3 (number)

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3 (number)

3 (three) is a number

Number

A number is a mathematical object used in counting and measurement. A notational symbol which represents a number is called a Numeral system, but in common usage the word number is used for both the abstract object and the symbol, as well as for the numeral for the number....
, numeral

Numeral system

A numeral system is a writing system for expressing numerals , and a mathematical notation for representing numbers of a given set, using graphemes or symbols in a consistent manner....
, and glyph

Glyph

A glyph is an element of writing. Two or more glyphs representing the same symbol, whether interchangeable or context-dependent, are called allographs; the abstract unit they are variants of is called a grapheme or character ....
.

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Cardinal Cardinal number In mathematics, cardinal numbers, or cardinals for short, are a generalization of the natural numbers used to measure the cardinality of Set ....	3 three
Ordinal	3rd third
Numeral system Numeral system A numeral system is a writing system for expressing numerals , and a mathematical notation for representing numbers of a given set, using graphemes or symbols in a consistent manner....	ternary Ternary numeral system Ternary or trinary is the Base - numeral system. Analogous to a "bit", a ternary numerical digit is known as a trit . One trit contains about 1.58596 bit of information....
Factorization Factorization In mathematics, factorization or factoring is the decomposition of an object into a product of other objects, or factors, which when multiplication together give the original....	prime Prime number In mathematics, a prime number is a natural number which has exactly two distinct natural number divisors: 1 and itself. An infinitude of prime numbers exists, as demonstrated by Euclid around 300 BC....
Divisor Divisor In mathematics, a divisor of an integer n, also called a factor of n, is an integer which evenly divides n without leaving a remainder.... s	1, 3
Roman numeral	III
Roman numeral (Unicode)	?, ?
Arabic	?
Ge'ez Ge'ez alphabet Ge'ez , also called Ethiopic, is an abugida script that was originally developed to write Ge'ez language, a Semitic languages. In communities that use it, such as the Amharic language and Tigrinya language, the script is called , which means "script" or "alphabet"....	?
Bengali Bengali language Bengali or Bangla is an Indo-European languages language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages....	?
Chinese numeral	?,?,?
Devanagari Devanagari , or 'Nagari', is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal. It is written from left to right, lacks distinct letter cases, and is recognizable by a distinctive horizontal line running along the tops of the letters that links them together....	?
Hebrew	? (Gimel)
Khmer Khmer numerals File:Khmer Numerals - 605 from the Sambor inscriptions.jpgKhmer numerals are characters used for writing numbers for several languages in Cambodia, most notably Cambodia's official language, Khmer language....	?
Thai Thai language Thai , is the national language and official language language of Thailand and the mother tongue of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group....	?
prefix Numerical prefix Numerical prefixes are usually derived from the words for numbers in various languages, most commonly Greek language and Latin, although this is not always the case.... es	tri- (from Greek Greek language Greek is an Indo-European languages native to the southern Balkan peninsula, the language of the Greek people. It forms an independent branch within Indo-European.... ) tre-/ter- (from Latin Latin Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe.... )
Binary Binary numeral system The binary numeral system, or notation with a radix of 2. Owing to its straightforward implementation in digital electronic circuitry using logic gates, the binary system is used internally by all modern computers....	11
Octal Octal The octal numeral system, or oct for short, is the radix-8 number system, and uses the digits 0 to 7. Numerals can be made from Binary numeral system numerals by grouping consecutive digits into groups of three ....	3
Duodecimal Duodecimal The duodecimal system is a numeral system using 12 as its radix. In this system, the number 10 may be written as 'A', and the number 11 as 'B' ....	3
Hexadecimal Hexadecimal In mathematics and computer science, hexadecimal is a numeral system with a radix, or base, of 16. It uses sixteen distinct symbols, most often the symbols 0–9 to represent values zero to nine, and A, B, C, D, E, F to represent values ten to fifteen....	3

3 (three) is a number

Number

Numeral system

Glyph

Natural number

In mathematics, a natural number can mean either an element of the Set = *n = = ? = ? ...
following 2

2 (number)

2 is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3 ....
and preceding 4

4 (number)

This article discusses the number Four. For the year 4 AD, see 4. For other uses of 4, see 4 4 is a number, numeral, and glyph....
.

In mathematics

Three is the first odd prime number

Prime number

In mathematics, a prime number is a natural number which has exactly two distinct natural number divisors: 1 and itself. An infinitude of prime numbers exists, as demonstrated by Euclid around 300 BC....
, and the second smallest prime. It is both the first Fermat prime (2^2ⁿ + 1) and the first Mersenne prime

Mersenne prime

In mathematics, a Mersenne number is a positive integer that is one less than a power of two:Some definitions of Mersenne numbers require that the exponent n be prime....
(2² − 1), as well as the first lucky prime. However, it's the second Sophie Germain prime

Sophie Germain prime

In number theory, a prime number p is a Sophie Germain prime if 2p + 1 is also prime. For example, 23 is a Sophie Germain prime because it is a prime and 2 × 23 + 1 = 47, also prime....
, the second Mersenne prime exponent, the second factorial prime

Factorial prime

A factorial prime is a prime number that is one less or one more than a factorial . The first few factorial primes are:n! − 1 is prime for :...
(2! + 1), the second Lucas prime, the second Stern prime

Stern prime

A Stern prime, named for Moritz Abraham Stern, is a prime number that is not the sum of a smaller prime and twice the Square of a nonzero integer....
.

Three is the first unique prime

Unique prime

In mathematics, a unique prime is a certain kind of prime number. A prime p ? 2, 5 is called unique if there is no other prime q such that the Repeating decimal#Fractions with prime denominators of the decimal expansion of its Reciprocal , 1 / p, is equivalent to the period length of the reciprocal of q, 1 / q....
due to the properties of its reciprocal.

Three is the aliquot sum of one number, the square number

Square number

In mathematics, a square number, sometimes also called a perfect square, is an integer that can be written as the square of some other integer; in other words, it is the product of some integer with itself....
4

4 (number)

This article discusses the number Four. For the year 4 AD, see 4. For other uses of 4, see 4 4 is a number, numeral, and glyph....
and is the base of the 3-aliquot tree.

Three is the third Heegner number

Heegner number

In number theory, a Heegner number is a positive integer d such that the imaginary quadratic fieldhas ideal class group 1. Equivalently, its ring of integers has unique factorization....
.

Three is the second triangular number

Triangular number

A triangular number is the number of dots in an equilateral triangle evenly filled with dots. For example, three dots can be arranged in a triangle; thus three is a triangle number....
and it is the only prime triangular number. Three is the only prime which is one less than a perfect square

Perfect square

Perfect square may refer to:...
. Any other number which is n² − 1 for some integer n is not prime, since it is (n − 1)(n + 1). This is true for 3 as well, but in its case one of the factors is 1.

Three non-collinear points determine a plane

Plane (mathematics)

In mathematics, a plane is a curvature surface. Planes can arise as subspaces of some higher dimensional space, as with the walls of a room, or they may enjoy an independent existence in their own right, as in the setting of Euclidean geometry....
and a circle

Circle

A circle is a simple shape of Euclidean geometry consisting of those point in a plane which are the same distance from a given point called the center....
.

Three is the fourth Fibonacci number

Fibonacci number

In mathematics, the Fibonacci numbers are a sequence of numbers named after Leonardo of Pisa, known as Fibonacci . Fibonacci's 1202 book Liber Abaci introduced the sequence to Western European mathematics, although the sequence had been previously described in Indian mathematics....
and the third that is unique. In the Perrin sequence, however, 3 is both the zeroth and third Perrin number

Perrin number

In mathematics, the Perrin numbers are defined by the recurrence relationandThe series beginsThe number of different maximal independent sets in an n-vertex cycle graph is counted by the nth Perrin number ....
s.

Three is the fourth open meandric number.

Vulgar fractions with 3 in the denominator have a single digit

Numerical digit

In mathematics and computer science, a digit is a symbol used in numerals , to represent numbers, in Positional notation numeral systems. The name "digit" comes from the fact that the 10 digits of the hands correspond to the 10 symbols of the common base 10 number system, i.e....
repeating sequences in their decimal

Decimal

The decimal numeral system has 10 as its Base . It is the most widely used numeral system....
expansions, (.000..., .333..., .666...)

A natural number

Natural number

In mathematics, a natural number can mean either an element of the Set = *n = = ? = ? ...
is divisible by three if the sum of its digits in base 10 is divisible by 3. For example, the number 21 is divisible by three (3 times 7) and the sum of its digits is 2 + 1 = 3. Because of this, the reverse of any number that is divisible by three (or indeed, any permutation

Permutation

In several fields of mathematics the term permutation is used with different but closely related meanings. They all relate to the notion of mapping the element s of a set to other elements of the same set, i.e., exchanging elements of a set....
of its digits) is also divisible by three. For instance, 1368 and its reverse 8631 are both divisible by three (and so are 1386, 3168, 3186, 3618, etc..). See also Divisibility rule

Divisibility rule

A divisibility rule is a method that can be used to determine whether a number is evenly divisible by other numbers. Divisibility rules are a shortcut for testing a number's factors without resorting to division calculations....
.

A triangle

Triangle

A triangle is one of the basic shapes of geometry: a polygon with three corners or wikt:vertex and three sides or edges which are line segments....
is the most durable shape possible, the only "perfect" figure which if all endpoints have hinges will never change its shape unless the sides themselves are bent.

3 is the only integer between e
E (mathematical constant)

The mathematical constant e is the unique real number such that the function ex has the same value as the derivative, for all values of x....
and p
Pi

Pi or p is a mathematical constant whose value is the ratio of any circle's circumference to its diameter in Euclidean geometry; this is the same value as the ratio of a circle's area to the square of its radius....
.

Three of the five regular polyhedra have triangular faces — the tetrahedron

Tetrahedron

A tetrahedron is a polyhedron composed of four triangle faces, three of which meet at each vertex . A regular tetrahedron is one in which the four triangles are regular, or "equilateral", and is one of the Platonic solids....
, the octahedron

Octahedron

An octahedron is a polyhedron with eight faces. A regular octahedron is a Platonic solid composed of eight equilateral triangles, four of which meet at each wikt:vertex....
, and the icosahedron

Icosahedron

In geometry, an icosahedron isany polyhedron having 20 faces, but usually a regular icosahedron is implied, which has equilateral triangle s as faces....
. Also, three of the five regular polyhedra have vertices

Vertex (geometry)

In geometry, a vertex is a special kind of point which describes the corners or intersections of geometric shapes. Vertices are commonly used in computer graphics to define the corners of surfaces in 3d models, where each such point is given as a vector....
where three faces meet — the tetrahedron

Tetrahedron

Hexahedron

A hexahedron is a polyhedron with six faces. A Regular polyhedron hexahedron, with all its faces Square , is a cube.There are many kinds of hexahedra, some topologically similar to the cube and some not....
(cube

Cube

A cube is a three-dimensional space solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each wikt:vertex. The cube can also be called a Regular polyhedron hexahedron and is one of the five Platonic solids....
), and the dodecahedron

Dodecahedron

A dodecahedron is any polyhedron with twelve faces, but usually a regular dodecahedron is meant: a Platonic solid composed of twelve regular pentagonal faces, with three meeting at each vertex....
. Furthermore, only three different types of polygons comprise the faces of the five regular polyhedra — the triangle

Triangle

A triangle is one of the basic shapes of geometry: a polygon with three corners or wikt:vertex and three sides or edges which are line segments....
, the quadrilateral

Quadrilateral

In geometry, a quadrilateral is a polygon with four 'sides' or edges and four vertices or corners. Sometimes, the term quadrangle is used, for analogy with triangle, and sometimes tetragon for consistency with pentagon , hexagon and so on....
, and the pentagon

Pentagon

In geometry, a pentagon is any five-sided polygon. A pentagon may be simple or self-intersecting. The internal angles in a simple pentagon total 540?....
.

There are only three distinct 4×4 panmagic square

Panmagic square

A panmagic square, pandiagonal magic square, diabolic square, diabolical square or diabolical magic square is a magic square with the additional property that the broken diagonals, i.e....
s.

Only three tetrahedral number

Tetrahedral number

A tetrahedral number, or triangular pyramidal number, is a figurate number that represents a pyramid with a triangular base and three sides, called a tetrahedron....
s are also perfect squares.

In numeral systems

It is frequently noted by historians of numbers that early counting systems often relied on the three-patterned concept of "One- Two- Many" to describe counting limits. In other words, in their own language equivalent way, early peoples had a word to describe the quantities of one and two, but any quantity beyond this point was simply denoted as "Many". As an extension to this insight, it can also be noted that early counting systems appear to have had limits at the numerals 2, 3, and 4. References to counting limits beyond these three indices do not appear to prevail as consistently in the historical record.

