While my well-known 400 digit Pi stunt is well known among readers of the Café, I've decided I want to learn more digits of Pi.

I'm taking this opportunity to reassess my method of breaking Pi down.

What I want to do is link 10 digits of Pi to each peg number from 0-100. (That would be 1,010 digits of Pi!)

I'd like to ask a question to those familiar with mnemonic technique. What do you think would be a more effective way to link each group of 10 to its peg, as a list or as a phrase/sentence?

In other words, which, in your experience, would be a more effective method of linking:

The "List" approach: (Peg: 0) 1415926535 = SAW - "turret" - "albania" - "jello" - "mail"

...or...

The "Phrase" approach: (Peg: 0) 1415926535 = SAW-"tour taliban jail meal"

Scott--in your List approach, I'm not clear how you get from one word on your list to the next i.e. from turret to albania. I'm assuming you have to build a mental link between each word on the list. If so, that seems a lot more work than having one phrase like "tour taliban jail meal" that links with SAW.

Alternatively, another idea might be, rather than memorize 101 groups of ten, memorize three groups of 400. The first group of 400 is memorized as per your web site; the next group of 400 uses the same peg words for each group of four, but with some visual identifier. For example, perhaps all the peg words for digits 401-800 will be visualized in blue. So then, for example, the peg word for digits 417-420 will be "Blue Ale." Accordingly, the pegs for digits for 817-820 could be "Red Ale."

I don't know how practical this is, but it does have the advantage that you don't have to learn new peg words. You would then of course have to make a link between each peg word and group of four digits, a total of 120 links. It seems to be about the same work as either one of your initial plans, but perhaps more reliable.

In the end though everyone is so different when it comes to this stuff. How does Dr. Wilson do it?

Jack Shalom

Dr. Wilson does his in a similar manner to my 400 digit version. The big difference is that, instead of memorizing four digits at A1 through J10, he memorizes a 10 digit number with coordinates of A1-Z10 and AA1-ZZ10.

My Pi matrix is effectively 10x10x4 digits. Dr. Wilson's is 52x10x10 digits.

I'm redoing my method, and memorizing them by number because it will help in being able to instantly identifying any single number instantly. If someone asks what the 527th digit of Pi after the decimal point is, I know that I simply have to recall my 52nd peg, and look at the 7th digit.

Makes sense, what you're saying. I like your easy way to figure out the digit's place number. It eliminates the division, which could be a source of error under pressure. I realize also that I was wrong (duh!) about the number of links that would be required for my suggestion above--it would take 300 links, not 120 links.

Just wondering if there's a point of diminishing returns in terms of audience appreciation. Do you think there's a significant difference in an audience member's eyes in the memorization of 400 digits versus 1000 digits? (not being rhetorical, genuinely curious).

Of course, for those that want to do it for the sheer challenge of it, the more the merrier.

Jack Shalom

As far as show biz goes, I'll probably stick with just the 400 digits. That is, of course, more than plenty to be impressive onstage.

The increased number of digits I wish to learn is for another purpose entirely - I'm going for a local record, and 400 digits won't cut it.

Has it been proven that there are a an infinity of digits to pi? How random are the digits of pi?

In 1882, German mathematician F. Lindemann proved that pi is transcendental ,which means that it is not a root of any polynomial equation with rational
coefficients. Pi does not have any repeating pattern and as with all transcendental numbers the numbers of digits to express it are infinite.

Scott,

My preference would be to have 101 phrases. A well formed phrase can have its own rhythm/logic that helps afix it in memory, and can help unpack itself during recall.

My concern with the list method is that an unforseen weak link could leave one stranded with no thread to aid in the reconstruction.

Gregg Tobo

There was a guy who recently recited 22,500 digits of pi. He is a savant, though.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/03/1......storyrhs

Thanks for the link, H-Ho. That's an interesting news story.

It sounds like his epilepsy caused a form of synaesthesia. In most brains, each sense (taste, touch, smell, hearing and sight) stimulates a related part of the brain.

With a brain that has synaesthesia, one sense stimulates some or all of the other senses. A sound to a synaesthesiac won't just have a tone, but will also have a taste, a feel, a smell and/or a color. (Yes, this is what some people on LSD experience when they're saying they can "smell the music" or that they "know what blue sounds like", etc.)

Because they experience details so vividly, synaesthesiacs often develop excellent memories for things that most people find difficult to remember, like numbers, colors, etc. One of the most interesting cases of this nature is that of Solomon-Veniaminovich Shereshevsky (click for link to his story).

Hi everyone,

I missed this thread because I don't usually read this forum; sorry I'm late!

For memorizing pi, Scott is right, ten-digit blocks are the way to go if you want to quickly find the nth digit without complex calculations.

As far as audience impact, if you are using a matrix as I do and it stops before Z in the letters or ten in the numbers it looks (to me) like you are a wimp. Beyond that, I don't think that it matters much. When I perform this, I hand out a program with the matrix printed in a double-page spread in the middle of the program. It didn't look like a lot of digits to me, but I showed the program to a couple of friends while I was developing this. Their reactions:

"That makes me feel sick to my stomach."

"Holy s***!"

So I guess it's OK.

The only reason to go beyond this is to set records on the pi-world-ranking list. Please see:

http://www.pi-world-ranking-list.com/lists/nation/usa.html

The ranking list is a very slow process with a lot of paperwork, but that makes it possible to do well, because only those with fortitude will give it a shot.

I would like to set a record of better than 5,000 digits in 2005. The only rub is that your record is how far you get before you make a mistake. Please see:

http://www.memoryelixir.com/archive4.html#pi

If you want to set a record you need some help (a school, a charity, something). It is a pretty good publicity stunt. Besides on Pi Day (3/14) you can do it on Pi Approximation Day (7/22). To let you in on the joke, 22/7 is approximately pi.

Don't worry about the world record at 42,000 digits. A record is a record. Look at the press we got for four people setting official records at the same place on the same day (TV coverage, even).

Yours,

Paul

In aid of the memorization of Pi, I just came across a very serviceable "Pi Trainer" application at:

http://millibit.com/Pi/

You enter in digits of Pi; the application tallies your progress and stops when you make a mistake (typos are not tolerated!).

Its unforgiving nature makes it quite useful if you're interested in qualifying for the pi ranking lists that Dr. Wilson mentions above, as you must maintain a constant vigilance against any careless blunder.

Currently it can evaluate your performance up to 10,000 digits -- after that you'll need to find another trainer...

This "Windows only" application is fairly small, though you may need to install ".Net Framework 1.1" to support it (installation instructions and additional links at the site listed above).

Gregg Tobo

Well...All I can say is good luck. Sounds like quite a lot of work!
Owen