau unless you use it in real problems. Seriously, the amount of confusing factors that cancel (specially in potential theory and signal processing) is definitely worthy.
BatchDrake 5 months ago
You speak really weird.
id1337x 6 months ago
Informative, thank you. But please speak differently. You speak really fast then stop, then really fast then pause. It makes it hard for non native english speakers to understand. Speak in a rhythm, please.
zguitarmaster 6 months ago
Damn you, ... William Jones? And Euler! I guess we can't really blame Archimedes for π.
reformCopyright 6 months ago
2pi= tau.....why cant we change the value of pi into 2pi
UniversalHere 6 months ago
I love how the symbol pi even looks like the symbol tau with an extremity, and harder to write.
Not a coincidence, I bet.
SzlampStudios 6 months ago
"A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defense of custom." -Thomas Paine
matleyz 6 months ago 10
@matleyz It's not often that Thomas Paine is quoted on YouTube so thanks for the comment!
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago 2
Very interesting video, I watched it to the end, but just barely.... I gotta be honest, your voice was kinda annoying to listen to. It's nothing personal, it's just that you speak really quickly and make awkward pauses... If you wanna get more views, I'd suggest someone else narrating the video.
SpinachInquisition 6 months ago
@SpinachInquisition You've probably moved on - I should have replied sooner. Can you tell me where in the video there are awkward pauses? I really want to know the answer, I'm not being defensive. Thanks!
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago
@DrKevinHouston I'm guessing he means how you pause very briefly every few words. My brother said it annoyed him too, but I don't think it's too big of a deal. It kind of gives your narration a distinct feel that I don't think is unpleasant at all. Plus you have some type of accent or something, I dunno. Sounded fine to me.
therealcalhounninja 4 months ago
@therealcalhounninja Thanks. I do indeed have an accent. It's a lot weaker now. When I first moved to university no one could understand me...
DrKevinHouston 3 months ago
Comment removed
slowflowheat 4 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@DrKevinHouston Your intonation is stilted and seems frequently to say "easy-peasy". This is charming towards the beginning, but after a while repetition makes it uncomfortable to hear. See Ira Glass: youtu.be/BI23U7U2aUY#t=3m
By the way I loved the video.
slowflowheat 4 months ago
Ok, so how much sense does this make?
"A mile is a unit of length, most commonly 5280 feet (1760 yards, or about 1609.3 metres). The mile of 5280 feet is sometimes called the statute mile or land mile to distinguish it from the nautical mile "
When compared to 1km = 10^3m
JIJICA100 6 months ago
@JIJICA100 How much sense does this make? Not much. There seems to be a fragmentary sentence beginning with "When". Can you be a bit clearer? Thanks!
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago
@DrKevinHouston
While not directly linked to mathematics, I was asking, how much sense does it make for people to continue to use the imperial system when there is a metric system that is more natural and much more simple: you've got 1km = 1000m instead of 1 mile = 5280
It is what the video brought to mind - replacing the previous way of doing things for the sake of added simplicity.
JIJICA100 6 months ago
@JIJICA100 It makes almost no sense to use imperial. Your example shows that tradition is very hard to overturn.
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago
watch?v=1qpVdwizdvI .... another thought of change. both make good arguments. (this one is using eta pi/2 ) eta is really simple
TheoryXI 7 months ago
@TheoryXI Using eta does make some formulae look nicer but does it really bring deeper understanding? I can't see how the fundamental number to associate to a circle is the one defined using a quarter of a circle. He's joking anyway...
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago
@DrKevinHouston oh... i didnt know he was joking... but it sounded really convincing. yea tau is the correct fundamental number we have been searching for.
TheoryXI 6 months ago
@TheoryXI Well, I assume he was joking. Sometimes it's hard to tell anymore. I wish I could find the Simpson's clip where Homer gets hit by cannonballs at Hullabalooza. Two slacker teens have a conversation "Oh, here comes that cannonball guy. He's cool." "Are you being sarcastic, dude?" "I don't even know any more" is the dismayed reply.
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago
n3rd.