Base Radix In numeral system, the base or radix is usually the number of unique Numerical digit, including zero, that a Positional notation numeral system uses to represent numbers....	Numeral system Numeral system A numeral system is a writing system for expressing numerals , and a mathematical notation for representing numbers of a given set, using graphemes or symbols in a consistent manner....
2	binary Binary numeral system The binary numeral system, or notation with a radix of 2. Owing to its straightforward implementation in digital electronic circuitry using logic gates, the binary system is used internally by all modern computers....	11
3	ternary Ternary numeral system Ternary or trinary is the Base - numeral system. Analogous to a "bit", a ternary numerical digit is known as a trit . One trit contains about 1.58596 bit of information....	10
over 3 (decimal Decimal The decimal numeral system has 10 as its Base . It is the most widely used numeral system.... , hexadecimal Hexadecimal In mathematics and computer science, hexadecimal is a numeral system with a radix, or base, of 16. It uses sixteen distinct symbols, most often the symbols 0–9 to represent values zero to nine, and A, B, C, D, E, F to represent values ten to fifteen.... )		3

List of basic calculations

Multiplication Multiplication Multiplication is the Operation of scaling one number by another. It is one of the four basic operations in elementary arithmetic .Multiplication is defined for Natural number in terms of repeated addition; for example, 4 multiplied by 3 can be calculated by adding 3 copies of 4 together:...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20		21	22	23	24	25		50	100	1000
	3	6 6 (number) 6 is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7 .The SI prefix for 10006 is exa , and for its reciprocal atto ....	9 9 (number) 9 is the natural number following 8 and preceding 10 . The ordinal adjective is ninth....	12 12 (number) 12 is the natural number following 11 and preceding 13 .The word "twelve" is a native English language word that presumably arises from the Germanic languages compound twa-lif "two-leave", meaning that two is...	15 15 (number) 15 is the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 . In English, it is the smallest natural number with seven letters in its spelled name....	18 18 (number) 18 is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 . It equals ten and eight, twice nine, nine times two or three times six....	21 21 (number) 21 is the natural number following 20 and preceding 22 ....	24 24 (number) 24 is the natural number following 23 and preceding 25 . .The SI prefix for 1024 is yotta , and for 10-24 yocto . These numbers are the largest and smallest number to receive an SI prefix to date....	27 27 (number) 27 is the natural number following 26 and preceding 28 . Twenty-seven is the smallest positive integer requiring four syllables to name in English, though it can be unambiguously defined in just two: "three cubed."...	30 30 (number) 30 is the natural number following 29 and preceding 31 ....		33 33 (number) 33 is the natural number following thirty-two and preceding thirty-four....	36 36 (number) 36 is the natural number following 35 and preceding 37 ....	39 39 (number) 39 is the natural number following 38 and preceding 40 ....	42 42 (number) 42 is the natural number following 41 and preceding 43 ....	45 45 (number) 45 is the natural number following 44 and followed by 46 ....	48 48 (number) 48 is the natural number following 47 and preceding 49 . It is one third of a gross or four dozens....	51 51 (number) 51 is the natural number 51 following 50 and preceding 52 ....	54 54 (number) 54 is the natural number following 53 and preceding 55 ....	57 57 (number) 57 is the natural number following 56 and preceding 58 ....	60 60 (number) 60 is the natural number following 59 and preceding 61 . Being three times twenty, 60 is called "three 20 " in some older literature....		63 63 (number) 63 is a natural number following 62 and preceding 64 ....	66 66 (number) 66 is the natural number following 65 and preceding 67 ....	69 69 (number) 69 is a number following 68 and preceding 70 ....	72 72 (number) 72 is the natural number following 71 and preceding 73 . It is half a gross or 6 dozen ....	75 75 (number) 75 is the natural number following 74 and preceding 76 ....		150 150 (number) 150 is the natural number following 149 and preceding 151 .One hundred [and] fifty-seven is the natural number following one hundred [and] fifty-six and preceding one hundred [and] fifty-eight....	300 300 (number) 300 is the natural number following two hundred ninety-nine and preceding three hundred one....	3000 3000 (number) 3000 is the natural number following 2999 and preceding 3001. It is the smallest number requiring thirteen letters in English ....

Division Division (mathematics) In mathematics, especially in elementary arithmetic, division is an arithmetic operation which is the inverse of multiplication.Specifically, if c times b equals a, written:...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		11	12	13	14	15
	3	1 1 (number) 1 is a number, number names, and the name of the glyph representing that number.It represents a single entity, the unit of counting or measurement.... .5 5 (number) 5 is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the natural number following 4 and preceding 6 ....	1	0 0 (number) 0 is both a number and the numerical digit used to represent that number in numeral system. It plays a central role in mathematics as the additive identity of the integers, real numbers, and many other algebraic structures.... .75	0.6	0.5		0.375		0.3			0.25 25 (number) 25 is the natural number following 24 and preceding 26 ....			0.2
			1			2			3				4			5

Exponentiation Exponentiation Exponentiation is a mathematics operation , written 'an', involving two numbers, the base a and the exponent n....	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		11	12	13
	3	9	27	81 81 (number) 81 is the natural number following 80 and preceding 82 ....	243 243 (number) 243 is the natural number following 242 and preceding 244 ....	729	2187	6561	19683	59049		177147	531441	1594323
	1	8 8 (number) 8 is the natural number, following 7 and preceding 9 . The SI prefix for 10008 is yotta , and for its reciprocal yocto . It is the root of two other numbers: eighteen and eighty ....	27 27 (number) 27 is the natural number following 26 and preceding 28 . Twenty-seven is the smallest positive integer requiring four syllables to name in English, though it can be unambiguously defined in just two: "three cubed."...	64 64 (number) 64 is the natural number following 63 and preceding 65 ....	125 125 (number) 125 is the natural number following 124 and preceding 126 ....	216 216 (number) 216 is the natural number following 215 and preceding 217.Since , it is the smallest cube that's also the Euler's sum of powers conjecture ....	343	512	729	1000 1000 (number) 1000 is the natural number following 999 and preceding 1001 ....		1331	1728	2197

Evolution of the glyph

Three is often the largest number written with as many lines as the number represents. The Romans

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC....
tired of writing 4 as IIII, but to this day 3 is written as three lines in Roman and Chinese numerals

Chinese numerals

Chinese numerals are characters for writing numbers in Chinese language. Today, speakers of Chinese use three numeral systems:the ubiquitous system of Arabic numeral system, along with two ancient Chinese numeral systems....
. This was the way the Brahmin

Brahmin

Brahmin is the class of educators, law makers, scholars and preachers of Dharma in Hinduism. It is said to occupy the highest position among the varna in Hinduism of Hinduism....
Indians wrote it, and the Gupta

Gupta Empire

The Gupta Empire was ruled by members of the Gupta dynasty from around 280 to 550 CE and covered most of Northern India, Southern and Eastern Pakistan, parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan and what is now western India and Bangladesh....
made the three lines more curved. The Nagari started rotating the lines clockwise and ending each line with a slight downward stroke on the right. Eventually they made these strokes connect with the lines below, and evolved it to a character that looks very much like a modern 3 with an extra stroke at the bottom. It was the Western Ghubar Arab

Arab

An Arab is a person who Identity as such on linguistic or cultural grounds. The plural form, Arabs , refers to the Ethnocultural group at large....
s who finally eliminated the extra stroke and created our modern 3. (The "extra" stroke, however, was very important to the Eastern Arabs, and they made it much larger, while rotating the strokes above to lie along a horizontal axis, and to this day Eastern Arabs write a 3 that looks like a mirrored 7 with ridges on its top line): ?

While the shape of the 3 character has an ascender

Ascender

In typography, an ascender is the portion of a Lower_case grapheme in a Latin-derived alphabet that extends above the mean line of a typeface. That is, the part of a lower-case letter that is taller than the font's x-height....
in most modern typeface

Typeface

In typography, a typeface is a set of one or more fonts, in one or more sizes, designed with stylistic unity, each comprising a coordinated set of glyphs....
s, in typefaces with text figures

Text figures

Text figures are numeral systems typeset with varying heights in a fashion that resembles a typical line of running text, hence the name. This stands in contrast to lining, or titling figures, which are all of consistent height....
the character usually has a descender

Descender

In typography, a descender is the portion of a grapheme in a Latin alphabet that extends below the Baseline of a typeface.For example, in the letter y, the descender would be the "tail," or that portion of the diagonal line which lies below the v created by the two lines converging....
, as, for example, in . In some French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken around the world by around 80 million people as first language, by 190 million as second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired tongue, with significant speakers in 54 countries....
text-figure typefaces, though, it has an ascender instead of a descender.

A common variant of the digit 3 has a flat top, similar to the character (ezh), sometimes used to prevent people from falsifying a 3 into an 8.

In science

*3-patterned general formula of the Scientific Method'*
1. The observation of the phenomena and the recording of facts.
2. The formulation of physical laws from the generalization of the phenomena.
3. The development of a theory that is used to predict new phenomena.

Anatomy

A human ear
Ear

The ear is the sense organ that detects sounds. The vertebrate ear shows a common biology from fish to humans, with variations in structure according to order and species....
has three semicircular canal
Semicircular canal

The semicircular canals are three half-circular, interconnected tubes located inside each ear. The three canals are the horizontal semicircular canal, superior semicircular canal , and the posterior semicircular canal....
s.
A human middle ear
Middle ear

The middle ear is the portion of the ear internal to the eardrum, and external to the oval window of the cochlea. The mammalian middle ear contains three ossicles, which couple vibration of the eardrum into waves in the fluid and membranes of the inner ear....
has three ossicles.

Anthropology

Attempts to recognize tripartite patterns in human evolution were somewhat popular in the early-mid 20th century. Today, with new knowlegde about the fossil record and phylogeny, they are all but refuted.

With the realization that the Bonobo

Bonobo

The Bonobo , which, until recently, usually was called the Pygmy Chimpanzee and less often, the Dwarf or Gracile Chimpanzee, is a great ape and one of the two species making up the genus, chimpanzee....
represents another and very distinct chimpanzee, humans are instead being referred to as "third chimpanzee", as among living creatures they are most similar to the Bonobo and Common Chimp.

3 distinct species of the genus Homo: Homo habilis "capable man"
Homo erectus "upright man"
Homo sapiens "wise man"

Many additional species are now known.

3 distinct species of the genus Paranthropus: Paranthropus robustus
Paranthropus boisei
Paranthropus aethiopicus

The validity of Paranthropus is possible, but has never been unequivocally proven.

3 Proconsul species: Proconsul africanus
Proconsul major
Proconsul nyanzae

P. heseloni has been described since. The genus Proconsul might not be an ape.

3 Pan troglodytes sub-species: Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii (Eastern Common Chimpanzee)
Pan troglodytes troglodytes (Central Common Chimp)
Pan troglodytes verus (Western Common Chimp)

P. t. vellerosus has been described since.

3 types of primates:
Prosimians
Monkeys (old & new world)
Apes (lesser & greater apes, as well as humans)

Old World and New World monkeys are not a natural group.

3 social group types of the Great Apes:
Orangutans (Solitary - little amount of both sexes)
Gorillas (Harems - great amount of one sex)
Common Chimps (Live in territories defended by related males - great amount of both sexes)

Bonobos represent a fourth type of social structure, with equal sex ratio but unique hierarchy.

Three traditional families of hominoid:
Hylobatidae- include the so-called lesser apes of Asia, the gibbons and siamangs.
Hominidae- include living humans and typically fossil apes that possess a suite of characteristics such as bipedalism, reduced canine size, and increasing brain size such as the australopithecines.
Pongidae- include the remaining African great apes including gorillas, chimpanzees, and the Asian orangutan.

Pongidae are united with the Hominoidae by modern science, as they are paraphyletic otherwise.

Astronomy

There are three types of galaxies
Galaxy

A galaxy is a massive, gravitation system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and cosmic dust, and an important but poorly-understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter....
:

ellipticals,
spirals and
irregulars.

Globular Cluster M3 (also known as Messier Object 3 or NGC 5272) is a globular cluster in the Canes Venatici constellation.
The Roman numeral III stands for giant star
Giant star

A giant star is a star with substantially larger radius and luminosity than a main sequence star of the same effective temperature. Typically, giant stars have radii between 10 and 100 solar radii and luminosities between 10 and 1,000 times that of the Sun....
in the Yerkes spectral classification scheme
Stellar classification

In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based on its spectrum characteristics. The spectral class of a star, is a designation of a class to a star describing the ionization of its chromosphere, what atomic excited states are most prominent in the light, giving an objective measure of the temperature in this chr...
.
The Roman numeral III (usually) stands for the third-discovered satellite of a planet or minor planet (e.g. Pluto III)
In the constellation Orion
Orion (constellation)

Orion , often referred to as "The Hunter," is a prominent constellation ? one of the largest, most conspicuous, and most recognizable in the night sky....
, his belt is made up of 3 stars in a row.
Earth is the third planet in its local Solar System.

Biology (specific and general)

RNA has a triplet codon system.
DNA has a triplet codon system.
Proteins can have a single, double, or tertiary structure, with a composite of these called the quaternary.
Chromosome
Chromosome

A chromosome is an organized structure of DNA and protein that is found in Cell . A chromosome is a single piece of DNA that contains many genes, regulatory sequence and other genetic sequence....
s can present trisomy
Trisomy

A trisomy is a genetic abnormality in which there are three copies, instead of the normal two, of a particular chromosome....
.
3 basic life domains: Archaea- Bacteria- and Eucaryota
3 phyla of Archaebacteria that are found mainly in extreme habitats where little else can survive: Methanogens~ Halophiles~ Thermoacidophiles.
3 mammalian Germ layers: Endoderm- Mesoderm- Ectoderm
3 principal stages of glucose respiration: Glycolysis~ Krebs cycle~ Electron transport chain.

