Zu Chongzhi (429-500) was an outstanding mathematician and astronomer in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Zu Chongzhi studied natural science all his life, mainly contributing to mathematics, astronomical calendar and mechanical manufacturing. On the basis of exploring the accurate method of pi pioneered by Liu Hui, he first calculated the "pi" to the seventh place after the decimal point, that is, between 3. 14 15926 and 3. 14 15927. His "ancestral rate" has made great contributions to mathematical research.
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Zu Chongzhi thinks that Liu Hui is a scholar who has made the greatest achievements in the study of pi during the hundreds of years from Qin and Han Dynasties to Wei and Jin Dynasties, but it has not reached an accurate level, so he makes further in-depth research in order to find a more accurate value.
Zu Chongzhi's research on pi has positive practical significance, and his research meets the needs of production practice at that time. He personally studied weights and measures and revised the ancient calculation of measuring volume with the latest pi results.
In ancient times, there was a measuring instrument called "kettle", which was generally one foot deep and cylindrical. Zu Chongzhi got an accurate value by his research on pi. He also recalculated the "law quantity" created by Liu Xin in Han Dynasty, and revised the value with "ancestral rate". Later, when making measuring instruments, people used Zu Chongzhi's "ancestral rate" value.
Baidu encyclopedia-Zu Zhichong