DUDELOVE5551SBRO 7 months ago
@DUDELOVE5551SBRO Are you calling me intelligent and knowledgeable? How dare you!
DrKevinHouston 6 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Pi will go bankrupt.
ZZSFAN 7 months ago
OR U CAN CALL IT A CIRCLE
how do i get from pie to pi on the internet anyway its crazy where the internet takes you
BOREDRESOLVER 7 months ago
and if you allow me some little advice, with all due respect of course!: get rid of the obvious talk , you know, the chapters on how to read this and that or how to study..., I mean, they're ok, but I think you should shorten them a bit and with the pages gained you should make some the real good chapters longer! :) like the chapter on techniques of proof... well that's just what a reader thinks, and I say it in good faith my friend, because I think your book's awesome! Greetings from México.
nestorlovesguitar 8 months ago
@nestorlovesguitar Well, the study chapters are quite short already - I could have written a whole book on how to study. The point is that many students don't realize that they should write maths so that someone else can understand it and some don't know that they should read maths with a pen and paper close by so they can check things and play with the maths. That's why I put it in.
Thanks anyway for your comments.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
Hey, I just read your book "How to think like a mathematician"... let me tell you: Fucking awesome work, man! I'm an undergraduate physicist with a mathematician's soul and it has helped me a lot and has helped me clarify many things. I'd never read something like it... it's like the perfect beginners' "tool-box" for making mathematics. Everything is meaningful: quotes, your own thoughts, the examples and exercises... everything! Congratulations, Kevin!
nestorlovesguitar 8 months ago
@nestorlovesguitar Thank you very much. It's good to hear that physicists also enjoy it.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
What matters is how you use a formula, not how you write it..
Cosmot3l 8 months ago
I told my college daughter about this and she was SHOCKED! She invented "Ti" (rhymes with Pi) to represent "two Pi" when she was in middle school. She thinks that she deserves some credit for this Tau thing. Or maybe in your quest you could make use of a powerful and thought-provoking slogan along the lines of: "So obvious that even an Honors English major thought of this in middle school!" Would look great on a mug or a mouse pad! I'd definitely get the t-shirt (tau-shirt?)
drmarvin613 8 months ago
@drmarvin613 That is just great! We should have gone with Ti. Using tau we lost lots of puns. With Ti we have a new set. Mathematicians ti-ed up in knots, Ti-red of pi? etc, etc.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
come on! this is.... just..
right..
radok 8 months ago
I do not see why you use such pointed and strong language. Why not convey your point with substance rather than heavy words?
Euler's identity is usually written as e^{i pi} + 1 = 0, in fact it is also written in this way to stress the use of the five unique numbers in mathematics: e, i, pi, 1, and 0. No one writes it the way you have written, e^{i pi} = -1. It appears you present it this way as a contrivance to motivate a cleanliness in positivity with the adoption of tau. Please be candid
vaprsnake21 8 months ago
@vaprsnake21 Sorry, didn't realize the language was strong. My intention was to go with kinda jokey (hence the sound effects, newspaper headline, etc).
Also, look at the comments below, people do use e^{i pi}=-1 and are very passionate about losing it, it wasn't just a contrivance.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
thanks for the video
shaunteaches 8 months ago
I support Tau. And totally not just because June 28th is my Birthday!
NRock2404 8 months ago
I do also have to point out one of the benefits of Pi over Tau is when you talk about the oscillatory action of Sin. The roots of sin are more easily expressed in terms of Pi. It is simply n*pi instead of n*tau/2. Which appears a lot more frequently in partial differential equations than the roots of Cos which is more easily expressed in Tau.
LoyalSol 8 months ago
I do have to say you sort of pick apart one of your own arguments. You say the lone pi is an accident of sorts in the area of a circle, but at the same time the 2pi in the formula for the normal distribution is an accident as well. The area under e^-(x^2) is sqrt(pi). The 2 comes from the fact the normal distribution has a 1/2 in the exponential. When you perform a "z" substitution the two is a consequence of the substitution. If it were a 1/3 it would be a 3pi.