Chemistry

Three is the atomic number
Atomic number

In chemistry and physics, the atomic number is the number of protons found in the atomic nucleus of an atom. It is conventionally represented by the symbol Z....
of lithium
Lithium

Lithium is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3. It is a soft alkali metal with a silver-white color. Under standard conditions for temperature and pressure, it is the lightest metal and the least dense solid element....
(Lithium is also the 33rd most abundant element on Earth).
Atoms consist of three constituents: protons, neutrons, and electrons.
3 types of molecular bond: Covalent~ Ionic~ Polar Covalent (Dative or Coordinate)
3 isomerism types: Structural (Ethyl alcohol) ~ Geometric (Maleic acid) ~ Optical (L-Lactic acid)
3 hydrocarbon chain types: Straight (Propane)~ Branched (Isobutane)~ Circular (Cyclopropane)
3 basic chemical reaction substances: Acids~ Bases~ Salts

Science Fiction

Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov , was a Russian-born United States author and professor of biochemistry, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books....
's Three Laws of Robotics
Three Laws of Robotics

In science fiction, the Three Laws of Robotics are a set of three rules written by Isaac Asimov, which almost all positronic brains appearing in his fiction must obey....
, which state:

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

Geology

Three basic planes: Above- Surfaced- Beneath
Three basic Earth divisions: Core- Mantle- Crust.
Three basic rock formations: Igneous- Metamorphic- Sedimentary.
In tectonic plate theory, the pacific plate's site can be said to be due to the "fusion" (engulfing) of 3 other plates: Izanagi plate~ Phoenix plate~ Kula plate.
3 types of earthquake waves: P (Primary) waves~ S (Secondary) waves~ L/R (Love & Rayleigh) waves.
3 types of volcanoes: Cinder cones~ Shield volcano~ Composite volcano.

History

Christian Jürgensen Thomsen
Christian Jürgensen Thomsen

Christian J?rgensen Thomsen was a Denmark archaeologist.Although he lacked academic training, in 1816 he was appointed head of 'antiquarian' collections which later developed into the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen....
proposed the three-age system
Three-age system

The three-age system is the periodization of human prehistory into three consecutive time periods, named for their respective predominant tool-making technologies:...
to divide prehistory in the Stone
Stone Age

The Stone Age is a broad prehistory time period during which humans widely used Rock for toolmaking.Stone tools were made from a variety of different kinds of stone....
, Bronze
Bronze Age

The Bronze Age is, with respect to a given prehistory, the period in that society when the most advanced metalworking included smelting copper and tin from naturally-occurring outcroppings of copper and tin ores, creating a bronze alloy by melting those metals together, and casting them into bronze artifact s....
and Iron Age
Iron Age

In archaeology, the Iron Age was the stage in the development of any people in which tools and weapons whose main ingredient was iron were prominent....
s.
3rd Reich of Germany: Adolf Hitler's Empire
3rd Rome: Old name for Russia
3rd Estate: French Revolution
3rd Way: Mussolini's social movement
3rd Wave: journalistic name given to Newt Gingrich's social movement (U.S.)
Third Communist International was founded in 1919 by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (He died after a 3rd stroke).
Three most important events that led up to, and caused the American Revolution: Boston Massacre- Boston Tea Party~ Stamp Act.

Physics

There are three generations of fundamental lepton
Lepton

Leptons are a family of elementary particles, alongside quarks and gauge bosons . Like quarks, leptons are fermions and are subject to the electromagnetic force, the gravitational force, and weak interaction....
s (electron
Electron

The electron is a subatomic particle that carries a negative electric charge. It has elementary particle and is believed to be a point particle....
, muon
Muon

The muon is an elementary particle similar to the electron, with negative electric charge and a spin of . Together with the electron, the tau lepton, and the three neutrinos, it is classified as a lepton....
, tauon and their neutrino
Neutrino

Neutrinos are elementary particles that travel close to the speed of light, lack an electric charge, are able to pass through ordinary matter almost undisturbed and are thus extremely difficult to detect....
s) and three groups of flavours of quark
Quark

Quarks are a type of elementary particle and major constituents of matter. They are the only particles in the Standard Model to experience all four fundamental interaction, which are also known as fundamental interactions....
s (up-down, charmed-strange, top-bottom).
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.
We perceive our universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
to have three spatial
Three-dimensional space

Three-dimensional space is a geometric model of the physical universe in which we live. The three dimensions are commonly called length, width, and depth , although any three mutually perpendicular directions can serve as the three dimensions....
dimensions
Dimensions

Dimensions is a France project that makes educational movies about mathematics, focusing on Euclidean space. It uses POV-Ray to render some of the animations, and the films are release under a Creative Commons licence....
.
White light is composed of the mixture of the three additive primary hues
Primary color

Primary colors are sets of colors that can be combined to make a useful range of colors. For human applications, three are often used; for additive combination of colors, as in overlapping projected lights or in cathode ray tube displays, the primary colors normally used are red, green, and blue....
: red, green, and blue.

Physiology

3 distinct Cytoskeleton components: Microtubules~ Intermediate Filament~ Actin Filaments
3 primary cellular energy molecules: AMP~ ADP~ ATP
3 main fatty acid categories: Saturated~ Monounsaturated~ Polyunsaturated
3 substances metabolized for energy needs: Carbohydrates~ Fats~ Proteins
Triglycerides are the main storage forms of fatty acids.

Plants and animals

Triceratops: Cretaceous period dinosaur with three horns on its head.
Shamrock: refers to one of several trifoliate (three-leaved) plants of the Leguminosae family which includes the clover.
3-bodied general description of insects: Head~ Thorax~ Abdomen.
Trilobite: hard-bodied invertebrate marine arthropod of the Paleozoic era with three lobes.
Monocotyledon: A monocot's flower is often trimerous, with the flower parts in threes or in multiples of three (typically three, six, or nine petals.)

Psychology

In his later work, Freud proposed that the psyche was divided into three parts: Ego, super-ego, and id. Freud discussed this structural model of the mind in the 1920 essay Beyond the Pleasure Principle, and fully elaborated it in The Ego and The Id (1923), where he developed it as an alternative to his previous topographic schema (conscious, unconscious, preconscious).

In religion and mythology

Georges Dumezil developed the idea of a Tripartite Ideology (Trifunctional Hypothesis
Trifunctional hypothesis

The Trifunctional Hypothesis is a controversial conjecture proposed by French people mythography Georges Dum?zil. The hypothesis states that Indo-European religion has societies and religions divided into three similar roles: warriors, priests, and farmers....
) with respect to the Indo-European peoples consisting of three class divisions: Priestly~ Warrior~ Farmers/Craftsmen.
3 Indian Gods: Brahma
Brahma

Brahma is the Hinduism god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. He is not to be confused with the Supreme Cosmic Spirit in Hindu Vedanta philosophy known as Brahman....
, Vishnu
Vishnu

Vishnu , , is the Supreme God in Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of panchadeva, and his supreme status is declared in the Hindu sacred texts like Yajurveda, the Rigveda and the Bhagavad Gita....
, Maheshwara (Shiva
Shiva

Shiva: is a major Hinduism god, and one aspect of Trimurti. In the Shaiva tradition of Hinduism, Shiva is seen as the supreme God. In the Smarta tradition, he is one of panchadeva....
)
3 Greek gods: Zeus~ Poseidon~ Hades (Air~ Water~ Earth)
3 Roman gods: Jupiter~ Neptune~ Pluto (Air~ Water~ Earth)
3 sons of Zeus & Europa: Minos~ Rhadamanthus~ Sarpedon
3 forms of Odin in Eddic Mythology: Har~ Jafnhar~ Thridi
3 mysterious figures amongst Norse gods: Hoenir~ Lodurr~ Mimir
Ancient Egypt Theban Triad: Amun~ Mut~ and their son Khans
3 ancient Egypt central religious figures: Horus~ Isis~ Osiris
3 items of manufacturer commonly attributed to Vulcan, God of fire and volcanoes: Art~ Arms~ Armor for gods and heroes.
The Maya believed 3 stars in the Orion Constellation (Alnitak~ Saiph~ Rigel) were arranged by the gods as a triangular hearth, enclosing the smoke of the fire creation - the nebula.
3 Greek Fates (Moirai, Moirés): Clotho
Clotho

Clotho or Klotho — the "spinner" — was the youngest of the Moirae of Greek mythology, otherwise known as the Fates due to their roles in governing over the lives of humans....
~ Lachesis
Lachesis (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Lachesis was the second of the Three Fates, or Moirae. She was the apportioner, deciding how much time for life was to be allowed for each person or being....
~ Atropos
Atropos

In Greek mythology, Atropos was one of the three Moirae, Goddesses of wikt:fate and destiny. Her Roman equivalent was Morta . Atropos was the oldest of the Three Fates, and was known as the "inflexible" or "inevitable." It was Atropos who chose the mechanism of death and ended the life of each mortal by cutting their thread with her "abhor...
(sometimes referred to as the 3 spinners).
3 Roman Fates: Decima~ Nona (goddesses of birth)~ Morta (goddess of death)
3 Roman Graces- (in Greek mythology called the Charities and according to the Spartans, Cleta was the third): Aglaia~ Euphrosyne~ Thalia.
3 parts to a Chimera: Head of a lion~ Body of a goat~ Tail of a snake
3 monstrous offspring by Loki and Angroboda: Fenrir~ Hel~ Jormungund
3 hags possessing immense power in Norse Myth: Urdr~ Verdandi~ Skuld
3 Norns
Norns

The Norns are a kind of d?sir, numerous female beings who rule the fates of the various races of Norse mythology.According to Snorri Sturluson's interpretation of the V?lusp?, the three most important norns, Ur?r , Ver?andi and Skuld come out from a hall standing at the Well of Ur?r and they draw water from the well and take sand t...
of Norse Mythology who sat beneath the World Tree Yggdrasil
Yggdrasil

File:The Ash Yggdrasil by Friedrich Wilhelm Heine.jpgIn Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is the world tree. Yggdrasil is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson....
3-faced goddess in Greek Mythology: Hecate
3 Gorgons-(snake-haired sisters in Greek mythology): Stheno, Euryale, Medusa are sometimes depicted as having wings of gold, brazen claws, and the tusks of boars. Medusa is the only one of the gorgons that is mortal.
3 different beings made up the different qualities of death according to ancient Greek belief: Thantos (male)~ Ker (female)~ Gorgo (female).
3 Roman Furies (female personifications of vengeance) that were called the Erinyes (the Angry Ones) or Eumenides by the Ancient Greeks (Orestes called them the Solemn Ones, or the Kindly Ones): Alecto ("unceasing")~ Megaera ("grudging")~ Tisiphone ("avenging murder").
3-headed dog that guarded the gate to Hades in Greek Mythology: Cerberus
3 ancient Greek Harpies: Aello, Ocypete, and Celaeno.

In Buddhism

The Triple Gem - Buddha
Gautama Buddha

Siddhartha Gautama was a Spirituality teacher in the northern region of the Indian subcontinent who founded Buddhism. He is generally seen by Buddhists as the Supreme Buddhahood of our age....
, Dhamma
Dharma (Buddhism)

Dhamma or Dharma in Buddhism has two primary meanings:* the teachings of the Buddha which lead to enlightenment* the constituent factors of the experienced world...
(Buddha's teaching) and Sangha
Sangha

Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as "association" or "assembly," "company" or "community" with common goal, vision or purpose....
(the preachers of Dhamma)
The Triple Bodhi (ways to understand the end of birth)- Budhu, Pasebudhu, Mahaarahath

Abrahamic religions

* There are three main Abrahamic religions: Judaism
Judaism

Judaism is a set of beliefs and practices originating in the Hebrew Bible , as later further explored and explained in the Talmud and other texts....
, Christianity
Christianity

Christianity is a Monotheistic religion #Christian view religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus as New Testament view on Jesus' life....
and Islam
Islam

Islam is a Monotheism, Abrahamic religion originating with the teachings of the Prophets of Islam Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure....
.

