Threesology Research Journal
Three and Counting

A Study of Repeating 3s


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For those unfamiliar with the concept of "threes" let me offer some references which explore the phenomena from different perspectives:

  • The Significance of Three: A Common Theme Across All Religions, by Universal Enlightenment & Flourishing
    • What Does the Number 3 Signify in the Bible? by Hope Bolinger
    • Significance of Three The keyphrase "Three" holds significant meaning in various philosophical and cultural contexts. by Gabe Hiemstra
    • A triple deity is a deity with three apparent forms that function as a singular whole.
    • A triad, in a religious context, refers to a grouping of three gods, usually by importance or similar roles.
    • The Drifting Druid An affinity with the Celtic concept of three.
    • The Triple Goddess is a deity or deity archetype revered in many Neopagan religious and spiritual traditions.
    • Druidic Triads in Celtic Mythology by Mythology Worldwide
    • The Pagan Trinity by Paganeo
    • Number Three in Greek Mythology by Alilia Athena
    • Ancient Knowledge: (The Secret Importance Behind The Number 3) by Ancient Code Team
    • The Mystery Of The Number 3 And The Key To Existence by Jake Carter
    • The Number 3 Explained Why Is It Universally Powerful? by Sandra Ngo-Trong
      • (Note: I have left several comments at Ms. Ngo-Trong's youtube site, but all are removed. It is necessary for those interested in researching the "threes" phenomena to realize we represent a type of community undergoing a similar fledgling development that many Academic level research fields engaged in before claiming themselves an Association or Society; all of which eventually acquire an illustrative model of knowledge that can be taught in both public and private schools.)

In making a list (collection) of "three-patterned" ideas, you may prefer to focus on a single topic such as Astronomy/Cosmology, Physics, Biology, Sports, Fairy tales, History, etc... But if you make a collection from a multiple array of subjects as I have done, you can't help but come across the realization that the pattern comes with other patterns, such an an underlying "1-2-Many" or "3-to-1" themes. No less, you begin to see that your list, arranged chronologically in terms of our present human perception of life and its place in the universe over time and distance... exhibits a history of our cognitive development which can initially be framed and categorized as a 1- 2- 3 development. This development can be categorized both with a Cardinal system of 1-2-3... counting and an Ordinal 1st- 2nd- 3rd... arrangement, as well as mixtures thereof. By applying enumeration to the ideas found in multiple subjects, we can get a much broader appreciation of how human cognitive activity is adapting to different cultures, languages, and environmental pressures, whether or not we are academically trained or have trained ourselves to do so.

My approach is quite different from others interested in developmental cognition being surveyed over vast periods of time:

A list of threes in Nature

Looking at a list of threes, particularly when we focus on biological examples cast in the framework of Nature's overall development with respect to the Universe and Life's place within it... or alongside it, we can't help ourselves but to use the language of biology with words such as maturational, episodic, reversal, punctuation, intermittent, parallel, convergence, mutation, hybrid, etc... Hence, for one example, I frequently use the phrase "a 1- 2- 3 maturational development sequence"; more recently conveyed in the notion After Every Third, which gives the impression that Nature is counting and/or playing some sort of sport... such as baseball, since the patterns of baseball apparently reflect basic conceptualizations to be found in the superstitions of religion. It is an old idea though present day writers think they have stumbled on some insightful connection, even when reminded of the view that the ball games of ancient Middle America were associate to their ideas of Religion and the Cosmos, with deadly consequences. Indeed, if one were to look at any sport, including the sport of warfare, the basic themes undertaken reflect the same patterns we see in fundamental ideologies being aligned. Throughout history we find the same basic cognitive patterns used in Cosmology, Religion, Politics, Commerce, Science, Mythology, Astrology, Astronomy, Metaphysics, Faith/Fate, Conquest, Domination, Slavery/Domestics/Indentured Servitude, Philosophy, Incarceration/Imprisonment/Penitentiary (effecting conditions for a person's Penitence), etc., such as the Olympic games and their relationship to ancient cultural views involving gods and goddesses. A few examples will suffice:

  1. What baseball can teach us about faith by Susan Sparks
  2. What Similarities Exist Between Religion And Baseball?
  3. The Ball Game of Mesoamerica
  4. Exploring Mythology and the Ancient Olympics by Jon Giunta
  5. War and Religion: A Very Short Introduction by Jolyon Mitchell, Joshua Rey
  6. Penitence, Plantation and the Penitentiary: A Liberation Theology for Lockdown America by Nikia Robert, PhD

Looking further at the use of a sport analogy for developmental biology and cognition appears to supply a few readers with material for arguing against the "threes" theme, yet it affords us the opportunity to re-think how we compartmentalize information. For example, yes we can see teams changing hands when a third strike is achieved, but someone might want to argue that we have four downs in football and four quarters in basketball. Yet, what we can see is that the human mind collates distinctions of events into relative tripartitions which appear to reflect the place value notation we see in basic counting, where after every third value a comma is inserted as a point of demarcation between sets-of-three. For example:

Place Value Notation as an analogy to human cogntion

In those instances where we do not see a following group/activity of three and only see a one (single- monism?) or two (double- duality?) accompaniment, I am referencing a "1 more item" accompaniment as a 3 -to- 1 ratio. Others have used the phrase "3 + 1". Nonetheless, the same perception is being referenced. And even though it may be the common parlance to express the situation with the single term of "thousand", this reference restricts our ability for identifying the same underlying pattern in other subjects and over vast time periods where the constituent language has nothing to do with symbol making or vocalization. In other words, our human use of words, symbols, gestures, geometric illustrations, etc., may be helpful but this doesn't mean it doesn't get in the way for future research efforts. If we instead say the word "four" or "four numbers", this too creates moments of an overall generality which can keep us from discerning futhrer distinction, whether such distinctions are of further value or not. For example, many, if not most people will reference multiple Fairy tales as having a characteristic "three" element such as 3 bears, 3 pigs, 3 fiddlers, etc... Yet each of these examples also contain an auxiliary "one":

  • 3 bears (and) Goldilocks
  • 3 pigs (and) a wolf
  • 3 fiddlers (and) Old King cole

In some instances we can find a so-called "four" being expressed as a 3-in-1/ 3-as-1/ 3-from-1, (etc...) situation such as:

  • 3 colors in one street light
  • 3 persons in one godhead (Christian Trinity)
  • Buy 3 tires get 1 free
  • 3 fingers to hold one pen, pencil, art brush
  • 3 nesting dolls
  • 3 degrees/awards in 1 University (Bachelor's, Master's, PhD/ Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude, Summa Cum Laude)... for maintaining a grade average of 3.5 and above.
  • 3 gasoline to 1 diesel fuel types (U.S.)
  • North, South, East (and) West
  • 1st-2nd-3rd base (and) Home plate/base (3 distinguished by enumeration, one is not)

With respect to the 4 downs in Football, here we have a reference as to the distinction of the 3rd: (Importance of 3rd down)

This pivotal moment encapsulates the essence of strategic warfare on the gridiron. The importance of 3rd down in football is etched into the psyche of players, coaches, and fans alike. It is the juncture where offensive prowess meets defensive resilience, where inches can mean the difference between maintaining possession or surrendering it.

In other words, we need to re-think our counting methodology with respect to our perceptions and application in order to better understand what appears to be a recurring stream of conserved cognitive activity taking place over time as expressed in multiple subjects. By so doing we can recognize that humanity is stuck in instances of not being able to count above "two" as expressed (for example) by the persistence of dichotomies seen in Psychology and Mathematics... which necessarily represent a practiced impediment to those whose cognitive activity is developing towards a use of trichotomization. It is a word which helps us to realize that human cognition is not only adaptable, but can be developmentally assertive... in terms of being able to count higher in order to reach a "three" expression already achieved in the multiple "threes" expressions of particle physics and biology's DNA triplet code... as well as Nature's use of a third planet.

