The Third World

The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned or neutral with either capitalism and NATO (which along with its allies represented the First World) or communism and the Soviet Union (which along with its allies represented the Second World). This definition provided a way of broadly categorizing the nations of the Earth into three groups based on social, political, and economic divisions. Although the term continues to be used to describe the poorest countries in the world, this usage is widely disparaged since the term no longer holds any verifiable meaning after the fall of the Soviet Union. While there is no identical contemporary replacement, common alternatives include developing world and Global South.  

Baseball

Baseball is quintessential threes.  It is three strikes, three outs, nine innings.  It is scored in hits, runs and errors.  A diamond has three bases (the fourth is home plate) and nine players.  Baseball is also one activity that’s consumed by averages.  There are batting averages, earned run averages, slugging percentages, on-base percentages, runs with runners in scoring position (an average), stolen base percentages and many more, including the obscure Mendoza Line named for shortstop Mario Mendoza whose lifetime batting average was .215, which is a modern demarcation between average and poor. 

But think about this.  Say, for instance, a baseball team has a record of 40 wins and 20 losses.  The team has played 60 games.  Commentators today say that team is playing 20 games above .500.  To play .500 baseball means you have won half and lost half, and in this instance that would result in a record of 30 wins and 30 losses.  In reality the team with 40 wins and 20 losses is playing only 10 games better than the .500 average (30 wins and 30 losses).   Do you agree or disagree?

Great News!

Threes the book is now available at Amazon for Kindle readers.

Storytelling

Have you ever wondered

• What the three little pigs, the three blind mice, Goldilocks and the three bears, the Three Musketeers, the three wise men and the Three Stooges have in common?

• Why the three-act structure is the dominant approach to screenwriting in Hollywood?

• Why three bullet points are more effective than two or four?

The Rule of Three works in stories due to the presence of the concise, memorable patterns that I mentioned above.  But even if that wasn’t the case, the number three has been used so widely throughout some of the most memorable works from our childhood, it’s likely that we are preconditioned to respond favorably to elements grouped in threes.

From Brian Clark, How to Use the “Rule of Three” to
Create Engaging Content at copyblogger.com/rule-of-three/