LoyalSol 8 months ago
Comment removed
queridia 8 months ago
I have few questions: is it possible to directly obtain the decimals of tau as 6,28318531...? Which are the changes in the methods for decimals of pi? And what about of irationality of tau? Another one could be ... what happens with all the simetries with pi, nou will be with tau/2 (in trigonometric formulas, functions, graphics, periods)...hmm.Thank you!
aryanamedeea05 8 months ago
General Tau Chicken? Just like General Tau Theory, only completely different. And followed by a lovely slice of...er....cake.
drmarvin613 8 months ago
Euler's Formula is not the same as Euler's identity (you called the identity the formula). I believe that both your new identity, e^(i*tau)=1, and the classic identity, e^(i*pi)=-1, are not "better" than the original formula, e^(i*x)=cos(x) + i*sin(x). However, I also believe that your new identity is not as beautiful as the classic one. Considering the formula, you simply stated that cos(tau) + 0 is 1. Not very impressive compared to cos(pi) + i*sin(pi) = -1.
bjo885 8 months ago
@bjo885 Hello! Thanks for your comment. I think that tau is better in this case because of the geometric interpretation of e^{ix} (where x is real). See Vi Hart's video for a good explanation. Her rather excellent video is probably listed on the right under suggestions.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
that´s what evolution is all about : thousands of small steps
Siegkorn 8 months ago
Awesome. You are the winner. That is all.
shawnhamman 8 months ago
pi, tau, who cares. Sure I will start using tau instead, which does look more natural. I won't learn 100 tau decimals though, which I did with pi. But that was just to beat dad anyway..
a575981735977018 8 months ago
And WHEN I talk like THIS it gets really ANNOYING. ;) jk
fishcomputer33 8 months ago 4
@fishcomputer33 Sorry to hear you've got that problem. Works just fine for me - get yourself a voice coach, it'll be ok. ;)
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Haha, nice one. :p
fishcomputer33 8 months ago
@sameerpatel105
then you can have: e^(tau*i) + 0 =1 if you really want the zero xD
NoWayHaze 8 months ago
Slow down there Sir!
heavymetaldeath4life 8 months ago
This is all well and good, but tau will never surpass pi in general usage because it doesn't sound like a popular food product.
Which is actually kind of sad...
GHudston 8 months ago 26
@GHudston Tau-tellini?
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
Good, hail Tau
Kanashto 8 months ago
It is just a matter of substitutiion. You can switch to tau without altering the constant value of pi.
equationist 8 months ago
I don't want to doubt the tao of tau, but the why of pi seems wise
if you care enough for the area stuff you shouldn't need point fives
pgm3 8 months ago
@pgm3 Thanks for that. Made me chuckle!
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
the problem with this, according to my bro, tau makes more sense, but how many people will know about this? I'm probably one of the few, if not only, people in my school that knows about this. It's like using e in a equation, and nobody knows what it stands for.
firecracker999999 8 months ago
@firecracker999999 What does it stand for?
M3aaaqHD 8 months ago
@M3aaaqHD e is approx. 2.718. It is also known as Euler's (a famous mathematician) constant. It is an irrational number, like pi. e is equal to the limit(as n goes to infinity) of (1+(n^-1))^n. Though e has many uses, one of them is that e is used to find rates of continuous compound interest. In addition the slope of a graph at x of y=e^x is e^x. I know that it is used in many other ways, but I don't know what they are.
firecracker999999 8 months ago
@firecracker999999 Cannot compute.
M3aaaqHD 8 months ago
Here is the thing. No matter how far this goes, you made a good job. It's really cool to publish such a paper with radical ideas. And the main reason to make me feel overwhelmed is that it's such an easy and simple idea to come up with.
g1code 8 months ago
Oh god my brain crashed.
I wish they had this earlier. Looks easy.
nintendoatarikiller 8 months ago
You lost me at " Pie is wrong" ... :(
deadist 8 months ago
tau is beautiful!
lilac1397 8 months ago
all very good and convincing and true, but eulers identity is cooler in the form
e^i*pi + 1 = 0
e^i*tau - 1 = 0 doesnt do it for me neither does e^i*tau = 1
so its pi for me!
sameerpatel105 8 months ago
In Arabian Math, we still use π. As a matter fact, the area of a circle = π(d/2)^2 and it's perimeter = πd
The half is used as a mean to express the radius a circle in terms of 'd', as 'r' is less common.