I am referencing a commonly repeated cognitive activity which goes along with the 1-2-3 developmental scenario and other human perceptions of Nature. Our human language and symbols can get in the way of perceiving basic patterns being observed across time, cultures, and subjects. All too often human ego gets in the way and some notion of greatness or supremacy is perpetrated under various guises of humility of reverence to some ideology, such as some calling Mathematics the Queen of Science, and religion attaching itself to some notion of a supreme god, whereby as an extension thereof, they also view themselves as a chosen people with an inviolable account called scripture or Science claiming a Natural law, or governments issuing laws for compliance, etc..., all of whom from time to time have viewed themselves as a type of expressed human excellence, if not epitome of achievement for which there will never be a better ... only copycats and wannabes (want-to-be). An identification and cataloging effort of cognitive enumerations is a valuable tool of both research and instruction once a person gets past all the cultural nonsense associated with numbers under different names and practices.

While some view humanity as the dominant species, this idea of "being dominant" inclines them to think in terms of humanity having reached some lofted state of development, where the ideas of being in transition and projecting an ideology of ever more superior loftedness are not common philosophical adjuncts to commercialize notions put forth by traditional ideas. In other words, the notion of a lofted state of existence frequently takes place in ideas such as Heaven, Nirvana, god, etc., quite frequently described with some notion where a "three" theme is present. In other words, though we of today can make a list of triads from ancient religions and associated mythologies; the use of such three-patterned ideas for cultures in the past represented illustrations of a Metaphysic... of a higher state of being. In other words, the triads were leading edge considerations during eras where a pervasive mindset of duality prevailed. While we of today can take the multiple examples of triads from ancient cultures, this is not to say that they made similar collections and took them for granted just as many of us today do.

The presence and orientation of a triadic ensemble of gods (sometimes mixed with animistic themes) was like a primitive exploring the concept of "3" instead of describing it as a plurality following the common practice of using a cognitive limit of "2". Because religion represented a type of "higher consciousness" or more profound philosophical consideration beyond the convention of dualistic thinking, the view of a triadic grouping was a manifested exploration and expression of a cognitive development similar to a common person who used basic arithmetic, being introduced to the concepts of geometry, trigonometry, algebra and the calculus. The mental orientation of most people apparently was either one... or "singularly" self-oriented or a practiced duality, even though those in the past like those of the present are oblivious to their day-to-day usage of basic (1-2/one-two) dualistic compartmentalizations of interest and activity.

However, Nature itself is involved with this "loftedness" by the use of three fundamental atomic particles (Neutrons- Protons- Electrons), 3 families of fundamental particles, the Earth being the 3rd planet, DNA and its triplet code, three Germ layers, etc... Yet, one must wonder if Nature is counting up or engaged in a count down, due to the incremental deterioration of the planetary system. If a three theme is an epitome of expression attained by Nature, then we are looking at a Conservation of Number as a survival mechanism.

Many people have ventured into an exploration of some "lofted three" theme, a few of which I list at the bottom of this page.

This idea of "loftedness" is sometimes referred to as an attempted transcendence... or higher consciousness, or Nirvana... which every religion, every sport ("the zone"), every business, every Eastern philosophy, etc., attempts to portray one or another product, exercise, ritual, ceremony, ideology, wardrobe, etc., as a means to achieve this... through imagination or combativeness such as we see in sports and warfare. All of us in our own way strive to go beyond some point... real or imagined and yet rarely take stock of the identifiable repetitions of cognitive activity aligned with Nature suggesting transitional states or stages of achievement (or retreat/digression) so as to identify the footing upon which humanity stands or thinks it stands. While you may consider someone's achievement (perhaps marked by an identifiable "three" reference) is commonplace and not worthy of your own considerations or involvement, to another they are a milestone. Multiple acts of attempted transcendence strive to leave behind or go beyond someone's measure of former achievement. The problem is, humanity as a whole has not learned how to devise a means to identify where it is as a species in order to realistically step beyond itself and not by means of an imagined place, position, or articulated rationalization so readily available in religion, Eastern philosophy, politics, sports, drugs, liquor, music, business, careers, family, gaming, industry, electronics, etc...