Noah's three sons:Shem
Shem

Shem was one of the sons of Noah in the Bible. He is most popularly regarded as the eldest son, though some traditions regard him as the second son....
, Ham
Ham

Ham is the thigh and rump of pork, cut from the haunch of a pig or boar. Although it may be cooked and served fresh, most ham is Curing in some fashion....
and Japheth
Japheth

Japheth is one of the sons of Noah in the Bible. In Arabic language citations, his name is normally given as Yafeth ibn Nuh ....
(Sons of Noah
Sons of Noah

The Table of Nations or Sons of Noah is an extensive list of descendants of Noah appearing within the Torah at Genesis 10, representing an ethnology from an Iron Age Levantine perspective and its reflections in the medieval and modern history and genealogy researches....
)
The Holy Trinity
Trinity

In Christianity doctrine, the Trinity is the unity of God the Father, God the Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in monotheism. The doctrine states that God is the Triune God, existing as three persons, or in the Greek hypostasis , but one being....
in Christian doctrine (or trinity
Trinity

In Christianity doctrine, the Trinity is the unity of God the Father, God the Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in monotheism. The doctrine states that God is the Triune God, existing as three persons, or in the Greek hypostasis , but one being....
in general), is God both as a single being and three persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is also known as Tripartite division or the Godhead.
Jesus spread Christianity for 3 years.
Jesus
Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the Incarnation ....
rose from the dead on the third day after his death.
Jesus predicted that Peter would deny him three times.
The Wise Men
Biblical Magi

In Christianity tradition the Magi , Three Wise Men, Three Kings or Kings from the East are said to have visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts....
who visited Jesus after His birth left Him three gifts.
In Muslim
Muslim

:A Muslim , , is an adherent of the religion of Islam. The feminine form is Muslimah . Literally, the word means "one who submits "....
devotional rites, certain formulas are repeated three times, and others thirty-three times
A devout Muslim tries to make a pilgrimage
Pilgrimage

File:Supplicating Pilgrim at Masjid Al Haram. Mecca, Saudi Arabia.jpgIn religion and spirituality, a pilgrimage is a long quest or search of great moral significance....
to all three holy cities in Islam: Mecca
Mecca

Mecca , also spelled Makkah , Makka is a city in Saudi Arabia. Home to the Masjid al-Haram, it is the holy city in Islam and plays an important role in the faith....
, Medina
Medina

Medina is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia, and serves as the capital of the Al Madinah Province. It is the second holiest city in Islam, and the burial place of the Prophet Muhammad....
, and Jerusalem
Jerusalem

Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and its List of Israeli cities in both population and area, with a population of 747,600 residents over an area of if Positions on Jerusalem East Jerusalem is included....
King Solomon
Solomon

Solomon is a figure described in the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an. The biblical accounts identify Solomon as the son of David. He is also called Jedidiah in the Tanakh , and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before the northern Kingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judah split; following th...
states in Ecclesiastes
Ecclesiastes

Ecclesiastes is a book of the Hebrew Bible. The English name derives from the Greek language translation of the Hebrew #Title.The main speaker in the book, identified by the name or title Qohelet, introduces himself as "son of David, and king in Jerusalem." The work consists of personal or autobiographic matter, at times expressed in aph...
4:12: "A three-ply cord is not easily severed." Examples of this concept of three-ness in Judaism are:

The three Patriarchs
Patriarchs (Bible)

The Patriarchs according to the Judeo-Christian Old Testament, are Abraham, his son Isaac and his grandson Jacob. Collectively, they are referred to as the three patriarchs of Judaism, and the period in which they lived is known as the patriarchal period....
: Abraham
Abraham

Abraham is a man featured in the Book of Genesis and an important figure in several monotheistic religions. Judaism, Christianity and Islam traditions regard him as the founding Patriarchs of the Israelites, Ishmaelites and Edomite peoples....
, Isaac
Isaac

According to the Hebrew Bible, Isaac The New Testament contains few references to Isaac. The Early Christianity views Abraham's willingness to follow God's command to Binding of Isaac as an example of faith and obedience....
, and Jacob
Jacob

According to the Hebrew Bible, Jacob , also known as Israel , was the third Biblical patriarchs and the ancestor of the twelve Israelites....

The three pilgrim festivals
Three pilgrim festivals

The Three Pilgrimage Festivals, known as the Shlosha Regalim , are three major festivals in Judaism — Pesach , Shavuot , and Sukkot — when the Israelites living in Kingdom of Israel and Kingdom of Judah would make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, as commanded by the Torah....
(Sheloshet HaRegalim): Passover
Passover

Passover is a Jewish and Samaritan holy day and festival commemorating God sparing the Israelites when He killed the first born of Egypt, and is followed by the seven day Feast of the Unleavened Bread commemorating the Exodus from Ancient Egypt and the liberation of the Israelites from Judaism and slavery....
, Shavuot
Shavuot

is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan . Shavuot commemorates the anniversary of the day Names of God in Judaism#In English gave the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mount Sinai....
, and Sukkot
Sukkot

Sukkot , is a Hebrew Bible pilgrimage Jewish holiday that occurs in autumn on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei . The holiday lasts seven days, including Chol Hamoed....
The three leaders of the Jewish nation during their 40 years of wandering in the desert: Moses
Moses

Moses is a Hebrew Bible Hebrews religious leader, lawgiver, prophet, to whom the Mosaic authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed. Also called Moshe Rabbeinu in Hebrew , he is the most important prophet in Judaism, and also an important prophet of Christianity, Islam, the Bah?'? Faith, Rastafari movement, Chrislam and many ot...
, Aaron
Aaron

In the Hebrew Bible, Aaron , or Aaron the Levite , was the brother of Moses. He was the great-grandson of Levi and represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first Kohen Gadol of the Hebrews....
, and Miriam
The Tanakh
Tanakh

The Tanakh is the Bible used in Judaism. The name "Tanakh" is a Hebrew language Acronym and initialism formed from the initial Hebrew alphabet of the Tanakh's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah , Nevi'im and Ketuvim - hence TaNaKh....
has 3 sections: Torah
Torah

The term "Torah" , or Five Books of Moses or Pentateuch, refers to the entirety of Judaism's founding Halakha and ethical religious texts....
, Nevi'im
Nevi'im

Nevi'im is the second of the three major sections in the Hebrew Bible, the Tanakh, between the Torah and Ketuvim .Nevi'im is traditionally divided into two parts:...
, and Ketuvim
Ketuvim

Ketuvim is the third and final section of the Tanakh , after Torah and Nevi'im. In English translations of the Hebrew Bible, this section is usually entitled "Writings" or "Hagiographa."...
There are 3 daily prayer services
Jewish services

Jewish services are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
: Shacharit, Mincha, and Maariv
There are three divisions of Jews: Kohen
Kohen

A kohen is a Jew who is a direct male descendant of the Bible Aaron, brother of Moses, with a separate status in Judaism. Another term for the descendants of Aaron are the Aaronites or Aaronids....
, Levi
Levite

In Jewish tradition, a Levite is a member of the tribes of Israel of Levi. When Joshua led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, the Levites were the only Israelite tribe who received cities but no tribal land "because the Lord the God of Israel himself is their possession"....
, and Israel
Shimon Hatzaddik taught: "On three things the world stands: On Torah
Torah

The term "Torah" , or Five Books of Moses or Pentateuch, refers to the entirety of Judaism's founding Halakha and ethical religious texts....
, on prayer, and on acts of kindness" (Pirkei Avoth
Pirkei Avoth

Pirkei Avot / Ovos is a tractate of the Mishna composed of ethics maxims of the Rabbis of the Mishnaic period. It is the second-last tractate in the Mishnaic order Nezikin....
1:2). Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel
Shimon ben Gamliel

Shimon ben Gamliel was a Tannaim sage and leader of the Jewish people. He succeeded his father Gamliel I as the Nasi of the Sanhedrin after his father's death in 50 CE and just before the destruction of the Second Temple....
taught: "The world continues to exist because of three things: justice, truth, and peace" (ibid. 1:18)

The three Theological virtues
Theological virtues

In Christian philosophy, theological virtues are the character qualities associated with salvation. The three theological virtues are:*Faith in Christianity - steadfastness in belief...
referred to 1 Corinthians 13
1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians: 13 is the thirteenth chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians in the Christian Bible. It is on the subject of love, principally the love that Christians should have for everyone....
.
In Roman Catholicism, a group of three martyrs
Martyrs

Martyrs may refer to:*Plural of martyr.*Martyrs - a France mystery film-horror film written and directed by Pascal Laugier*Martyrs - a Canada-Republika Srpska feature docudrama film by Denis Cviticanin....
, collectively known as Faith, Hope, and Charity (named after the Theological Virtues).
Heaven
Heaven

Heaven may refer to the physical heavens, the atmosphere or the seemingly endless expanse of the universe beyond. This is the traditional literal meaning of the term in English, however since at least AD 1000, it is typically also used to refer to an afterlife plane of existence in various religions and spirituality philosophy, often descri...
, Hell
Hell

In many religious traditions, Hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife, often in the underworld. Religions with a linear Divinity history often depict Hell as endless ....
and Purgatory
Purgatory

Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for heaven....
(or Limbo).

Other religions

The Wicca
Wicca

Wicca is a neopaganism, nature-based religion. It was re-popularised in 1954 by Gerald Gardner, a retired United Kingdom civil servant, who at the time called it Witchcraft and its adherents "the Wica"....
n Rule of Three
Rule of Three (Wiccan)

The Rule of Three is a religious tenet held by some Wiccans. It states that whatever energy a person puts out into the world, be it positive or negative, will be returned to that person three times....
.
The Triple Goddess
Triple Goddess

This article is about the neopagan view of divinity. For other uses see Triple deity.The Triple Goddess is one of the two primary deities found in the neopagan religion of Wicca....
: Maiden, Mother, Crone; the three fates.
In Taoism
Taoism

Taoism refers to a variety of related philosophical and religious traditions and concepts. These traditions have influenced East Asia for over two thousand years and some have spread to the West....
, the Three Pure Ones
Three Pure Ones

The Three Pure Ones also translated asthe Three Pure Pellucid Ones, the Three Pristine Ones, the Three Clarities, or the Three Purities, are the three highest Taoist deities....
.
The three Gunas underlie action, in the Vedic
Historical Vedic religion

The religion of the Vedic period is the historical predecessor of Hinduism. Its liturgy is reflected in the Mantra portion of the four Vedas, which are compiled in Sanskrit....
system of knowledge. There is also the concept of Trimurti
Trimurti

The Trimurti is a concept in Hinduism "in which the cosmic functions of creation, maintenance, and destruction are personified by the forms of Brahma the creator, Vishnu the maintainer or preserver, and Shiva the destroyer or transformer." These three deities have been called "the Hindu triad" or the "Great Trinity"....
in Hindu tradition. The Buddha has three bodies. The three Vedas are called trayi i.e triad. Lord Shiva is Trinetra-Three-eyed. The confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and hidden Sarasvati is the famous Triveni-confluence of three rivers. Buddhism's three refuges are Trisharana- Buddhan sharanam gacchami, Dhammam sharanam gacchami, Sangham sharanam gacchami.
In Greek mythology
Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the Ancient Greece concerning their List of Greek mythological figures#Immortals and Greek hero cult, Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices....
, the Three Graces or Charites
Charites

In Greek mythology, a Charis is one of several Charites , goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, human creativity and fertility. They ordinarily numbered three, from youngest to oldest: Aglaea , Euphrosyne , and Thalia ....
. Also the number of heads of Cerberus
Cerberus

Cerberus is the name given to the entity which, in Greek mythology and Roman mythology, is a multi-headed dog which guards the gates of Hades, to prevent those who have crossed the river Styx from ever escaping....
, the monstrous dog that guards the gate to Hades
Hades

Hades refers both to the ancient Greek underworld, the abode of Hades, and to the god of the underworld. Hades in Homer referred just to the god; the genitive case , Haidou, was an elision to denote locality: "[the house/dominion] of Hades"....
Various Triple deities
Triple deities

Triple deities, legendary persons, deities, and mythological creatures , are common throughout world mythology; the number 3 has a long history of mythical associations....
.

In esoteric tradition

The Theosophical Society
Theosophical Society

The Theosophical Society was the organization formed to advance the spiritual principles and search for Truth known as Theosophy....
has three conditions of membership
Theosophy

Theosophy is a doctrine of religious philosophy and metaphysics originating with Madame Blavatsky . In this context, theosophy holds that all religions are attempts by the "Mahatma" to help humanity in evolving to greater perfection, and that each religion therefore has a portion of the truth....
.
Gurdjieff's Three Centers and the Law of Three.
Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley

Aleister Crowley, born Edward Alexander Crowley , , was a United Kingdom occultist, writer, mountaineering, poet, and yogi. He was an influential member of several occult organizations, including the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the A?A?, and Ordo Templi Orientis , and is best known today for his Works of Aleister Crowley, especi...
's model of the three schools of magick
Magick

Magick, in the broadest sense, is any act designed to cause intentional change. The spelling with the terminal "k" was repopularized in the first half of the 20th century by Aleister Crowley when he introduced it as a core component of Thelema....
(Black, White and Yellow) from his Magick Without Tears
Magick Without Tears

Magick Without Tears was the last book written by occultist Aleister Crowley , initially written in the mid 1940s near the end of his life, and first published in 1954....
.
Feri Tradition
Feri Tradition

The Feri Tradition is an oral, initiatory tradition of modern Neopagan witchcraft. It is an ecstasy , rather than a fertility, tradition stemming from the teachings of Cora and Victor Anderson ....
teaches of the existence of three souls in each individual person.

In fictional religion

In The Legend of Zelda video game series, a divine relic called the Triforce is represented by 3 Golden triangles. The Triforce was fashioned by a trio of goddesses who represented power, wisdom, and courage, and the sections of the Triforce each represent one of the three.