I have found تاو (Tau) expressed in some Arabian text as 'T' but nonetheless it is quite rare
THECOMMENTER10000 8 months ago
Comment removed
jiberish001 8 months ago 2
@jiberish001 The coin is a valid example. Search online for "curves of constant width" or read Alex Bellos' book Alex's Adventures in Numberland (called Here's Looking at Euclid in USA).
The outer edge is rounded so that width (diameter) is constant and yes a true heptagon would not have constant diameter but then again I never said it did or even mention them in the video...
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston I now see where I was confused. I thought you were using it as an example because of its inner heptagon shape. The rounded edges of the coin tricked me into thinking that it's edge was circular. I've never held a Pence before.
I don't think you should use diameter and width interchangeable when talking about curves of constant width. It will create some confusion in laymen.
Thank you for solving my ignorance.
jiberish001 8 months ago
@jiberish001 I think you're right about diameter and width! I honestly didn't think it would be a problem when I was writing the script so didn't pay enough attention to it.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
If you can't make yourself known for the quality of your research, I guess posting a video called "Pi is wrong" would be the best way to achieve that goal.
DeignK 8 months ago
@DeignK Mum, is that you?
Actually, how does posting such a video get me known for the quality of my research?
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago 8
As someone who just graduated with a degree in Math, I think it makes sense from the standpoint of simplifying the math. This isn't uncommon in Math and Science to define a new constant to avoid having to write several constants over and over again. At the same time I feel Pi would be one of the hardest constants to replace because of how integrated it is in society.Everyone has been using Pi forever. In the US we can't even get off the English system when metric for the most part is better.
LoyalSol 8 months ago
Dr. Houston's argument for tau and area can be made far stronger (worth redoing the video) Area of a circle = (tau r-squared)/2 and Volume of a sphere = (tau r-cubed)/3. and area of a sphere is simply tau r-squared These are appealing formulas. Great work Dr. Houston is publicizing this!
dashendorf 8 months ago
omg that makes math so much easier!
snowwolfsabertooth 8 months ago
This even make any sense people. It's good that you don't need to write 2pi but when you want to caculate with a number like pi, you'll have to write 1/2tau. It take even longer
GreenDayPunk1212 8 months ago
I do think tau makes more sense over using pi. However my concern for tau is that it's already used for torque in physics, where finding trig & circular motion is pretty much a given. I had enough of a headache in physics last year without trying to keep torque and 2pi straight. =/
Auxiliatricks 8 months ago
At 1:53, the coin doesn't have a constant diameter.
Gytax0 8 months ago 5
@Gytax0 How does the diameter change? A 50p coin has constant diameter. I've not altered the picture.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Hmm... In this video they show lines only pointing to the outwards pointing places and the ones which are flat. Lets say those outward places are numbered as from 1 to 7 (7th is the 12 o'clock). What if you put line on 0.8? It looks like the diameter would be different.
Gytax0 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston it doesnt have constant diameter everywhere, only at the points you have stated,(point to midpoint of the opposite side) if the diameter is constant, half the diameter is constant.
enderbantoo 8 months ago
@enderbantoo Hmmm. I should perhaps have made that bit of the video clearer. Maybe I should have taken random points. I was originally going to do an animation to show the constant width but didn't have time. (Too many exams to mark, etc.)
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@Gytax0
A 50p coin has constant diameter. the radius changes as you go round it, but the radius on the other side also changes to compensate. As one increases the other decreases. Took me a minute to realize that too, pretty cool ^^
MrTheast 8 months ago
genial troll! congratz mate!
TheRealSwrobmeloz 8 months ago
LOL! you didn't know? your vid's been facebooked. that's how I got to see it actually :P
facebook.com/June28TauDay?sk=wall
helveticalouie 8 months ago
I'm a PI loyalist, long live PI!
ohmyfsm 8 months ago
c`mon now, you not lazy to makes this video, but lazy to write "2" or to divide by 2?
how hard it is to write 2?