The use of enumeration allows us to attempt to be unbiased, even though the use of any symbolism created by humanity inherently comes with some level of bias due to how the symbolism was created. Nonetheless, enumeration permits us to see limits, applied variability, and repetition across multiple subjects for the entire history of humanity, whether or not some interpretations of behavior are based on educated guesstimation or not. Such a methodology of looking into the development of human cognitive activity over time and distance of usage, can also show us the state of the mind of the researcher... where "showing one's work" is a necessary requirement for anyone working with numbers.

In our efforts to piece reality together... to find some meaning or appreciable rationale, we are inclined to the use of enumeration. In others, a list of threes expresses a model of counting. For example, here is a sequence of ideas concerning the Universe and its origination:

  1. We have the concept of 1 Universe created by 1 god.
  2. We also have the view that there is a parallel Universe, which is the value of "2">
  3. We also consider the possibility of a multi-verse.

We also see a variation in the development of biology, of which the following are examples;

  1. Single Stranded RNA World came first
  2. Double stranded DNA World came second
  3. Triple conformation Protein World came third

(A singlet code for RNA/DNA is thought to have arisen first, followed by a doublet code, than the present triplet code.)

  1. A single "Monoploblastic" germ layer developed producing simple animal life forms such as the sponges.
  2. A double "Diploblastic" germ layer developed producing later animal life forms such as the Cnidaria and Ctenophora, (such as jellyfish).
  3. A triple "Trploblastic" germ layer developed producing the range of complex animal life forms from earth worms to humans.
  1. Adenosine (mono-1) phosphate [AMP] energy sources came first. [Also: antimicrobial peptides (AMPs)]
  2. Adenosine (di-2) phosphate [AMP] energy sources came second.
  3. Adenosine (tri-3) phosphate [ATP] arrived 3rd in biological history and became the primary source of energy for cellular processes.
Historical development of the 3 energy nucleotides
(A nucleotide is an organic compound made up of three subunits: a nucleobase, a five-carbon sugar, and a phosphate group. T)

(Basketball is thought by some to have begun its history with a 1-point shot, followed by a 2-point shot, and now we also have a 3-point shot.)

  • In 1891, the game was invented, and all points made by the player were counted as 1 point.
  • In 1893, free throws were introduced, and both free throws and field goals were counted as 1 point.
  • In 1896, field goals started counting as two points.
  • In 1967, the three-point shot was introduced by FIBA, and it was adopted by the NBA in 1977 and by the NCAA in 1980.

Information derived by way of a google search query: "history of the point system in basketball"

A look at the very few animals that have been domesticated out of thousands of existing animals, we find that Zooarchaeology has identified three classes of animal domesticates which also reveals a time line of human cognitive development. In this example we a changing perspective following that which may have at first invoked fear followed by the image of an available menu, followed by animal worship and imitation (although the reader may have their own idea of how the sequence came about):

  1. Pets (dogs, cats, ferrets, hamsters, etc.)
  2. Livestock (cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, etc.)
  3. Beasts of burden (horses, camels, donkeys, etc.)

As for the development of plants, we find that there are three based on the Water Use Efficiency involving carbon fixation:

Compairing C3, C4, and CAM plants
C3, C4 and CAM Plant Photosynthesis & Photorespiration

When surveying the types of legislative systems used by humans, (not including very primitive practices in the distant past and other methodologies which might be preferenced as a research model); we find there are three main types which typically perform a set of functions which also can be enumerated:

  1. Consultative: The legislature advises the ruler on matters of law and policy.
  2. Parliamentary: An elected legislature makes laws and serves as the executive branch of government.
  3. Congressional: Elected groups of legislators make law and share powers with other branches of government. typically perform a basic set of functions:
    • They make and revise laws.
    • They engage in administrative oversight.
    • They represent constituents to the government.

With respect to Cameralism- ('Cameralism' is a science of administration that emerged in the eighteenth century, focusing on state-governed military bureaucracies and the education of European bureaucrats.); we find three representations:

  1. Unicameralism- Having a single Legislative chamber (such as Nebraska in the U.S.)
  2. Bicameralism is the dominant model found in federal and quasi-federal government systems.
  3. Tricameralism- Tricameralism is the practice of having three legislative or parliamentary chambers. It is contrasted with unicameralism and bicameralism, which are both far more common. No national government is currently organized along tricameral lines.

