Princeton’s Pi Day celebration has become a pre-spring tradition that helps the community put winter behind and look forward to a warmer, brighter time.
The brainchild of Princeton Tour Company’s Mimi Omiecinski, Princeton’s Pi Day began as a collaboration with the Princeton Public Library and the town’s merchants, who chipped in to get the celebration off to a good start.
Designed to “to honor Pi, mathematics, science, famous Princeton geniuses, local merchants and, of course, Einstein’s big day,” Pi Day in Princeton has taken on a life of its own.
The library and local merchants remain involved as the number of events has grown to stretch throughout the day. This year’s event kicked off at 7 a.m. and culminated that night with a concert at the Arts Council.
Of course it could not be more serendipitous that Albert Einstein, arguably the world’s greatest mathematician, was born on March 14, Pi Day. So it’s fitting to celebrate not only the mathematical contributions of pi, but also Einstein. The look alike contest is a classic every year.
And as is fitting for the irrational number that pi represents, there are plenty of events that find fun in an otherwise serious concept. From pie eating at McCaffrey’s to learning to make cocktails at the Peacock Inn, because Einstein once lived there, and on to mega chess play and the Nerd Herd Smart Phone Pub Crawl, it’s hard to imagine not being able to find something to keep everyone enjoying the day.
So, the organizers, the merchants and all those who had a hand in making March 14 such a great day deserve our thanks and gratitude for this gift to our community.
Now, if the mathematicians can find a way to keep it from snowing any more, we’ll be eternally grateful.
