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What is the Sum of the Digits of Pi?

Published in Pi and Mathematics 2 mins read

The sum of the digits of pi is infinite.

Understanding Pi and Its Digits

Pi (π) is an irrational number, a mathematical constant that represents the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. It is approximately equal to 3.14159, but its decimal representation goes on forever without repeating.

Why the Sum is Infinite

Because pi's digits never end, calculating their sum would require adding an infinite number of digits together.

  • Irrational Number: Pi's non-repeating, non-terminating decimal expansion is the key.
  • Infinite Digits: There are infinitely many digits in the decimal representation of pi.
  • Infinite Sum: Adding infinitely many digits together results in an infinite sum.

As stated in the reference: "The sum of all digits in pi is infinite. This is because pi is an irrational number, meaning its decimal representation goes on forever without repeating. Therefore, there's no way to calculate the sum of all its digits as it would be an infinite sum."

Example

Let's say we tried to add just the first few digits of pi:

3 + 1 + 4 + 1 + 5 + 9 = 23

However, this is just a tiny fraction of pi's digits. The sum would continue to increase without bound as we added more and more digits.

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