visualization
+ math
▲ 2026 π DAY | Art for the 5%. Digits of `\pi` hidden in plain view.
(
explore the art)
▲ 2026 π DAY | Art for the 5%. Digits of `\pi` hidden in plain view.
(
explore the art)
`\pi` Day 2018 Art Posters - Stitched city road maps from around the world
▲ 2026 π DAY | Art for the 5%.
▲ 2025 π DAY | TTCAGT: A sequence of digits.
▲ 2024 π DAY | Explore the garden of digits.
▲ 2023 π DAY | Repeated sequence
▲ 2022 π DAY | three one four: a number of digits
▲ 2021 π DAY | Good things grow for those who wait.' edition.
▲ 2020 π DAY | The piku.
▲ 2019 π DAY | Hundreds of digits, hundreds of languages and a special kids' edition.
▲ 2018 π DAY | Street maps to new destinations.
▲ 2017 π DAY | Imagine the sky in a new way.
▲ 2016 π APPROXIMATION DAY | What would happen if about right was right.
▲ 2016 π DAY | These digits really fall for each other.
▲ 2015 π DAY | A transcendental experience.
▲ 2014 π APPROXIMATION DAY | Spirals into roughness.
▲ 2014 π DAY | Hypnotizes you into looking.
▲ 2014 π DAY | Come into the fold.
▲ 2013 π DAY | Where it started.
▲ CIRCULAR π ART | And other distractions.
On March 14th celebrate `\pi` Day. Hug `\pi`—find a way to do it.
For those who favour `\tau=2\pi` will have to postpone celebrations until July 26th. That's what you get for thinking that `\pi` is wrong. I sympathize with this position and have `\tau` day art too!
If you're not into details, you may opt to party on July 22nd, which is `\pi` approximation day (`\pi` ≈ 22/7). It's 20% more accurate that the official `\pi` day!
Finally, if you believe that `\pi = 3`, you should read why `\pi` is not equal to 3.
And if you've got to sleep a moment on the road
I will steer for you
And if you want to work the street alone
I'll disappear for you
—Leonard Cohen (I'm Your Man)
This year's is the 30th anniversary of `\pi` day. The theme of the art is bridging the world and making friends. So myself I again team up with my long-time friend and collaborator Jake Lever. I worled with Jake on the snowflake catalogue, where we build a world of flakes.
And so, this year we also build a world. We start with all the roads in the world and stitch them together in brand new ways. And if you walk more than 1 km in this world, you'll likely to be transported somewhere completely different.
This year's `\pi` day song is Trance Groove: Paris. Why? Because it's worth to go to new places—real or imagined.
city strips
Amsterdam,Bangkok,Beijing,Berlin,Copenhagen,Edinburgh,Hong Kong,Johannesburg,Marrakesh and Melbourne
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 10 digits of `\pi`. City strips for Amsterdam, Bangkok, Beijing, Berlin, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Marrakesh and Melbourne.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
Moscow,Mumbai,Nairobi,New Delhi,Nice,Prague,Rome,Stockholm,Vancouver and Warsaw
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 10 digits of `\pi`. City strips for Moscow, Mumbai, Nairobi, New Delhi, Nice, Prague, Rome, Stockholm, Vancouver and Warsaw.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
Barcelona,Cairo,Dublin,Lisbon,Los Angeles,New York,Paris,San Francisco,Saint Petersburg and Vienna
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 10 digits of `\pi`. City strips for Barcelona, Cairo, Dublin, Lisbon, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Saint Petersburg and Vienna.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
Buenos Aires,Doha,Jakarta,Madrid,Mexico City,Osaka,Sao Paolo,Shanghai,Sydney and Toronto
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 10 digits of `\pi`. City strips for Buenos Aires, Doha, Jakarta, Madrid, Mexico City, Osaka, Sao Paolo, Shanghai, Sydney and Toronto.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
boonies, burbs and boutiques
buy artwork
▲ The boonies, burbs and boutiques of `\pi`. Progressively denser patches of streets from various cities smoothly progress from nowhere to somewhere.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
world patches
10 cities
Berlin,Cairo,Hong Kong,London,Moscow,New York,Paris,Rome,Sydney and Tokyo
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Berlin, Cairo, Hong Kong, London, Moscow, New York, Paris, Rome, Sydney and Tokyo.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Berlin, Cairo, Hong Kong, London, Moscow, New York, Paris, Rome, Sydney and Tokyo.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
Amsterdam,Copenhagen,Dublin,Istanbul,Lisbon,Madrid,Melbourne,Nice,Prague and San Francisco.
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Dublin, Istanbul, Lisbon, Madrid, Melbourne, Nice, Prague and San Francisco.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Dublin, Istanbul, Lisbon, Madrid, Melbourne, Nice, Prague and San Francisco.