MrPsichy 8 months ago
@MrPsichy Not too hard but harder than writing nothing - which is what we do with tau.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston i don`t get it all this tau thing, pi is pie, i`m the one who does` not like standart, but just to change something just becouse it would be changed is stupid. it`s not like t = 5 or anything, it`s still loong and iracional number
MrPsichy 8 months ago
OMG YES the euler formula!!
delameu 8 months ago
YES YES YES
delameu 8 months ago
A circle is an ellipse and in a ellipse the sum of the distances from any point on the ellipse to the two foci is constant and equal to the major diameter, so using the diameter to define pi makes sense.
mtcic 8 months ago
@mtcic Nice try! Maths statements are correct but interpretation is wrong. Tell me this: Where are the _two_ foci in the circle?
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston You could define the circle as an ellipse where the two foci are infinitely near points
mtcic 8 months ago
@mtcic And hence the radius gets counted twice...
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
Tau makes sense now that I see it. Back in the day....I learned Trig using degrees not radians, that was about 35 yrs ago. I just missed the sliderule classes by 5 or 6 yrs. Math and science are always in flux as we gain more understanding and knowledge.
pillager61 8 months ago
@pillager61 Hello! Thanks for dropping by. I second the comment about maths and science being in flux.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
did u upload this just for T facebook page?
helveticalouie 8 months ago
@helveticalouie There's a tau Facebook page? Whatever next! I hadn't noticed a tau Facebook page. I'll have to search for it next time I use Facebook.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
I missed Tau Day.
FenBolds 8 months ago
@FenBolds Put it in your diary for next year!
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Absolutely!
FenBolds 8 months ago
are there anymore wrong things we learnt at school in the past?oh yes!
ovidiu541 8 months ago
@ovidiu541 Don't get me started on "The angles in a triangle add up to 180 degrees".
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston O.O what's wrong with that???
snowwolfsabertooth 8 months ago
???
ushra3 8 months ago
@ushra3 !!!
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston lol ^^
Sinessecti 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Good 1.
ushra3 8 months ago
@Fujmeister But now we get two pies! That's got to be better.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
Pi and Tau are irrational and thus insane, so get rational with Rational Trigonometry:
Search for "paths to knowledge rational trigonometry and a new foundation for math".
The entire notion of using irrational numbers for trig is what is wrong over the past thousands of years. Use Rational Trigonometry that does not use pi or tau!!!
MountThor 8 months ago
@MountThor But I like pi and tau! Can I keep at least one of them?
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Nope, they are not needed for trigonometry at all Rational Trigonometry literally proves. Algebra is all you need for Rational Trig!
Of course if one is addicted to Irrational Trigonometry, tau might give you a hit for a high for a while but in the end it'll just be like a meth addict in providing an irrational experience... best to learn how to get off the drugs of pi and tau and keep rational!
MountThor 8 months ago
@MountThor Looks like fun. Maybe I'll get round to looking into it. But I have an exam paper to write, exam boards to attend...
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Life is interesting, there's always something new to learn, something new and revolutionary to discover... and Math Professor Norman J. Wildberger sure made a huge discovery with Rational Trigonometry, that's for sure. An algebraic way to do trig that keeps the answers rational. He also has a series of educational videos that explains it quite well too.
Search for "paths to knowledge rational trigonometry and a new foundation for math".
Enjoy learning! It's an eye opener! [;)]
MountThor 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston By the way your video above explaining pi and tau and why tau is a more natural way to do irrational trig is quite well done. Excellent work! [;)]
MountThor 8 months ago
@MountThor
For real values of angles & distances, "Rational Trigonometry" will still produce a lot of irrational numbers. Irrational numbers are a fact of mathematics. Get used to it. :P
jursamaj 8 months ago
@jursamaj Yes "irrational" numbers are a fact of mathematics. I was playing with the double meaning.
