"Three is a magic number." Bob Dorough

Or, third time's the charm. Whichever.

This is the third installment of the Epistream and I've got to tell you, I'm pretty damn excited.


So, why does 3 have such a good rep? Let's start at the beginning.

Historians have come across similar patterns in the evolution of the number three in early counting systems. It is evident that amongst primitive societies, they have a clearly defined, language equivalent word to describe the quantities "one" and "two" but that they follow that with "many", or "more".

Often, three is the largest number written with as many lines as the number represents. Roman and Chinese numerals still use the number "III". This was how Brahmin Indians wrote it, then the Gupta made the three lines curved. The Nagari turned the lines clockwise and ended each line with a slight downward stroke. Eventually, these strokes connected to the line below and presto, it evolved into a character that looks pretty much like a 3.

Check it out...

There are loads of 3's out there. In fact, they're everywhere.

Your ear has 3 semicircular canals and 3 ossicles (the smallest bones in your body).

There are 3 distinct social groups among the Great Apes:

1. Orangutans (Solitary - little amount of both sexes)
2. Gorillas (Harems - great amount of one sex)
3. Common Chimps (Live in territories defended by related males - great amount of both sexes)

There are three types of galaxy:

1. ellipticals
2. spirals
   
3. irregulars

RNA and DNA each have a triplet codon system.

Three is the atomic number of Lithium, which is also the 33rd most abundant element on Earth.

Atoms consist of three constituents: protons, neutrons and electrons.

A proton consists of three quarks: two up quarks and one down quark. A neutron also consists of three quarks: two down quarks and one up quark.

Isaac Asimov developed the Three Laws of Robotics, which state:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

There are three basic rock formations: Igneous, Metamorphic and Sedimentary.

Freud discussed his three tier model of the psyche in the 1920 essay "Beyond the Pleasure Principle". This was elaborated upon in "The Ego and The Id" (1923), where he developed it as an alternative to his previous topographic schema (conscious, unconscious, pre-conscious).

3 Indian Gods: Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva (Maheshwara)

3 Greek gods: Zeus, Poseidon and Hades

3 Roman gods: Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto

3 forms of Odin in Eddic Mythology: Har, Jafnhar and Thridi

Budhism's The Triple Bodhi (ways to understand the end of birth)- Budhu, Pasebudhu, Mahaarahath

Three main Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam

The Holy Trinity of the Christian doctrine: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
This is also known as Tripartite division or the Godhead.

According to the Gospel of John, Jesus spread Christianity for 3 years.

Jesus supposedly rose from the dead on the third day after his death.

Jesus predicted that Peter would deny him three times.

Islam has devotional rites and certain formulas which are repeated three times and others thirty-three times.

A devout Muslim tries to make a pilgrimage to all three holy cities in Islam: Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem.

3 Musketeers

3 Blind Mice

3 Bears ( and Goldilocks)

3 Little Pigs


BUT...

There is no evidence to support goldfish having a three second memory.

It is generally accepted that there were three Wise Men that went to visit the baby Jesus. However, this is just a guess based on the number of gifts that they brought. There is nothing in the bible to support that there were 3 men, or even that they were men, or even that they were particularly wise. They were referred to as Magi and this tells us nothing about their number, wisdom or gender.

Going to Work is 3 times as dangerous as going to War. Statistically speaking.
About 2 million people die from work related accidents every year, as opposed to roughly 650,000 who die at War.

So, take care... and avoid that disgruntled guy in the mail room.