When we look at the enumerations of worshipped gods, we have the following distinct categories. Interestingly, the adoption of a multiple god belief is thought to have occurred first among early peoples, with the concept of a single god coming last in the cognitive series. It should be further noted that beliefs in gods are regularly lumped into the same intellectual sandbox as mythology, cosmology, religion and witchcraft/Wiccanism. Also note that the varying quantitative cognitive categories will sometimes overlap features, thus indicating transitional stages of development:

  • Many, multiple gods... typically 4 or more in quantity; (Polytheism, List of Pantheons)
    • The Christian Trinity is sometimes viewed as a modernized variation of a Polytheistic view practiced in a labeled monotheism.
    • Tritheism is defined as a polytheistic non-trinitarian Christian conception of God in which the unity of the Trinity and, by extension, monotheism are denied.
  • 3 gods such as the multiple Triads in religion and mythology as well as Astrology. (It is not customary to find people discussing examples of Science as being cognitively similar, though underlying superstitions abound.)
  • 2 gods such as Mother/Father; List of Twins; Duotheism; Dualism in Cosmology
  • 1 god (Monotheism) (Dualistic god concepts abound and the concept of the Trinity is sometimes viewed as a polytheistic concept.)
Triune brain model

With respect to the three Monotheistic religions:

  • All were developed in desert environments, and might be quite different or non-existent if the environment was different, such as providing more resources.
  • Judaism preceded Christianity which Preceded Islam. (We can assume all of them preexisted as cults and perhaps as "anti-establishment" secret societies.))
  • Polytheism was the dominant religion of the ancient middle east (where monotheism eventually arose) and can be viewed as a national orientation.
  • Monotheism was a regional practice (particular region within a nation) that became dominant as the Jews migrated and used the idea as an attempted bonding mechanism to keep the people together. It was a personal (egotistical) identity. However, the worship of a single god was at first a secret practice so as not to arouse too strong of an opposition from a reigning authority that was Polytheistic.
  • Judaism has its beginning somewhere in the 3500 - 4000 BC (Although different sources give different time lines for specific events: Judaism Time Line)
  • The oldest/first Triad of gods is dated to the middle of the third millennium B.C., appearing in the ancient civilization of Sumer in southern Mesopotamia.
  • QUESTION: Did Judaism begin to adopt the usage of triadic referencences and compartmentalizations of ideas in "threes" around the same time as the idea of triads of gods came into vogue? Does this signal a developmental shift in human cognition?

Upon looking at the development of the brain, the process of development in terms of a basic model of overlapping ascension, was proposed by Paul Maclean as a Triune Brain Theory commonly thought to have proceed along a 3-step course of Reptilian- Limbic- Neocortex, or lower, middle and upper brain processes:

  1. Reptilian Brain (Basal Ganglia)
  2. Limbic Brain (Emotional Center)
  3. Neocortex (Rational Mind)

However, with respect to the ascension of developing cognitive processes, I decided to look a bit closer at functional attributes, again noting that overlapping integrations can take place. In this model of a triune brain I differentiated functional attributes which uncovered a distinct 1-2-3 associationst model involving enumeration:

  1. Reptilian brain is singularly oriented towards a self-survival "oneness".
  2. Right Hemisphere attributes show a clear orientation towards a usage of duality.
  3. Left Hemisphere attributes show a clear orientation towards a usage of triplicity.

Speaking in terms of Evolution subject to the forces of environmental pressures such as the ongoing incremental deteriorations of the planet and its system of partners, the human brain is appears to be moving along a course of having a greater reliance on left-hemisphere attributes and their basic Trichotomic patterning. See: Brain Hemisphere Attributes

For those of you who have ventured into a history of Mathematics, your encounter with humanity's early fledgling attempts at constructing a counting system, can generally be described in terms of three number words: "One- Two- Many", as a counting methodology related to a similarity of human cognitive activity. While different subjects use their own language and symbols, all of them represent rudimentary counting systems... with the third item sometimes portraying that which lays beyond the two as an all encompassing mystery.