To quote N.J. Wildberger: "Rational trigonometry works over the rational numbers, and allows us a more elementary and logical approach to the basics of trigonometry." - watch?v=m3o2X7Xs6G4.
It's about SIMPLIFYING trigonometry. Part of that is the ability to keep RATIONAL more often. This leads to keeping FRACTIONS as the answers. Keep the fractions and you'll stay rational more often. [;)]
MountThor 8 months ago
@jursamaj" Rational trigonometry makes some problems solvable with only addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, with fewer uses of other functions such as square roots, sine, and cosine (compared with classical trigonometry). Such algorithms execute more efficiently on most computers, for problems such as solving triangles." - Wikipedia
MountThor 8 months ago
@jursamaj "Instead of distance and angle, rational trigonometry uses as its fundamental units quadrance (square of distance) and spread (square of sine of angle).[1] This choice of variables enables calculations to produce output results whose complexity matches that of the input data. For instance, in a typical trigonometry problem if rational numbers are assigned to all quadrances and spreads, then the calculated results will be rational numbers (or roots of rational numbers)." - Wikipedia
MountThor 8 months ago
@MountThor
Yes, I read the wiki entry too.
Indeed, the *calculated* results will be rational. And then when you want to actually *use* those numbers, you'll still have to convert them to irrational values. For instance, quadrance is mostly useless, you have to take the square root to get the distance. Likewise the spread is not an angle, so you must convert, *and* it can't distinguish acute from obtuse angles, for instance 45° & 135°.
jursamaj 8 months ago
@jursamaj You'll only have to convert the fractions to irrational values IFF they are irrational when divided. Let's you stay rational till the very end. [;)].
Anyway, read the BOOK. Buy it and READ it. I did. It's amazing.
So amazing that you'll be able to invent hyperspace travel! Ok, no you won't be able to do that with the book but heck, buy the book, read it and everything online, study, learn, teach others, oh, and watch ALL the 40 or more videos where he teaches about rational trig.
MountThor 8 months ago
@jursamaj Actually, he claims that he's been working on rewriting all the fundamental equations of physics (and who knows the other sciences too) with it. I've not reached that level of skill with it yet. But heck, who knows what discoveries could be opened up rewriting Einstein, Newton, Maxwell, et. al.? Maybe something will slip out of the irrational cracks of classic trig covered over with it's pi and tau gunk? Maybe someone could find a way to make some headway in unification of the SM & QG?
MountThor 8 months ago
@jursamaj "Rational trig makes it possible to do trig over any field ... In abstract algebra, a field is a commutative ring whose nonzero elements form a group under multiplication. As such it is an algebraic structure with notions of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, satisfying certain axioms. Commonly used fields are real numbers, complex numbers, and rational numbers, also finite fields, functions, various algebraic number, p-adic, " - Wikipedia
MountThor 8 months ago
@MountThor
As for the fields, the only ones the vast majority of people need are real, complex, & rational. Regular trig already covers those. Indeed, it's not even clear trig is meaningful in those others.
jursamaj 8 months ago
mathematicians have reached a point where it is hard to discover something and now want to reinvent the wheel.
2PI = TAU, actually nothing new is added just 2 signs are replaced with one sign.
Good luck relearning formulas and such.
One bored mathematician screws the whole world; this movie is a joke in the justifications and IT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE
r5asnita 8 months ago
@r5asnita Hi! Thanks for your input. I'm glad you agree that we are replacing 2 signs with one. It means we can use 2 strokes of the pen rather than 4 or 5 (depending on how you write 2 of course!).
Fortunately, I won't need to relearn any formulas. Surely that's part of the beauty of this!
Which parts don't make sense? (Please give the time details.)
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston Well have you thought of the implications where you have PI? What if you would need the value of PI in the future? Will you spell it TAU/2 ? If so I think 2PI is easier to write/read and use in formulas. Maybe I am missing something, but I really do not think this is a useful change.
Here is an example: Circle surface: pi * r^2; in the new notation you will have: tau/2 * r^2
And for cones the new notation would be: tau/2 * r^2 + tau/2 * sqrt(r^2 + h^2)
r5asnita 8 months ago
@r5asnita No problem, just use pi if you need pi. The point is that a lot of the time you need tau.
