Triplication: an important component of the modern scientific method

A scientific-study protocol, as defined here, is designed to deliver results from which inductive inference is allowed. In the nineteenth century, triplication was introduced into the plant sciences and Fisher's p<0.05 rule (1925) was incorporated into a triple-result protocol designed to counter random/systematic errors. Aims here were to: (1) classify replication (including non-replicated) protocols; (2) assess their prevalence in plant-science studies published in 2017 for a defined variable construct; and (3) explore the theoretical rationale for the use of triplication. Methods: the plant sciences were surveyed and a protocol-prevalence report produced; association versus experimental proportions analyzed; and real-world-data proxies were used to show confidence-interval-width patterns with increasing replicate number. Results: triplication was found in ~70% of plant-science studies analyzed, with triple-result protocols observed in ~15%. Theoretical considerations showed that, even if systematic errors predominate, "square-root rules" sometimes apply, contributing to the predominance of triplication (real-world-data proxy examples given). Conclusions: Triplication was extensively applied in the studies analyzed and there are strong methodological reasons why (1) triplication, rather than duplication/quadruplication, is the most appropriate standard; (2) triple-result protocols are preferable to global averaging approaches; and (3) plant science methodological standards remain high, despite immense publication pressures. ; 41 pages, 6 figures. Supplemental files at https://github.com/Abiologist/Triplication.git