Perhaps it is just that instead of starting from the definition and building theory on top of it, we instead discover in the process composition that it is our knowing and believing that drives us in the building of a page which is informative, believable and accurate.
We discover patterns when we investigate working, viable systems and objects. From this we can build even better things. The value of a community is that reinforcement and augmentation can result when others view what we have begun to build. Suggestions, improvements and corrections make the design better. The Patterns are observed, formulated, refined, and validated in this kind of community. What we define we come to value, what we disregard we tend to destroy.
KellyJohnson? of Skunkworks fame said: never build a �plane you don�t believe in, we may translate that into Don't build a page you don't believe in.