In philosophy

Plato
Plato

Plato , was a Classical Greece Greeks philosopher, mathematician, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Platonic Academy in Ancient Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the western world....
split the soul into three parts: the appetitive, the spirited, and the rational
Hegel's dialectic
Dialectic

Dialectic is a method of argument, which has been central to both Eastern and Western philosophy since ancient times. The word "dialectic" originates in Ancient Greece, and was made popular by Plato's Socratic dialogues....
of Thesis
Thesis

A dissertation is a document that presents the author's research and findings and is submitted in support of candidature for a degree or professional qualification....
+ Antithesis
Antithesis

Antithesis is a counter-proposition and denotes a direct contrast to the original proposition. In setting the opposite, an individual brings out of a contrast in the meaning by an obvious contrast in the Idiom....
= Synthesis
Synthesis

The term synthesis is used in many fields, usually to mean a process which combines together two or more pre-existing elements resulting in the formation of something new....
creates three-ness from two-ness.
According to the Pythagoreans, 3 was the noblest of all the digits.
The three Doshas (weaknesses) and their antidote
Antidote

An antidote is a substance which can counteract a form of poison. The term ultimately derives from the Greek a?t?d?d??a? antididonai, "given against"....
s are the basis of Ayurvedic medicine in India
India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
.
Charles Sanders Peirce made many trichotomies
Trichotomy (philosophy)

In theology, and in philosophy related to it, trichotomy is the belief that man consists of three parts; a body, soul, and spirit. This stands in stark contrast to dichotomy....
and framed the "Reduction Thesis
Categories (Peirce)

On May 14, 1867, the 27-year-old Charles Sanders Peirce, who eventually founded Pragmatism, presented a paper entitled "Charles Peirce#On a New List of Categories" to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences....
" that every predicate is essentially either monadic (quality), dyadic (relation of reaction or resistance), or triadic (representational relation), and never genuinely and irreducibly tetradic or larger.
3-way Philosophical Distinctions |- | Aristotle
Aristotle

Aristotle was a Greeks philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. He wrote on many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, Poetics , theater, music, logic, rhetoric, politics, government, ethics, biology and zoology....
's 3-in-1 idea: >
- | Aristotle's 3 Dramatic Unities: - | Plotinus
Plotinus

Plotinus was a major Philosophy of the ancient world who is widely considered the founder of Neoplatonism . Much of our biographical information about him comes from Porphyry 's preface to his edition of Plotinus' Enneads....
's Philosophy:
>- | Lucretius
Lucretius

Titus Lucretius Carus was a Roman Republic poet and philosopher. His only known work is the epic philosophical poem on Epicureanism De rerum natura, translated into English as On the Nature of Things....
's 3 Ages: - | St. Augustine's 3 Laws: - | St. Augustine's 3 characterizations of the soul: - | Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas

Saint Thomas Aquinas, Dominican Order was a priest of the Roman Catholic Church in the Dominican Order from Italy, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus and Doctor Communis....
's 3 causal principles (based in Aristotle): - | Aquinas's 3 logical faculties (based in Aristotle): - | Aquinas's 3 transcendentals of being: - | Aquinas's 3 requisites for the beautiful: - | Averroes
Averroes

Abu 'l-Walid Mu?ammad ibn A?mad ibn Rushd , better known just as Ibn Rushd , and in European literature as Averroes , was an Al-Andalus-Arab Muslim polymath: a master of early Islamic philosophy, Islamic theology, Maliki Sharia and Fiqh, Logic in Islamic philosophy, Psychology in medieval Islam, Arabic music theory, and the Scien...
's 3 Commentaries: - | Albertus Magnus
Albertus Magnus

Saint Albertus Magnus, Ordo Praedicatorum , also known as Saint Albert the Great and Albert of Cologne, was a Dominican Order Dominican friar and bishop who achieved fame for his comprehensive knowledge of and advocacy for the peaceful Relationship between religion and science....
's 3 Universals: - | Sir Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon

Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban King's Counsel , son of Nicholas Bacon by his second wife Anne Bacon, was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, and author....
's 3 Tables: - | Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes was an English philosophy, remembered today for his work on political philosophy. His 1651 book Leviathan established the foundation for most of Western political philosophy from the perspective of social contract theory....
's 3 Fields: - | Auguste Comte's Philosophy: - | Johannes Nikolaus Tetens
Johannes Nikolaus Tetens

Johannes Nikolaus Tetens was a Germany philosopher, statistician and scientist.He has been called 'the German Hume', on the basis of a comparison of his major work Philosophische Versuche ?ber die menschliche Natur und ihre Entwickelung with David Hume's A Treatise of Human Nature....
's 3 powers of mind: - | Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant

Immanuel Kant was an 18th-century German Philosophy from the Kingdom of Prussia city of K?nigsberg . He is regarded as one of the most influential thinkers of modern Europe and of the late Age of Enlightenment....
's 3 Critiques: - | Hegel
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was a German people philosopher, and with Johann Gottlieb Fichte and Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling, one of the creators of German idealism....
's 3 Spirits: - | Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach
Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach

Ludwig Andreas von Feuerbach was a Germany philosopher and anthropologist. He was the fourth son of the eminent jurist Paul Johann Anselm Ritter von Feuerbach....
's 3 Thoughts: - | Ferdinand de Saussure
Ferdinand de Saussure

Ferdinand de Saussure was a Switzerland linguistics whose ideas laid a foundation for many significant developments in linguistics in the 20th century....
's 3 "Signs": - | Charles Peirce
Charles Peirce

Charles Sanders Peirce was an American logician, mathematics, Philosophy, and science, born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Peirce was educated as a chemist and employed as a scientist for 30 years....
's 3 semiotic elements
Semiotic elements and classes of signs (Peirce)

Logician, mathematician, philosopher, and scientist Charles Sanders Peirce began writing on semeiotic, semiotics, or the theory of sign relations in the 1860s, around the time that he devised his system of Categories ....
: - | Charles Peirce's 3 categories
Categories (Peirce)

On May 14, 1867, the 27-year-old Charles Sanders Peirce, who eventually founded Pragmatism, presented a paper entitled "Charles Peirce#On a New List of Categories" to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences....
: - | Charles Peirce's 3 universes of experience: - | Charles Peirce's 3 orders of philosophy
Charles Peirce

Charles Sanders Peirce was an American logician, mathematics, Philosophy, and science, born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Peirce was educated as a chemist and employed as a scientist for 30 years....
: - | Charles Peirce's 3 normatives
Charles Peirce

Charles Sanders Peirce was an American logician, mathematics, Philosophy, and science, born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Peirce was educated as a chemist and employed as a scientist for 30 years....
: - | Charles Peirce's 3 grades of conceptual clearness
Pragmaticism

Pragmaticism is a term used by Charles Sanders Peirce for his pragmatic philosophy after 1905, in order to distance himself and it from pragmatism, the original name, which had been used in a manner he did not approve of in the "literary journals"....
: - | Charles Peirce's 3 modes of evolution
Charles Peirce

Charles Sanders Peirce was an American logician, mathematics, Philosophy, and science, born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Peirce was educated as a chemist and employed as a scientist for 30 years....
: - | Darwin
Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin Royal Society was an English people natural history who realised and presented compelling evidence that all species of life have evolution over time from common descent, through the process he called natural selection....
's essentials of biological evolution: - | Gregor Mendel
Gregor Mendel

Gregor Johann Mendel was an Augustinians priest and scientist, and is often called the father of genetics for his study of the biological inheritance of certain Trait s in pea plants....
's "laws": - | James Joyce
James Joyce

James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Ireland expatriate author of the 20th century. He is best known for his landmark novel Ulysses and its controversial successor Finnegans Wake , as well as the short story collection Dubliners and the semi-autobiographical novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man ....
's 3 aesthetic stages: - | Louis Zukofsky
Louis Zukofsky

Louis Zukofsky was one of the most important second-generation United States poetry modernist poetry poets. He was co-founder and primary theorist of the Objectivist poets group of poets and was to be an important influence on subsequent generations of poets in America and abroad....
's 3 aesthetic elements - | Pythagoras
Pythagoras

Pythagoras of Samos was an Ionians Ancient Greeks mathematician and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. He is often revered as a great mathematician, mysticism and scientist; however some have questioned the scope of his contributions to mathematics and natural philosophy....
's "fusion" idea: - | Karl Marx
Karl Marx

Karl Heinrich Marx was a Germanphilosophy, political economy, historian, sociologist, humanism, political theorist and revolutionary credited as the founder of communism....
's 3 isms: - | Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson

Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States. A devout Presbyterianism and leading intellectual of the Progressive Era, he served as President of Princeton University of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913....
's 3 isms: - | Hippocrates
Hippocrates

Hippocrates of Cos II or Hippokrates of Kos - ancient Greek: ; Hippokr?tes was an Ancient Greece physician of the Age of Pericles, and was considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of medicine....
's Mind Disorders: - | Émile Durkheim
Émile Durkheim

?mile Durkheim was a France sociologist whose contributions were instrumental in the formation of sociology and anthropology. His work and editorship of the first journal of sociology, L'Ann?e Sociologique, helped establish sociology within academia as an accepted Social sciences....
's 3 Suicides: - | David Riesman
David Riesman

David Riesman , was a United States sociologist, Lawyer, and educator.After graduating from Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the Harvard Law Review, Riesman law clerk for Supreme Court of the United States Justice Louis Brandeis from 1935-1936....
's 3 Social Characters: - | Erich Fromm
Erich Fromm

Erich Seligmann Fromm was an internationally renowned social psychology, psychoanalyst, and humanism philosophy. He was associated with what became known as the Frankfurt School of critical theory....
's 3 Symbols: - | Søren Kierkegaard
Søren Kierkegaard

S?ren Aabye Kierkegaard was a prolific 19th century Denmark philosopher and theologian. Kierkegaard strongly criticised both the Hegelianism of his time, and what he saw as the empty ceremony of the Church of Denmark....
's 3 Stages: - | Edmund Husserl
Edmund Husserl

Edmund Gustav Albrecht Husserl was a philosophy who is deemed the founder of phenomenology . He broke with the positivist orientation of the science and philosophy of his day, believing that experience is the source of all knowledge, while at the same time he elaborated critiques of psychologism and historicism....
's 3 Reductions: - | Maurice Merleau-Ponty
Maurice Merleau-Ponty

Maurice Merleau-Ponty was a France Phenomenology philosopher, strongly influenced by Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger in addition to being closely associated with Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir....
's 3 fields: - | Maurice Merleau-Ponty's 3 categories: - | Alan Watts
Alan Watts

Alan Wilson Watts was a United Kingdom philosopher, writer, speaker, and student of comparative religion. He was best known as an interpreter and popularizer of Asian philosophies for a Western culture audience....
's 3 world views: - | 3-monkey Philosophy
Three wise monkeys

The three wise monkeys are a pictorial saying. Together they embody the proverbial principle to "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil"....
: - | Mark Twain
Mark Twain

Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an United Statesmerican author and humorist. Twain is most noted for his novels Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which has since been called the Great American Novel, and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer....
's (Samuel Clemens) 3 lies: - | Witness Stand
Sworn testimony

Sworn testimony is evidence given by a witness who has made a commitment to tell the truth. If the witness is later found to have lied whilst bound by the commitment, they can often be charged with the crime of perjury....
truths: - | Jesus Christ
Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the Incarnation ....
's 3 Praises: - | Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States. He successfully led the country through its greatest internal crisis, the American Civil War, preserving the Union and ending slavery....
's 3-For-All: - | Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was an United States pastor, activist and prominent leader in the African-American African-American Civil Rights Movement ....
's "Middle Road": - | Max Weber
Max Weber

Maximilian Carl Emil Weber was one of the most profoundly influential thinkers of the twentieth century. Born in Germany, Weber became a lawyer, politician, scholar, political economy, and sociology....
's 3 Authorities: - | John Maynard Keynes's 3 Eras: - | George Herbert Mead
George Herbert Mead

George Herbert Mead was an United States philosopher, sociologist and psychologist, primarily affiliated with the University of Chicago, where he was one of several distinguished pragmatisms....
's 3 Distinctions: - | Frederic Thrasher
Frederic Thrasher

Frederic Milton Thrasher was a sociologist at the University of Chicago. He was a colleague of Robert E. Park and was one of the most prominent members of the Chicago School of Sociology in the 1920s....
's 3-group Gangs: - | J.W.S. Pringle
John William Sutton Pringle

Sir John William Sutton Pringle Fellow of the Royal Society was a British zoology. His research interests were in insect physiology, especially proprioception, flight muscle, and cicada song....
's 3 intellectual problems: - | Jerome Bruner
Jerome Bruner

Jerome Seymour Bruner is an United States psychologist who has contributed to cognitive psychology and cognitive learning theory in educational psychology and to the general philosophy of education....
's 3 cognitive processing modes: - | Wilhelm Wundt
Wilhelm Wundt

Wilhelm Maximilian Wundt was a Germany medical doctor, psychologist, physiologist, and professor, known today as one of the founding figures of modern psychology....
's 3 mind elements: - | Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound

Ezra Weston Loomis Pound was an United States expatriate poetry, critic and intellectual who was a major figure of the Modernist poetry movement in the first half of the 20th century....
's 3 poetic modes: - | Robert Sternberg
Robert Sternberg

Robert J. Sternberg , is an American psychologist and psychometrics and the Dean of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University. He was formerly IBM Professor of Psychology and Education at Yale University and the President of the American Psychological Association....
's 3 love components: - | Sternberg's Triarchic Intelligence: - | Paul D. MacLean
Paul D. MacLean

Paul D. MacLean was an United States physician and neuroscientist who made significant contributions in the fields of physiology, psychiatry, and brain research through his work at Yale Medical School and the National Institute of Mental Health....
's Triune Brain: - | J.A. Fodor
Jerry Fodor

