Extraido del libro How Not to Program in C++ 111 Broken Programs and 3 Working Ones, or Why Does 2+2=5986. (Puede obtenerse aqui)
Pie de pagina del problema 28:
From a FORTRAN manual for Xerox computers:
The primary purpose of the DATA statement is to give names to constants; instead
of referring to π as 3.141592653589793 at every appearance, the variable PI can
be given that value with a DATA statement and used instead of the longer form of
the constant. This also simplifies modifying the program, should the value of π
change.
¡Saludos!
PD: Para el que se lo tome demasiado en serio, es obvio que el titulo del tema es amistoso.