Instead of the word "many", we can see an assortment of Labels and symbols such as plurality, multiplicity, much, more, heap, pile, bunch, infinity, etc., including amounts such as thousands, millions, billions, trillions, gazillions, etc... In other words, different time periods and different languages used their own linguistic/cognitive means for referencing the "Many".

With respect to the present day perspective of their being only one god, (a theme by the way perpetrated by the egotism of the early Jews who thought of themselves as being the "chosen people" destined for a "chosen place") which was not the ancient standard among ancient peoples; we can find the usage of ideas involving twins, triples and multiplicities that are sometimes called pantheons. And even though in your private researching you may come across someone speaking of ancient cultures which has a specific enumeration, the point is that the human mind was indulging in enumeration. However, my research into the threes phenomena has uncovered a very serious precedent about the current state not only of Mathematics, but Psychology and Philosophy as well.

A look at the history of mathematics from a perspective of "threes" that I call 'Trichotomization', we can see a troubling cognitive pattern. The sequence goes something like this:

Mathematics as we know it today arose from a (generally speaking) "1-2-Many" counting sequence based on pairing and associated with commerce (e.g. bartering/trading). This is not to say that the development was sequentially smooth without interruption or regression, nor that it didn't occur in multiple places with different stages of accomplishment.

The usage of a "pairing" method for the development of Mathematics has been expanded and can now be seen as a list of dualities, quite reminiscent of the cognitive exercise explored by the ancient Chinese called the Yin/Yang philosophy. Take a look at some sample lists:

Lists of dualities comparison

If your are a conventional thinker absorbed in the present cultural orientations of past ideas as an Ideal representation of truth, this is due to the fact you are not familiar with the concept of Trichotomization in reference to a developmental state of human human cognition involving consciousness. From this (List of Dualities) page of the wikipedia, we find more of the same dualistic referencing. However, I became aware of it by venturing to this page: A List of Dualities.

Whereas the ancient Chinese attempted to move into a "Trinary" model of thinking with respect to the Triads in the I Ching (book of changes) involving metaphysics and spirituality, Western civilization pursued a different route that was initiated oriented towards commerce and geometry, which some might identify with practicality. However, what we see today is that at the other side of "pure" mathematics is an inclination to indulge in the presumed art of speculation, supposition, and otherwise metaphysical considerations of perception. This is why Mathematics is often described as an art or even a type of music with its own biology. Of course, different analogies can be used to describe the present state of the human mind in its desire to pursue greater truths and provide illustrative proofs called equations.

Whereas the ancient Chinese attempt to develop a Trinary model for understanding reality, its efforts fell short from being able to provide illustrative proofs. However, Western devised Mathematics has barely begun to explore a tripartite model of conceptualization because it fails to recognize its dependency on dualities. No less, the attempt by the ancient Chinese failed because they also used a platform of dichotomy to construct their house of triads on. When we look at the so-called triads exhibiting a 3-part configuration of two sets of different line quantities, most people fail to recognize that the use of a single line represents the male "penis" principle and the two-line configuration represents the female "vagina" principle. (The use of the word "principle" was an older means of being scholarly and not give the impression of engaging in pornographic language, due to the sensibilities of former eras.)

But let me be fair, Western Mathematics has attempted on some occasions to develop a trinary orientation such as is exhibited by Trigonometry (the 3-poart Pythagorean theorem), set theory, and in particular the use of a basic 3-part Boolean (AND- OR- NOT) logic applied to... yet another system of dualities called the zeros and ones of computer language based on the on/off characteristics of an electrical circuit. In fact, computers are much like a collection of fast moving on and off switches.

The attempted development of a Quantum computer is based on the case for using a ternary/trinary logic. In other words, they require a counting system which does not rely heavily on a foundation of dichotomization. What researchers in this field are doing without realizing it, is trying to establish a new model of Mathematics with its own unique history so that it does not find itself facing a cul de sac of inquiries that present Mathematicians are in. Whereas the old Yin/Yang perspective of reality was not enumerated in terms of associating it with commercial interests, and that the later attempt to exceed this formula of thinking to reach a "3" was genuinely original, it has fallen short because its intended application did not provide illustrated proofs. In other words, if we take cues and clues from both the Chinese system of non-commercialized dichotomies and the Western system of commercialized dichotomies, we are left with a new path of consideration.

