π與花茶

進入2007年後，似乎在永無止盡的計畫寫作中，天氣也不好，生不出什麼遊記來，旅行的因子蠢蠢欲動。只能，先把家裡的一角，佈置成茶座，喝茶、讀詩、寫未來的研究計畫，想像混咖啡店的樂趣。

在“全食“超市，發現了Numi出品的開花茶。這些開花茶，在沖泡之前，都是綁成一小球。將這些小茶球放入玻璃茶壺，沖入熱水，小茶球便會慢慢展開，開出一朵小花。

這些開花茶的底子，有紅茶、綠茶與白茶，各會開出不同的花朵，既新奇又美麗。

既然說在讀詩，便在此分享最近讀到波蘭詩人Szymborska的一首詩“π“。不管是不是學科學的，大家都應該知道圓周率π是3.1415926......，一個沒有盡頭的神奇數字吧！很好奇，詩人對π的想像為何？

The admirable number pi:
three point one four one.
All the following digits are also initial,
five nine two because it never ends.
It can't be comprehended six five three five at a glance,
eight nine by calculation,
seven nine or imagination,
not even three two three eight by wit, that is, by comparison
four six to anything else
two six four three in the world.
The longest snake on earth calls it quits at about forty feet.
Likewise, snakes of myth and legend, though they may hold out a bit longer.
The pageant of digits comprising the number pi
doesn't stop at the page's edge.
It goes on across the table, through the air,
over a wall, a leaf, a bird's nest, clouds, straight into the sky,
through all the bottomless, bloated heavens.
Oh how brief - a mouse tail, a pigtail - is the tail of a comet!
How feeble the star's ray, bent by bumping up against space!
While here we have two three fifteen three hundred nineteen
my phone number your shirt size the year
nineteen hundred and seventy-three the sixth floor
the number of inhabitants sixty-five cents
hip measurement two fingers a charade, a code,
in which we find hail to thee, blithe spirit, bird thou never wert
alongside ladies and gentlemen, no cause for alarm,
as well as heaven and earth shall pass away,
but not the number pi, oh no, nothing doing,
it keeps right on with its rather remarkable five,
its uncommonly fine eight,
its far from final seven,
nudging, always nudging a sluggish eternity
to continue.

不風花雪月的科學家如我，連詩都挑這樣的來讀，並且讚賞不已。真的是首很可愛的詩不是嗎？如果順利，將來的研究生活其實也像數字π一樣，是永無止盡地在將研究成果寫成paper，再靠paper來寫研究計畫去跟國科會等機構要錢，不停的循環之中。想想，真是壓力大又累人的生活形態。所以，我想像Szymborska一般，她以詩人的身分來歌詠很科學的π，而我希望可以右手寫科學專業文章，左手寫部落格，來平衡我的生活。就如我以花茶來佐配研究計畫寫作一樣。

生活隨想上一篇“學術無價，我的論文值多少？“