As we are completing 3 happy years of SciTech Labs, I was wondering about this number 3. I realized that number 3 has a great significance in mathematics and science. On this memorable day when our community is competing its third year, let us look at some of the magical properties of 3.
3 is the smallest odd prime number. 3 marks the end of the prime number supremacy. The next number i.e. 4 is the first composite number in our number system. And 4 onward it follows one prime and one non-prime number in sequence for some time, before non-primes take the lead. In geometry, you need at least 3 sides to draw a figure i.e. a triangle. In Physics, you need at least 3 supports so that an object can stand in rest. 3 is also the limit of the dimensions we can visualize & understand.
In literature, 3 words are commonly used for a jingle or a memorable slogan. “Veni Vidi Vici”, “Do Or Die”, “Friend Philosopher Guide”, “Dance India Dance” are some of the examples we all know. Even in movies or in daily soaps, you will see its application to create emphasize like – “Tarikh pe tarikh, Tarikh pe tarikh, Tarikh pe tarikh” 🙂 Talking about movies, specially in Bollywood, you will often encounter 3 main characters, namely – the Hero, the Heroine, and the Villain.
Our understanding of time is also divided into 3 parts – Past, Present, and Future. We have divided the entire color space using three primary colors – Red, Green and Blue in RGB color code (or Cyan, Yellow, Magenta in another system). You see 3 wickets in cricket, and 3 umpires. In football, a hat trick means 3 times success. In athletics, 3 winners get selected – the 1st, 2nd, and the 3rd.
If that did not astonish you, I have a master stroke. In mathematics, two most beautiful numbers are π (3.14) and e (2.718). If you round them off, both roughly approximate to 3 🙂
Hence, there is no doubt 3 is very special. We are finishing off our 3rd year with a lot of learning in our bag, and a lot of dreams in our to-do list. I want to congratulate every member of this community for making it an awesome journey so far.
By the way… for those of you who are playing Ludo as a pass-time during this lockdown, I have a suggestion. 3 may be magical in all sense. But don’t you dare to make 3 sixes in a row, otherwise you are out!
~ Jeet Guha Thakurta
Scitech Labs 