To do so, we need to adopt a new methodology for perceiving reality. Dogmatism from either side of this equation gets us into a stalemate. This is where the study of threes comes in. It provides a model of thinking about the reality of cognitive behavior such as the application of a counting theme to perceptions developed in all subjects. By so doing, it will exhibit our limitations and the variables we frequently dismiss. The resulting equation will be... an acceptance of the need for a counting system based on a trinary acknowledgment of the binary dependency which present mathematics has and instead use a multiplicity of three-patterned cognitive ideas to formulate a counting system based on a 3-part sharing associated at a distance from its application solely or mostly with no commercial interests, even though others will apply it to such an end.

And along with the problem of dichotomies in Mathematics, we find that Psychology... derived from various philosophies, also has a history of dependency on patterns-of-two, often characterized with the general notion of a Mind/Body problem.

Examples of dualities found in Psychology

The problem with Psychology's Persistent Dichotomies is that it has no provision for the idea of "Trichotomization". The rationale is put as thus:

The mind connected to the brain derived by way of adaptation called Evolution, clearly exhibits a history of expansion towards complexity. Hence, past obsessions with dichotomies are necessarily geared for eventually being supplanted by trichotomies though the early stages of development may well involve incremental, intermittent, or punctuated sequences that can happen to individuals and/or groups.

For example, to state the issue more plainly, let us take the hypothetical situation in which we have a child who is undergoing a developmental shift in cognition towards trichotomization, who is interpreted as having a problem "adjusting to reality"... which is a reality dominated by those in their social venue who have adopted an orientation towards a reliance on various dualities. And so the child is sent to a specialist (intelligent family member, counselor, theologian, psychologist...) who is also steeped deeply into the use of dichotomies, even though they too may have found a happy medium of applying their "threes" experiences into a model of acceptance which provide for some measure of indulgence... however, with the underlying intent of directing the child on a course for being oriented towards the usage of dichotomies, whether or not anyone involved is at all aware of the underlying cognitive patterns aligned with enumeration. In short, the child is confronted by those whose perceptions of reality count by way of an underlying system of duality they unknowingly want the child to mimic, even though the brain of the child is more closely aligned in the direction of trichotomization... and not a single person is even aware of it. Indeed, the idea of Trichotomization is not even on the radar of most people.

Some historical references may be of value to highlight how the developing realization of trichotomization affects different people and creates an effect aligned with their interests, because society has not yet learned to recognize the evolutionary development of trichotomization nor direct the development of such along a fruitful path for all of humanity. In most circumstances, the expressed trichotomy of one person's or one groups orientation is rejected by others, regardless of any magnanimous definition applied. The idea of a developing orientation towards trichotomization remains in a state of oblivion for most people, institutions, governments, businesses, religions, and other philosophies, though they have adapted to the usage of one or more "threes" ideas:

Lofted Idealisms using a "three" theme:


The idea of three university degrees (Scholar, Bachelor, and Master) came into being during the thirteenth century at existing universities. Early universities were like medieval guilds of scholars and teachers, and the word "university" itself comes from the Latin phrase "universitas magistrorum et scholarium". Advanced degrees, such as the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), began to gain importance in the mid-nineteenth century. The concept of a "Bachelor's degree" has its roots in the Middle Ages, tied to craftsmanship and skilled artisans. The University of Naples, founded by Emperor Frederick II, was the first to be established under imperial authority, while the University of Toulouse, founded by Pope Gregory IX, was the first to be established by papal decree.

(Google search query: Where did the idea of 3 university degrees come from?)

It is easy to put a list of patterns(-of-three) together. But what you do with it afterwards, makes a great deal of difference. For example:

  • Striving for some specialized applicative synthesis.
  • Striving for some comprehensive synthesis of understanding.
  • Striving for some synthesis to explore predictability (future trends.)


Origination: Friday, June 6th, 12:48 AM
Date of initial posting: Friday, June 6th, 5:27 AM
Updated Posting: Saturday, June 15th, 10:00 AM