Comment by stouset
2 days ago
> What happens if we use Tao instead of Pi everywhere
Literally nothing other than mild convenience. It’s just 2pi.
2 days ago
> What happens if we use Tao instead of Pi everywhere
Literally nothing other than mild convenience. It’s just 2pi.
Call me a mathematical extremist but I think pi should equal 6.28... and tau, which looks like half of pi, should equal 3.14...
In 1897, the Indiana General Assembly attempted to legislate a new value for pi, proposing it be defined as 3.2, which was based on a flawed mathematical proof. This bill, known as the Indiana pi bill, never became law due to its incorrect assertions and the prior proof that squaring the circle is impossible: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana_pi_bill
You're forgetting that some equations have π/2 so on balance nothing will change. It will be the same number of symbols.
I don't think it's just the sheer number of symbols. It's also the fact that the symbol τ means "turn". So you can say "quarter-turn" instead of π/2.
I'm not sure why that point gets lost in these discussions. And personally, I think of the set of fundamental mathematical objects as having a unique and objective definition. So, I get weirdly bothered by the offset in the Gamma function.