Jerry Alan Fodor is an United States Philosophy and Cognitive science. He is the State of New Jersey Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers University and is also the author of many works in the fields of philosophy of mind and cognitive science, in which he has laid the groundwork for the modularity of mind and the language of thought hypothese...
's mind Taxonomy: - | Plato
Plato

Plato , was a Classical Greece Greeks philosopher, mathematician, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Platonic Academy in Ancient Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the western world....
's Tripartite soul: - | William Herbert Sheldon's body types: - | Ernst Kretschmer
Ernst Kretschmer

Ernst Kretschmer Prof. Dr. med. Dr. phil. h.c., was a psychiatrist who researched the human constitution and established a typology....
's body types: - | K.J.W. Craik
Kenneth Craik

Kenneth James Williams Craik was a philosopher and psychologist who studied philosophy at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, and received his doctorate from University of Cambridge in 1940....
's 3 reasoning processes: - | Francis Galton
Francis Galton

Sir Francis Galton Fellow of the Royal Society , Cousin#Half_cousins of Charles Darwin, was an England Victorian era polymath, anthropologist, Eugenics, tropical List of explorers, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto-geneticist, Psychometrics, and statistician....
's 3 genius traits: Intellect~ Zeal~ Power of working

In education

3 R's: Reading~ 'Riting~ 'Rithmetic
3 divisions: Elementary (Grade) School~ Middle (Jr. High or Intermediate) School~ High (Sr. High) School
3 levels: Primary (~Elementary) Education~ Secondary (~Jr. + Sr. High) Education~ Tertiary (College, University, Polytechnical Institute, TAFE) Education
3 University degrees: Bachelor's~ Master's- Ph.D
3 University distinctions: Cum Laude~ Magna Cum Laude~ Suma Cum Laude
3 testing formats: True/False~ Multiple Choice~ Essay
3 levels to grade formulas: A+ (A plus)~ A (A neutral)~ A- (A minus)
3 good grade divisions: A~ B~ C
3 rings of the school bell return children to class after a fire drill.
3 ring notebooks are one standard of usage for holding looseleaf notebook paper (2 is another in lever-arch).
3-number combination locks are a standard usage for lockers.

In politics
Plato
Plato

Plato , was a Classical Greece Greeks philosopher, mathematician, writer of philosophical dialogues, and founder of the Platonic Academy in Ancient Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the western world....
split his utopian city into three populations: laborers, guardians (warriors), and philosophers (rulers)
Several polities have been ruled by three persons in a triumvirate
Triumvirate

The term triumvirate is commonly used to describe a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals. The arrangement can be formal or informal, and though the three are usually equal on paper, in reality this is rarely the case....
or a troika
Troika (triumvirate)

Troika is a committee consisting of three members....
.
As well, medieval theory divided society in laboratores (peasants), bellatores (noble warriors) and oratores (clergy
Clergy

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. The term comes from the Greek language ?????? - kleros, "a lot", "that which is assigned by lot" or metaphorically, "heritage"....
). An earlier division had only the potentes ("powerful", warriors) and the powerless.
In the Ancient Regime, the estates of the realm
Estates of the realm

The Estates of the realm were the broad divisions of society, usually distinguishing nobility, clergy, and commoners recognized in the Middle Ages and later in some parts of Europe....
(e.g. the French Estates General) were divided in a branch for aristocracy
Aristocracy

Aristocracy is a form of government, in which a few of the most prominent citizens rule. This may be a hereditary elite, or it may be by a system of cooption where a council of prominent citizens add leading soldiers, merchants, land owners, priests, and lawyers to their number....
, another for the Catholic hierarchy and the Third Estate for rich peasants and bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie

Bourgeoisie is a classification used in analyzing human societies to describe a social class of people. Historically, the bourgeoisie comes from the middle or merchant classes of the Middle Ages, whose status or power came from employment, education, and wealth, as distinguished from those whose power came from being born into an aristocrati...
. The triumph of the Third Estate is the French Revolution
French Revolution

The French Revolution was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudalism for the aristocracy and Roman Catholic Church clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on Age of Enlightenment principles of cit...
.
By analogy to the Third Estate, the Third World
Third World

Third World is a categorical label used to describe states that are considered to be developed in terms of their economy or level of industrialization, globalization, standard of living, health, education or other criteria for 'advancements'....
(poor countries or non-aligned countries) was defined as different from the First World
First World

The terms First World, Second World, and Third World were used to divide nations into three broad categories. The three terms did not arise simultaneously....
(led by the United States) and the Second World
Second World

The term "Second World" is a phrase that was used to describe the Communist states within the Soviet Union's sphere of influence or those countries that had centrally-planned economies....
(led by the Soviet Union).
The "third way"
Third way (centrism)

The Third Way is a term that has been used to describe a variety of political philosophies of governance that embrace a mix of free market and Economic interventionism philosophies....
is a political term applied to a variety of "third choice" options that some offer as an alternative to dichotomous situations which may otherwise appear polarized.
After the fall of Constantinople
Fall of Constantinople

The Fall of Constantinople was a siege in which the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan Mehmed II attempted to capture the capital of the Byzantine Empire, Constantinople which was defended by the army of Emperor Constantine XI....
, the Tsars considered Moscow as the Third Rome
Third Rome

The term Third Rome describes the idea that some European city, state, or country is the successor to the legacy of the Roman Empire, with Byzantium being the "second Rome."...
.
Also Nazism considered Nazi Germany the Third Reich after the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
and the Prussian Empire.
There are three branches to the US government; executive, legislative, and judicial.
Alvin Toffler
Alvin Toffler

Alvin Toffler is an United States writer and futures studies, known for his works discussing the digital revolution, communications revolution, corporate revolution and technological singularity....
's The Third Wave
The Third Wave (book)

The Third Wave is a book published in 1980 by Alvin Toffler. It is the sequel to Future Shock, published in 1970, and the second in a trilogy that was completed with Powershift: Knowledge, Wealth and Violence at the Edge of the 21st Century in 1990....
considers that the late twentieth century saw the beginning of a third wave of change in post-industrial civilization after the Neolithic
Neolithic

The Neolithic period was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 Before the Christian Era in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age....
and the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, production, and transportation had a profound effect on the socioeconomics and cultural conditions in United Kingdom....
.
The Third International supported Leninism.
Cenocracy is the word coined to represent what is believed by some to be the next and superior step to present day forms of Democratic rule. It is based on the notion that before a society can truly achieve a government Of-By-and For the people, the people themselves must play a direct part (and not be represented vicariously) in the law-making process. To this end, every man, woman, and worker must have access to such a role, thus constituting a true 3rd branch legislative body. For example, each State in the United States would adopt an ongoing list of self-elected candidates from which the 3 aforementioned persons would be randomly selected to fulfill one-year terms of office with at least the same pay, privileges and legislative power commensurate to all other congressional members.

As a lucky or unlucky number
Three (?, formal writing: ?, pinyin
Pinyin

Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most commonly used Romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu is the Chinese Language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"....
san1, Cantonese: saam1) is considered a good number
Numerology

Numerology is any of many systems, traditions or beliefs in a mysticism or esoteric relationship between numbers and physical objects or living things....
in Chinese culture because it sounds like the word "alive" (? pinyin
Pinyin

Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most commonly used Romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu is the Chinese Language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"....
sheng1, Cantonese: saang1), compared to four
4 (number)

This article discusses the number Four. For the year 4 AD, see 4. For other uses of 4, see 4 4 is a number, numeral, and glyph....
(?, pinyin
Pinyin

Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most commonly used Romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu is the Chinese Language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"....
: si4, Cantonese: sei3) that sounds like the word "death" (? pinyin
Pinyin

Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most commonly used Romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu is the Chinese Language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"....
si3, Cantonese: sei2).

Counting to three is common in situations where a group of people wish to perform an action in synchrony: Now, on the count of three, everybody pull! Assuming the counter is proceeding at a uniform rate, the first two counts are necessary to establish the rate, but then everyone can predict when "three" will come based on "one" and "two"; this is likely why three is used instead of some other number.

In Vietnam
Vietnam

Vietnam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam , is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by People's Republic of China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east....
, it is bad luck to take a photo with three people in it.

Luck
Luck

Luck is a chance happening, or that which happens beyond a person's control. Luck can be good or bad ....
, especially bad luck, is often said to "come in threes".

Some cultures in history have a place for people of third gender
Third gender

The terms third gender and third sex describe individuals who are considered to be neither women nor men, as well as the social category present in those societies who recognize three or more genders....
such as in Thailand.

It is often believed that people die in threes. This only includes people in one's personal sphere (ie. directly impact on one's day-to-day life).

There is a superstition that states it is unlucky to take a third light, that is, to be the third person to light a cigarette from the same match or lighter. This is commonly believed to date from the trenches of the First World War when a sniper might see the first light, take aim on the second and fire on the third.

3 strikes and the player is out.

3rd time's the charm.

In technology

The resin identification code
Resin identification code

The SPI resin identification coding system is a set of symbols placed on plastics to identify the polymer type. It was developed by the Society of the Plastics Industry in 1988, and used internationally....
used in recycling to identify polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride

Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is the third most widely used thermoplastic polymer after polyethylene and polypropylene....
.
On computer keyboards, in the United Kingdom the "3" key may be used to type the pound sign
Pound sign

.The pound sign is the symbol for the pound sterling?the currency of the United Kingdom . The same symbol is used for currencies of the same name in some other countries and territories; there are other countries whose currency is called "the pound", but that do not use the ? symbol....
when pressed in combination with the shift key.
On most telephone keypad
Telephone keypad

A telephone keypad is a keypad that appears on a ?Touch Tone? telephone. It was standardised when the dual-tone multi-frequency system was introduced in the 1960s, and replaced the rotary dial....
s, the "3" key is also associated with the letters "D
D

D is the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled dee , plural dees....
", "E
E

E is the fifth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled e , plural ees . The letter E is the most commonly used letter in the Czech language, Danish language, Dutch language, English language, French language, German language, Hungarian language, Latin language, Norwegian language, Spanish language...
", and "F
F

F is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled ef or eff ....
".
In ASCII
ASCII

American Standard Code for Information Interchange , is a coding standard that can be used for interchanging information, if the information is expressed mainly by the written form of English words....
, the code for "3" in hexadecimal is 33. This is the only character in ASCII such that a large file consisting of a single character has identical-looking hexadecimal and normal representation.
The glyph "3" may be used as a substitute for yogh
Yogh

The letter yogh was used in Middle English and Middle Scots, representing y and various velar consonant phonemes. Velars are sounds that are usually made when the back of the tongue is pressed against the soft palate....
or ze
Ze (Cyrillic)

Ze is a letter of the Cyrillic alphabet, representing the consonant . It's easily confusable with the figure 3 . It can also be confused with the Russian letter E , which represents the vowel when it does not follow a soft consonant....
when those characters are not available.
Three is the minimum odd number of voting components for simple easy redundancy checks by direct comparison.
Three is approximately pi
Pi

Pi or p is a mathematical constant whose value is the ratio of any circle's circumference to its diameter in Euclidean geometry; this is the same value as the ratio of a circle's area to the square of its radius....
(actually closer to 3.14159) when doing rapid engineering guesses or estimates. The same is true if one wants a rough-and-ready estimate of e
E (mathematical constant)

The mathematical constant e is the unique real number such that the function ex has the same value as the derivative, for all values of x....
, which is actually approximately 2.7183.
Some computer
Computer

A computer is a machine that manipulates Data according to a list of Code .The first devices that resemble modern computers date to the mid-20th century , although the computer concept and various machines similar to computers existed earlier....
users may use "3" as an alternate to the letter "E
E

E is the fifth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled e , plural ees . The letter E is the most commonly used letter in the Czech language, Danish language, Dutch language, English language, French language, German language, Hungarian language, Latin language, Norwegian language, Spanish language...
", often in jest or to prevent search engines from reading their messages. This form of code is an example of basic Leetspeak.
"3" is the DVD region code
DVD region code

DVD video discs may be encoded with a region code restricting the area of the world in which they can be played. Discs without region coding are called all region or region 0 discs....
for many East Asian countries, except for Japan (which is Region 2) and China (which is Region 6).