Also, let's consider your example of area of circle tau/2 *r^2. Well, the formula for the area of a slice of circle is theta/2 r^2 where theta is the angle of the slice. So if you had been brought up with pi, the question arises: where did the 1/2 come from? If brought up with tau, this formula is natural and just obvious!
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@r5asnita The point here is a lot of the time the implications of Pi is wrong. There is a useless step in using diameter which really doesn't define a circle as well. No matter how complicated (though it actually is easier most ofthe time) a formula gets it is imortant that constants used are natural and accurate.
KantutJuice 7 months ago
@r5asnita Not so, Rational Trigonometry is new.
Search for "paths to knowledge rational trigonometry and a new foundation for math" and learn the algebraic way of doing rational trig that has NO need for pi or tau at all. (Yes you can convert between the two systems as would practically be needed).
MountThor 8 months ago
can't we just use 2Pi in stead of Tau, or should we call it PoPo in stead?
Kardoxification 8 months ago
@Kardoxification Isn't that exactly the same as tau but with a sillier name ?
jpviegas 8 months ago
@jpviegas I think Kardoxification means that 2pi becomes one symbol in its own right. (Am I right Kardoxification?) Just like "et" became &.
I'm with you on the PoPo though. It is a bit silly.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@Kardoxification Isn't that exactly the same as tau but with a similar name ?
jpviegas 8 months ago
@Kardoxification Thanks for the suggestion. Laurent in fact suggested treating 2pi as one symbol back in about 1889 (according to Bob Palais' website).
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
Euler's formula isn't made better. What's so interesting about it is that when you learn it, you are like, "Holy crap, it's an exponent that results in a negative! I've never seen that before!" It is life changing. With tau it is like "Oh, it makes 1... I've known exponents can do that since pre-algebra." Not nearly as cool.
seiferganon 8 months ago
@seiferganon An interesting point! On the other hand using pi obscures what e^{i theta} means geometrically. If we have pi as the circle constant then e^{i times circle constant} gives us the point _half_ way round the circle. That's not natural. Isn't it better that e^{i times circle constant times theta} gives us the point that is theta times around the circle? That's what tau does for us.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
... and the world is coming to an end.
sosor3l 8 months ago
@sosor3l No, that was last month on 21 May.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
How many times do mathematicians use π2, compared to student that use π in school?
Seeing as you can only measure the diameter and assuming T replaces π on calculators.
Having to manually enter 3.14 (or T÷2=) on the calculator lets say 50 times per school child taking an average of 2 seconds multiplied by the 1.8 billion school age children in the world, that a potential 5,703.9 years of wasted time this generation.
You can handle the kids after you destroyed 57 centuries of play time...
andyp315 8 months ago
@andyp315 Hi! Thanks for your comments. I think we waste _more_ using pi. How many times do people tap in 2 and times and then pi into their calculator? With a tau button you save more time.
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
@DrKevinHouston
I would have assumed mathematicians calculate 2π less than the 90,000,000,000 time school students do, sheer number of people. Never had to use π x 2 in my life, passed int2 maths (Scotland)
andyp315 8 months ago
I was thinking that using Tau was a stupid idea coming in (what's the big deal it is just 2pi), but leaving it I know think that Tau should be used instead. Bravo.
MaloneBrosTV 8 months ago
@MaloneBrosTV Hello! Thanks for the comment. I thought it was crazy when I first heard it too!
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
This is similar to the "imperial vs metric" matter. None is wrong, one of them is just easier and more natural.
PanaMV 8 months ago
@PanaMV Indeed!
DrKevinHouston 8 months ago
I sure wish we could go back in time and make pi be 2pi. I also wish we could go back in time and reverse the charges of electrons and protons.
The problem is that we don't have enough letters. Right now tau is used as a variable in equations. Often letters are used in textbooks for specific things. Like D for diameter or epsilon for something small. Tau is often used as a time constant. There are many books where tau is already used for something else. It is too late, we're screwed.
WarmWeatherGuy 8 months ago 13