(
BUY ARTWORK)
Amsterdam,Doha,Marrakesh,Mumbai,Nairobi,Rome,San Francisco,Seoul,Shanghai and Vancouver
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Amsterdam, Doha, Marrakesh, Mumbai, Nairobi, Rome, San Francisco, Seoul, Shanghai and Vancouver
(
BUY ARTWORK)
Dublin,Istanbul,Lisbon,Marrakesh,Osaka,Paris,Prague,Sydney,Vancouver and Vienna
buy artwork
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Dublin, Istanbul, Lisbon, Marrakesh, Osaka, Paris, Prague, Sydney, Vancouver and Vienna
(
BUY ARTWORK)
2 cities
Melbourne and Nice
Paris and Prague
Bangkok and Sao Paolo
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Bangkok and Sao Paolo.
(
zoom)
Berlin and Jakarta
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Berlin and Jakarta.
(
zoom)
Berlin and Mumbai
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Berlin and Mumbai.
(
zoom)
Cairo and Istanbul
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Cairo and Istanbul.
(
zoom)
Cairo and Jakarta
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Cairo and Jakarta.
(
zoom)
Doha and Lisbon
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Doha and Lisbon.
(
zoom)
Dublin and Istanbul
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Dublin and Istanbul.
(
zoom)
Dublin and Mumbai
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Dublin and Mumbai.
(
zoom)
Hong Kong and Jakarta
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Hong Kong and Jakarta.
(
zoom)
Istanbul and Paris
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Istanbul and Paris.
(
zoom)
Jakarta and San Francisco
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Jakarta and San Francisco.
(
zoom)
Johannesburg and Marrakesh
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Johannesburg and Marrakesh.
(
zoom)
Johannesburg and Nice
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Johannesburg and Nice.
(
zoom)
Lisbon and Seoul
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Lisbon and Seoul.
(
zoom)
Marrakesh and New Delhi
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Marrakesh and New Delhi.
(
zoom)
Marrakesh and Tokyo
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Marrakesh and Tokyo.
(
zoom)
Mumbai and Nairobi
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Mumbai and Nairobi.
(
zoom)
Mumbai and Vancouver
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Mumbai and Vancouver.
(
zoom)
Toronto and Vienna
▲ On the road with 36 digits of `\pi`. A world patch using Toronto and Vienna.
(
zoom)
news
+ thoughts
Fri 13-03-2026
Celebrate π Day (March 14th) and enjoy the art — but only if you're part of the 5%.
Go ahead, see what you can't see.
▲ 2026 π DAY | Art for the 5%. Shown in the style of Ishihara color test plates, the art is visible only to those with colour blindness.
(
details)
Wed 23-07-2025
What immortal hand or eye, could frame thy fearful symmetry? — William Blake, "The Tyger"
This month, we look at symmetric regression, which, unlike simple linear regression, it is reversible — remaining unaltered when the variables are swapped.
Simple linear regression can summarize the linear relationship between two variables `X` and `Y` — for example, when `Y` is considered the response (dependent) and `X` the predictor (independent) variable.
However, there are times when we are not interested (or able) to distinguish between dependent and independent variables — either because they have the same importance or the same role. This is where symmetric regression can help.
▲ Nature Methods Points of Significance column: Symmetric alternatives to the ordinary least squares regression. Geometry of quantities minimized in OLS and symmetric regression. OLS minimizes `\Sigma e_y^2` in `Y` ~ `X` and `\Sigma e_x^2` `X` ~ `Y`. Pythagorean regression minimizes AB (magenta). Geometric means regression (GMR) minimizes area of ABP (orange). Orthogonal regression (OR) minimizes HP (blue).
(
read)
Luca Greco, George Luta, Martin Krzywinski & Naomi Altman (2025) Points of significance: Symmetric alternatives to the ordinary least squares regression. Nat. Methods 22:1610–1612.
Wed 11-06-2025
Fuelled by philanthropy, findings into the workings of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have led to groundbreaking research and lifesaving innovations to care for families facing cancer.
This set of 100 one-of-a-kind prints explore the structure of these genes. Each artwork is unique — if you put them all together, you get the full sequence of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 proteins.
Mon 17-03-2025
The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. —Mr. Spock (Star Trek II)
This month, we explore a related and powerful technique to address bias: propensity score weighting (PSW), which applies weights to each subject instead of matching (or discarding) them.
▲ Nature Methods Points of Significance column: Propensity score weighting.
(
read)
Kurz, C.F., Krzywinski, M. & Altman, N. (2025) Points of significance: Propensity score weighting. Nat. Methods 22:638–640.
Thu 13-03-2025
Celebrate π Day (March 14th) and sequence digits like its 1999. Let's call some peaks.
▲ 2025 π DAY | TTCAGT: a sequence of digits. The digits of π are encoded into DNA sequence and visualized with Sanger sequencing.
(
details)