In music

In music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
, the Roman numeral iii is the mediant
Mediant

In music, the mediant is the third degree of the diatonic Scale , being the "middle" note of the Tonic triad .In music theory, the mediant chord is symbolized by the Roman numeral III if it is major or iii if it is minor....
scale degree, chord
Chord (music)

In music and music theory a chord is a set of two or more different note that sound simultaneously. Most often, in European-influenced music, chords are tertian Sonority that can be constructed as stacks of thirds relative to some underlying musical scale....
, or diatonic function
Diatonic function

A diatonic function, in tonality music theory, is the specific, recognized role of each note and chord in relation to the key .Three general and inseparable essential features of harmonic function in tonal music are:...
, when distinguished III = major and iii = minor.
Three is the number of performers in a trio
Trio (music)

Trio is generally used in any of the following ways:*Three musicians playing the same or different musical instrument.*The performance of a song by three people....
.
There are 3 notes in a triad
Triad (music)

In music and music theory, a triad is a three-note chord that can be stacked in thirds. Its members, when actually stacked in thirds, from lowest pitched tone to highest, are called:...
, the most important and basic form of any chord
Chord (music)

In music and music theory a chord is a set of two or more different note that sound simultaneously. Most often, in European-influenced music, chords are tertian Sonority that can be constructed as stacks of thirds relative to some underlying musical scale....
.
Any diatonic chord progression's key signature
Key signature

In musical notation, a key signature is a series of Sharp or Flat symbols placed on the staff , designating note s that are to be consistently played one semitone higher or lower than the equivalent natural sign notes unless otherwise altered with an Accidental ....
is made obvious with any 3 different triads, as opposed to potential key ambiguities with any 2 chords.
The tritone
Tritone

The tritone is a musical interval that spans three major second. The tritone is the same as an augmented fourth, which in equal temperament is enharmonic to a diminished fifth....
, which divides the octave
Octave

In music, an octave The octave is occasionally referred to as a diapason.The octave above an indicated note is sometimes abbreviated 8va, and the octave below 8vb....
into 3 equally spaced notes (root, tritone, octave) is the rarest interval
Interval (music)

In music theory, the term interval describes the relationship between the pitch of two notes.Intervals may be described as:*vertical if the two notes sound simultaneously...
of any mode
Musical mode

Mode is a term from Western music theory having three senses: the rhythmic relationship between long and short values in the late medieval period; in early medieval theory, Interval ; and, most commonly, a concept involving Musical scale and melody type ....
, only occurring semantically twice, and physically once. It is the only interval that, when inverted, remains unchanged functionally and harmonically.
The 3/4 time signature of Western classical music tradition (Three beats to a measure, with the quarter note comprising the beat.) is said to represent the Holy Trinity of Christian doctrine, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is for this reason that it is often utilized in compositions which were written for use in ecclesiastical rites, or that are inspired by scriptural/spiritual themes and texts.
In a standard jazz
Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
combo there are 3 necessary parts: bass, percussion, and chord maker.
In Indian classical music
Indian classical music

The origins of Indian classical music can be found from the oldest of scriptures, part of the Hindu tradition, the Vedas.The Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music at length....
, three equal repetitions of a rhythmic pattern is a common device called tihai
Tihai

The tihai is a poly-rhythmic device originating from Indian classical music. The basic format of the tihai is 3 equal repetitions of a rhythmic pattern, interspersed with 2 equal rests, and all five components adding up to the number of beats in the phrase....
.
3 is The Magic Number
The Magic Number

"The Magic Number" is a 1990 single by De La Soul, originally recorded in 1988 and first released on their 1989 album, 3 Feet High and Rising, with the chorus based on a segment from the children's show "Schoolhouse Rock!", written by Bob Dorough....
according to De La Soul.
3
3 (band)

3, also known as Three, is an United States progressive rock band formed in Woodstock, New York in the early 1990s in music.History...
is a progressive metal
Progressive metal

Progressive metal is a Fusion ; a mixture of progressive rock and Heavy metal music. Progressive metal blends the powerful, guitar-driven sound of metal with the complex compositional structures, odd time signatures, and intricate instrumental playing of progressive rock....
group from Woodstock, NY.
3rd Bridge
3rd Bridge

The 3rd bridge is an extended technique used on mainly electric guitars such as the Fender Jazzmaster that has the Strings continue through to the tremolo piece....
, an extended technique
Extended technique

Extended techniques are performance techniques used in music to describe unconventional, unorthodox or "improper" wiktionary:techniques of singing, or of playing musical instruments....
on string instruments

In geography

Several cities are known as Tripoli
Tripoli

Tripoli is the largest and Capital city of Libya.Tripoli has a population of 1.69 million. The city is located in the northwest of the country on the edge of the desert, on a point of rocky land projecting into the Mediterranean Sea and forming a bay....
from Greek for "three cities".
Sicilia was known as Trinacria
Trinacria

Trinacria is both an alternative name for Sicily and a synonym for its national symbol, the triskelion, which also appears on the flag of Sicily....
for its triangle-shape.
Three Mile Island is known for a nuclear accident.

In filmography

Three is a 1969 film starring Charlotte Rampling and Sam Waterston.
Three
Three (1965 film)

Three is a 1965 in film Cinema of Yugoslavia film directed by Aleksandar Petrovic. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film....
is a 1965 Yugoslavian
Cinema of Yugoslavia

Cinema of Yugoslavia was the Film of Yugoslavia....
film directed by Aleksandar Petrovic
Aleksandar Petrovic

Aleksandar "Sa?a" Petrovic was a well known Serbian film director who was one of the leading European directors in the 1960s. Two of his films were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film : Three in 39th Academy Awards and I Even Met Happy Gypsies in 40th Academy Awards....
.
Three
Three (film)

Three is a 2002 in film world cinema Asian cinema horror film collaboration consisting of three segments by three directors from three countries....
is a 2002 Asian horror movie collaboration.
Thr3e
Thr3e (film)

Thr3e is a 2006 film adaptation of the Thr3e by Ted Dekker....
is a 2007 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Ted Dekker.
Three, also known as Survival Island
Survival Island

Survival Island, also known as Three, is a 2006 film written and directed by Stewart Raffill. It stars Billy Zane, Kelly Brook, and Juan Pablo Di Pace....
is a 2006 film starring Billy Zane and Kelly Brook.
There is a 1977 film titled 3 Women
3 Women (film)

3 Women is a 1977 in film directed by Robert Altman, starring Shelley Duvall, Sissy Spacek, and Janice Rule. The story came directly from a dream Altman had, which he did not fully understand, but nonetheless adapted into a treatment, intending to film without a script....
.
In both the film The Craft
The Craft

The Craft can refer to several things:* The Craft, an alternative and casual name for Freemasonry* The Craft , a 1996 film* The Craft, an alternate name for witchcraft or, in some cases, Wicca...
and the fantasy television series Charmed
Charmed

Charmed is an award-winning, Television in the United States cult television series that originally aired from October 7, 1998 until May 21, 2006, when its network, The WB Television Network, ceased operation....
, the "power of three" has been used as part of wiccan incantations.
The Three Stooges, a comedy group made up of "Larry, Moe, and Curly" and later "Larry, Moe, and Shemp" in the early- to mid-20th century.

In sports

In Bowling
Bowling

Bowling is a game in which players attempt to score points by rolling a bowling ball along a flat surface either into objects called Bowling pin or to get close to a target ball....
, 3 strikes in a row is called a turkey.
In ice hockey
Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to simply as hockey, is a team sport played on ice. It is a fast paced and physical sport. Ice hockey is most popular in areas that are sufficiently cold for natural reliable seasonal ice cover such as Canada, the northern United States, Scandinavia and Russia, though with the advent of indoor artificial ice r...
, a game consists of 3 periods of twenty minutes each.
In rugby union
Rugby union

Rugby union is a competitive outdoor contact sport, played with an oval ball, by two teams of 15 players. It is one of the two main codes of rugby football, the other being rugby league....
, 3 is the jersey number of the starting tighthead prop
Rugby union positions

A rugby union team is made up of 15 players: eight forwards, numbered from 1 to 8; and seven backs, numbered from 9 to 15. Depending upon the competition, there may be up to seven replacements....
. It is also the number of points received for a successful drop goal or penalty kick.
In baseball
Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport of nine players each. The goal of baseball is to score run by hitting a thrown Baseball with a baseball bat and touching a series of four markers called base arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot square, or diamond. Players on one team take turns hitting against...
, 3 is the number of strikes before the batter is out
Strikeout

In baseball or softball, a strikeout or strike out occurs when a batter receives three strike during his time at bat. Strikeouts are associated with dominance on the part of the pitcher , although it is recognized that the style of swing that generates home runs also leaves the batter somewhat susceptible to striking out....
and the number of outs per side per inning. It also represents the first baseman
First baseman

First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunning in order to score a run for that player's team....
's position. The number 3 position in the batting order is generally occupied by the team's best hitter. In high school and college, 3 is the maximum "drop" (inches of length minus ounces of weight) for a legal bat. 3 is the retired number of Baseball Hall of Fame
List of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame (alphabetical)

In 1936, elections commenced for selection of worthy individuals to be honored by induction to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Through January 2009, a total of 289 individuals have been selected; they are listed below with their field position or other area of accomplishment and their year of selection....
players Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth

George Herman Ruth, Jr. , also popularly known as "Babe", "The Bambino", and "The Sultan of Swat", was an United States Major League Baseball baseball player from –....
, Joe Medwick
Joe Medwick

Joseph Michael Medwick , nicknamed "Ducky", was an United States player in Major League Baseball. A highly competitive left fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals during the "Gashouse Gang" era of the 1930s, he also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers , San Francisco Giants , and Atlanta Braves ....
, Bill Terry
Bill Terry

William Harold Terry was a Major League Baseball first baseman and manager . Considered one of the greatest players of all time, Terry was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1954....
, and Harmon Killebrew
Harmon Killebrew

Harmon Clayton Killebrew is a former Major League Baseball player and member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In a 22-year major league career, he was second only to Babe Ruth in American League home runs and retired as the career leader in home runs by a right-handed batter ....
. Gary Sheffield
Gary Sheffield

Gary Antonian Sheffield is a Major League Baseball player for the Detroit Tigers. During his career, he has played for seven major league ball clubs....
and Ken Griffey Jr wear the number three.
In basketball
Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five active players each try to score points against one another by propelling a basketball through a 10 feet high hoop under organized rules....
, a shot made from behind the three-point arc
Three-point field goal

A three-point field goal is a Field goal in a basketball game, made from beyond the three-point line, a designated semi-oval arc radiating from the basket....
is worth 3 points. 3 is used to represent the small forward
Small forward

The small forward, or, colloquially, the three, is one of the five basketball#Common techniques and practices in a regulation basketball game....
position.
Is the number of the famous NASCAR
NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the largest sanctioning body of stock cars in the United States. The three largest racing series sanctioned by NASCAR are the Sprint Cup Series, the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series....
stock car
Stock car racing

Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing found mainly in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Great Britain and Brazil. Traditionally, races are run on oval track racing measuring approximately ? mile to 2.66 miles length, but are also raced on road courses....
that Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt

Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his career driving stock cars in NASCAR's Winston Cup. Earnhardt had four children, Kerry Earnhardt, Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and Taylor Earnhardt....
drove for nearly 20 years before his death in 2001. He won 6 out of his 7 championships while driving the #3 car. Although NASCAR does not officially retire numbers, no one has driven the 3 car since his death. In IROC, Helio Castroneves
Hélio Castroneves

H?lio Castroneves is a Brazilian auto racing driver currently competing in the North American IndyCar Series. In IndyCar competition, Castroneves has 12 wins and 25 poles, and has championship point finishes ranging from second to sixth in a complete season of racing....
had his car number changed from his standard 3 (which he drives in the Indy Racing League
Indy Racing League

The Indy Racing League, better known as IRL, is the sanctioning body of a predominantly American based open-wheel Auto racing.The League sanctions two series, the premier IndyCar Series , whose centerpiece is the Indianapolis 500, and Firestone Indy Lights, the official developmental series of the Indy Racing League....
) to number 03.
Traditional number for the Tyrrell
Tyrrell Racing

The Tyrrell Racing Organisation was an auto racing team and Formula One constructor founded by Ken Tyrrell and started racing in 1958, but started building its own cars in 1970....
Formula One
Formula One

Formula One, abbreviated to F1, and currently officially referred as the FIA Formula One World Championship is the highest class of auto racing sanctioned by the F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile ....
team's first car along with number 4 for the second until the end of the 1995 Formula One Season
1995 Formula One season

The 1995 Formula One season was the 46th F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile Formula One World Championship season. It began on March 26, 1995 included 17 races, and ended on November 12....
.
A hat-trick
Hat-trick

A hat-trick in sports is associated with succeeding at anything three times in three consecutive attempts. In North America it is often rendered as hat trick, with no hyphen....
in sports is associated with succeeding at anything three times in three consecutive attempts, as well as when any player in ice hockey scores three goals in one game (whether or not in succession). In Cricket
Cricket

Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games team sport that originated in southern England. The earliest definite reference is dated 1598, and it is now played in more than 100 countries....
, 3 outs in a row is called a hat trick.
In volleyball
Volleyball

Volleyball is an Olympic Games team sport in which two teams of 6 active players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules....
, is the number of sets needed to be won to win the whole match.
In both American and Canadian football
Canadian football

Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played chiefly in Canada in which two teams of twelve players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide , attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area ....
, the number of points received for a successful field goal
Field goal (football)

A field goal in American football and Canadian football is a Goal that may be scored during general play .A field goal may be scored by a placekick or the now very rare Field goal #Drop kick....
. (An exception is in six-man football
Six-man football

Six-man football is a variant of high school American football that is played with six players per team, instead of 11....
where the field goal is worth four points.)
In Canadian football, the last down before a team loses possession on downs. Usually, a team faced with a third down will punt (if far from the opponent's goal line) or attempt a field goal (if relatively close).
An Ironman triathlon
Ironman Triathlon

An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organised by the World Triathlon Corporation consisting of a 2.4 mile Swimming, 112 mile Bicycle racing and 26.2 mile Marathon run....
consists of three events, a 2.4 mile (3.86 kilometer) swim, a 112 mile (180.2 kilometer) bike ride, and a 26.2 mile (42.2 kilometer) marathon run.
In football
Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players, and is widely considered to be the most popular sport in the world....
, number 3 is assigned in most cases to the left defender or fullback.
On March 24, 2006 the number 3 became the second number retired by the New Jersey Devils in honor of defenseman Ken Daneyko
Ken Daneyko

Kenneth "Ken" Daneyko is a retired ice hockey Defenceman who played his entire career with the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League....
.

