zomg, anything can be expressed as a continued fraction.
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Anonymous2006-05-08 2:42
This is such a retarded question. Pi is a number, that's all there is to it. A static, normal number. The only reason one might view it as "continuing" in some way is because of the way we write it. It's just as "infinite" as the number 5.
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Anonymous2006-05-08 3:34
>>47
Not true. Pi has infinite decimals in any base because it's an irrational number and as such it cannot be expressed as an integer or a periodic decimal in any base, lol.
zomg. everything can be written as a simple continued fraction. the continued fraction algorithm guarantees that for rationals you get a finite expansion. for irrationals you get infinite expansion. In the finite case expansions with the last term greater than 1 are unique. in the infinite case any two distinct continued fractions have different values. how do i know this? I am doing my 3rd year uni maths project on simple continued fractions.
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Anonymous2006-05-08 23:11
>>51
Then explain how Douglas Adams was able to write jokes in base 13, or the Babylonians to count in base 60. You can have a radix in terms of any integer.
Hence there is no base pi, although if there were π would equal 10.
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Anonymous2006-05-09 5:17 (sage)
>>51
GTFO you can arbitrarily choose any base you wish. Those you mentioned are used more frequently because they are convenient to use.
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Anonymous2006-05-09 10:17
>>53 Hence there is no base pi, although if there were π would equal 10.
That you are able to make such an observation should tell you that you can indeed extend the concept of bases to non-integers.
123 in base π would be 1*π^2+2*π^1+3*π^0, or π^2+2π+3. Though you run into problems with selecting allowed digits.
Sorry, I just realised someone else had already said that back around >>17.. And that it would be 10 base pi... But I argue it is possible to write in base pi
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Astantia2006-05-13 10:49
Base pi could not be rationally used to depict other numbers though, just instances of pi.
Amazingly enough, in most basic mathematics, we use something similar. Most equations dealing with pi will be written:
1pi, 2pi, pi^2 etc.
Beyond counting pi, it really has no uses, because the calculation to configure any number into the base would have to utilize a formula with 'pi' in it.
Base Pi... lol.
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Anonymous2006-05-16 15:38
"Yeah they do, as much as negative numbers exist. I mean shit, just cause you can't find infinity on the earth, just like you can't find negative pie, doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Do negative numbers exist then? I guess not..."
*shudders* 4chan is a scary place...
Arts students should stay out of /sci/.
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Anonymous2006-05-16 21:35
I know the last digit of pi. It's 3. Proove me wrong.