[Wolfstar]

Pattern recognition is hard-wired into the human brain. Without it we would not be able to do many of the things that make us unique among species. Reading, music, art, language, architecture, mathematics, science, photography, television and movies, and many other aspects of civilization simply would not exist without our pattern recognition ability. Even our ability to recognize different faces is due to our pattern recognition ability.

However, what you have described is not pattern recognition, but it is called by other names: intuition, precognition, 6th sense. You have indicated your religious faith informs your "pattern of three" beliefs. I am not one to argue the pros and cons of anyone else's religious faith. But the fact of the matter is that almost every situation we encounter is similar to an immense number of previous situations going back to our earliest infancy. Every day of our lives is a learning experience, and our brains build on everything we have ever learned to inform us moment by moment throughout our lives.

You believe as you do because of the unique set of experiences that make up the sum total of your unique life. The same is true of every individual on the planet.

As for the topic of this thread -- a celebrity death -- and whether they come in threes, empirical evidence resoundingly says no. You are, of course, free to believe as you wish, but if you are at all interested in facts, you might consider looking here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deaths_in_2010

This month of May 2010, alone, 276 notable people have died, and we still have three days left in the month. That averages out to just over 10 notable people per day. They ranged in age from 17 to 114, with the average age at time of death being 73. They were actors, politicians, sports figures, authors, coaches, scientists, educators, and other notables. Worldwide, approximately 56 to 57 million human beings die each year. We don't see the deaths occurring around us every day, so are unaware of the scale of passings annually. The news media informs us of only a tiny fraction of the deaths, even of notable people. So again, whether or not you have a pattern of three in your own life is for you to decide. But empirically, when it comes to celebrity deaths, there is no such pattern. There is only myth.

[GOP Poet]

You must be an INTJ. :-) Ever hear of Meyers-Briggs Personality Type. You are not wrong. You have just described only one element of patterning. Monkey Face is describing another external force patterning that is truly based on synchronistic events as well as clear force from the outside.

[Monkey Face]

Pattern of three. OK then. I was mythtaken.