In literature

3 is the number of words or phrases in a Tripartite motto.
3 is the number of novels or films in a trilogy
Trilogy

A trilogy is a set of three works of art, usually literature, film, or video games, that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or three individual works....
and the number of interconnected works of art in a triptych
Triptych

A triptych is a work of art which is divided into three sections, or three Wood carving panels which are hinged together and folded. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works; the diptych has two panels....
.
The tricolon
Tricolon

A tricolon is a sentence with three clearly defined parts of equal length, usually independent clauses and of increasing power.However, the English is not a true tricolon, for its verbs are not all the same length, as is the case in the Latin....
is often used for rhetorical effect.
Thr3e
Thr3e

THR3E is a 2003 suspense novel written by thriller author Ted Dekker....
is a 2003 suspense novel written by Thriller author Ted Dekker.
Dante Alighieri
Dante Alighieri

Durante degli Alighieri , commonly known as Dante Alighieri, was a Florence poet of the Middle Ages. His Magnum opus, the Divine Comedy , is often considered the greatest literary work composed in the Italian language and a masterpiece of world literature....
's Divine Comedy has three parts each of thirty-three cantos (plus one introductory canto totaling 100). It was written in terza rima
Terza rima

Terza rima is a rhyme Verse stanza form that consists of an interlocking three line rhyme scheme. It was first used by the Italian poetry poet Dante Alighieri....
, a combination of tercet
Tercet

A tercet is three lines of poetry, forming a stanza or complete poem. Haiku is an example of an unrhymed tercet poem.Other types of tercet include an enclosed tercet where the lines rhyme in an a b a pattern and terza rima where the a b a pattern of a verse is continued in the next verse by making the outer lines of the next stanza...
s. All of this is an allusion to the Christian Trinity.
The number three recurs several times in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings is an Epic poetry high fantasy novel written by Philology J.R.R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work....
and also in The Silmarillion
The Silmarillion

The Silmarillion is a collection of J. R. R. Tolkien's Mythopoeia works, edited and published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in 1977, with assistance from Guy Gavriel Kay, who later became a noted fantasy writer....
. Three Rings of Power were given to the Elves
Elf (Middle-earth)

In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, an Elf is an individual member of one of the races that inhabit the lands of Arda. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described in full only in The Silmarillion, edited and published after Tolkien's death....
. There are three Silmarils. The unions of the Eldar
Sundering of the Elves

In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, the Elf are a sundered people. They awoke at Cuivi?nen on the continent of Middle-earth , where they were divided into three tribes: Minyar , Tatyar and Nelyar ....
(Elves) and the Edain
Edain

In the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, the Edain were Man who made their way into Beleriand in the First Age, and were friendly to the Elves.The Sindarin word Edain , singular Adan literally meant Second People, and originally referred to all Men, but later it only applied to the Men of Beleriand and their descendants....
(Men) were three in number: Beren
Beren

Beren is a fictional character in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He appears in The Silmarillion....
and Lúthien
Lúthien

L?thien Tin?viel is a fictional character in the fantasy-world Middle-earth of the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. She appears in The Silmarillion, the epic poetry The Lay of Leithian, The Lord of the Rings and the Grey Annals, as well as in other material....
, Tuor
Tuor

Tuor is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth Tolkien's legendarium. He is the grandfather of Elrond Half-elven and one of the most renowned ancestors of the Men of N?menor and of the King of the Reunited Kingdom Aragorn....
and Idril
Idril

Idril Celebrindal is a fictional character in the fantasy-world Middle-earth of English author J. R. R. Tolkien. She appears in one of his chief works of literature, The Silmarillion, published posthumously by Christopher Tolkien....
, and (of course) Aragorn
Aragorn

Aragorn II is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. He is also known as Strider. He is first introduced in The Fellowship of the Ring, and becomes a central character in the story of The Lord of the Rings....
and Arwen
Arwen

Arwen Und?miel is a character in J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his best-known novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes....
.
Three Blind Mice
Three Blind Mice

Three Blind Mice is an English language nursery rhyme and musical Round ....
is a children's nursery rhyme and musical round.
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers

The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, p?re. It recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to become a Musketeers of the Guard....
is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, and is part of a trilogy
Trilogy

A trilogy is a set of three works of art, usually literature, film, or video games, that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or three individual works....
.
Three Sisters
Three Sisters (play)

Three Sisters is a play by Russian author and playwright Anton Chekhov. Written in 1900 in literature and first produced in 1901, It is considered one of Chekhov's major plays....
is a play by Anton Chekhov
Anton Chekhov

Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian Short story writer, playwright and physician, considered to be one of the greatest short-story writers in world literature....
.
A recurring theme in Arthur C. Clarke
Arthur C. Clarke

Sri Lankabhimanya Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, Order of the British Empire was a British people science fiction author, inventor, and Futurology, most famous for the novel 2001: A Space Odyssey , written in collaboration with director Stanley Kubrick, a collaboration which also produced the 2001: A Space Odyssey ; and as a host and comment...
's Rama series is the observation that "the Ramans do everything in threes."

Original scholarly articles/reviews about the three

The Number Three in The American Culture. A selected chapter found in the book entitled "Every Man His Way" (1967- 68) by Alan Dundes.
"People in Threes Going Up in Smoke and Other Triplicities in Russian Literature and Culture" (Fall 2005, Rocky Mountain Review) by Lee B. Croft.
"Buckland's Third Revolution" (1997- 98) and "Three Wise Men" (1984 - 85) posters by Herb O. Buckland.

In other fields

Three is:
Three are the values of French Revolution
French Revolution

The French Revolution was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudalism for the aristocracy and Roman Catholic Church clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on Age of Enlightenment principles of cit...
(liberty
Liberty

Liberty, the freedom to act or believe without being stopped by unnecessary force, is generally considered in modern time to be a concept of political philosophy and identifies the condition in which an individual has the right to act according to his or her own free will....
, equality
Social equality

Social equality is a society state of affairs in which all people within a specific society or isolated group have the same status in a certain respect....
, fraternity) , and the colors of French flag.
Three is a mobile phone operator.
The number of stars in "Pacific's triple star" in the God Defend New Zealand
God Defend New Zealand

"God Defend New Zealand" is one of the national anthems of New Zealand, together with "God Save the Queen". Although they both have equal status, "God Defend New Zealand" is the anthem that is in common use....
, one of New Zealand
New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous Islands of New Zealand, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands....
's two national anthems.
The phrase "Third time's the charm" (or, rarely, "Three time's the charm") usually means that the third time a person attempts something, he or she will succeed
Three-bean salad is an appetizer containing three types of beans, such as kidney, yellow
Common bean

The common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, is an herbaceous annual plant domesticated independently in ancient Mesoamerica and the Andes, and now grown worldwide for its edible bean, popular both dry and as a green bean....
, and green
Green bean

Green beans , French beans or runner beans , also called squeaky beans, are the unripe fruit of any kind of bean, including the yardlong bean, the hyacinth bean, the winged bean, and especially the common bean , whose pods are also usually called string beans in the northeastern United States, but can also go by snap b...
beans.
In most earlier video games, three lives were commonly given to players at the start.
The television
Television

Television is a widely used telecommunication mass-media for transmitting and receiving moving , either monochrome or color, usually accompanied by sound....
VHF channel most often used for hooking up VCRs and/or video game systems. If it is otherwise occupied by a local broadcaster, then channel 4 is used instead.
On most phones, the 3 key is associated with the letters D
D

D is the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled dee , plural dees....
, E
E

E is the fifth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled e , plural ees . The letter E is the most commonly used letter in the Czech language, Danish language, Dutch language, English language, French language, German language, Hungarian language, Latin language, Norwegian language, Spanish language...
, and F
F

F is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled ef or eff ....
, but on the BlackBerry
BlackBerry

The BlackBerry is a wireless handheld device introduced in 1999 as a two-way pager. In 2002, the more commonly known smartphone BlackBerry was released, which supports push e-mail, mobile telephone, text messaging, internet faxing, web browsing and other wireless information services as well as a multi-touch interface....
it is the key for U
U

U is the twenty-first letter in the modern Latin alphabet. Its name in English language is spelled u ....
and I
I

I is the ninth Letter of the Latin alphabet. Its English language name is i ....
.
"In Memory of 3" - a phrase about NASCAR
NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is the largest sanctioning body of stock cars in the United States. The three largest racing series sanctioned by NASCAR are the Sprint Cup Series, the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series....
driver Dale Earnhardt
Dale Earnhardt

Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his career driving stock cars in NASCAR's Winston Cup. Earnhardt had four children, Kerry Earnhardt, Kelley Earnhardt Elledge, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and Taylor Earnhardt....
, who drove the number 3 car. It can also refer to a 2004 ESPN
ESPN

ESPN is a United States cable television Television network dedicated to Broadcasting of sports events and producing sports-related programming 24 hours a day....
television movie
Television movie

A television movie is a feature film that is produced for and originally distributed by a television network....
about Earnhardt's life called, 3: The Dale Earnhardt Story
3: The Dale Earnhardt Story

3: The Dale Earnhardt Story or sometimes referred to as The Dale Earnhardt Movie is a 2004 television movie produced by ESPN documenting the life of NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt, his poor upbringing in Kannapolis, North Carolina, his rise to dominance in NASCAR, his relationship with his son, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., and his Death of Da...
.
No. 3
No. 3

No. 3 is a South Korean gangster comedy film film. It stars Han Suk-kyu as the titular no. 3 man of a gangster organization who's aspiring to rise up the ranks and become the leader of his own gang....
- 1997 Korea
Korea

Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries, a civilization, and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia....
n gangster comedy
Comedy film

Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on Humour. Also, films in this style typically have a happy ending . One of the oldest genres in film, some of the very first silent movies were comedies....
written and directed by Neung-han Song
In Astrology
Astrology

Astrology is a group of systems, traditions, and beliefs which hold that the relative positions of astronomical object and related details can provide useful information about personality, human affairs, and other terrestrial matters....
, Gemini
Gemini (astrology)

Gemini is the third astrological sign in the Zodiac, originating from the Gemini . In western astrology, this sign is no longer aligned with the constellation as a result of the Precession ....
is the 3rd astrological sign
Astrological sign

Astrological signs represent twelve equal segments or divisions of the zodiac. According to astrology, celestial phenomena reflect or govern human activity on the principle of "Macrocosm and microcosm", so that the twelve signs are held to represent twelve basic personality types or characteristic modes of expression....
of the Zodiac
Zodiac

Zodiac denotes an annual cycle of twelve stations along the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun across the heavens through the constellations that divide the ecliptic into twelve equal zones of celestial longitude....
.
The number 3 is often used as a literary device to provoke a feeling of unnaturalness, as twos
2 (number)

2 is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3 ....
are much more common in nature (limbs
Limb (anatomy)

A limb is a jointed, or prehensile , appendage of the human or other animal body.Most animals use limbs for locomotion, such as walking, running, or climbing....
, hemispheres, eyes, etc). This is a prevailing theme
Theme (literature)

A theme is a simile used to relate to idioms and or literary work a message or lesson conveyed by a written text. This message is usually about life, society or human nature....
in Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury

Ray Douglas Bradbury is an United States literature, fantasy, Horror fiction, science fiction, and mystery writer.Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles, Bradbury is widely considered one of the greatest and most popular American writers of speculative fiction of the twentieth century....
's novel Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian speculative fiction novel authored by Ray Bradbury and first published in 1953.The novel presents a future American society in which the masses are Hedonism, and critical thought through reading is outlawed....
. The aliens and their machines in the 2005 film War of the Worlds
War of the Worlds (2005 film)

War of the Worlds is a 2005 in film science fiction-disaster film based on H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds starring Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning and Justin Chatwin....
were associated with features recurring in threes: eyes, legs, fingers, etc, for this same reason.
Threesome
Threesome

File:Wiki-gangbang.pngA threesome is a form of group sex involving three people of any gender combination....
is a term for sexual relations between three people.
A tricycle
Tricycle

A tricycle is a three-wheeled vehicle. The term may or may not include Three_wheeled_vehicle, depending on the law or local preference....
has three wheels.
The standard number of lives in many arcade video games, such as Pac-Man
Pac-Man

is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway Games, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular in the United States from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is universally considered as one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games, and...
, Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man
Mega Man (video game)

Mega Man, known as in Japan, is a video game video game developer and video game publisher by Capcom in 1987 in video gaming for the Nintendo Entertainment System....
.
In Archeology- three Giza Pyramids: Khufu
Khufu

Khufu was a Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt's Old Kingdom. He reigned from around 2589 to 2566 B.C. Khufu was the second pharaoh of the Fourth dynasty of Egypt....
, Khafre, and Menkaure (Giza pyramid complex
Giza pyramid complex

The Giza Necropolis stands on the Giza Plateau, on the outskirts of Cairo, Egypt. This complex of ancient monuments is located some 8 km inland into the desert from the old town of Giza on the Nile, some 25 km southwest of Cairo city centre....
).

See also

External links
by Michael Eck by Dr. John A. McNulty