A statistician learns from a forestry textbook

Last year I re-read The Lady Tasting Tea, an excellent book by David Salsburg that covers the history of statistics in the 20th century. From the many pioneer statisticians he discusses, George Box is an interesting one.?

Box was the statistician that popularized the phrase "all models are wrong, but some are useful." He became a British statistician who researched quality assurance and quality control, among many topics.?

But prior to that, Box was a member of the British Army. He was doing chemical research during World War II when he was encouraged to learn more statistical procedures. His colonel asked him if he knew anything about statistics.?

Box confessed that he tried to read a textbook by the trailblazing statistician R.A. Fisher, but couldn't comprehend it. So, Box was provided a reading list of statistical methods, which included a book "dealing with forestry and range management." And his career took off from there.?

This small note in the book was a useful reminder to me. People can be shaped by perspectives from outside their own discipline. While there is certainly a deep history in forestry and agricultural experiments that have helped shape the field of statistics, the fact that a pioneer in statistics learned from a forestry text shows us that learning can be shaped from different disciplines. Box had a tremendous impact in statistics. He became the first chair of the Department of Statistics at the University of Wisconsin in 1960.

Continue to learn things from a range of disciplines. Read, listen, and study broadly. You might be surprised how it can advance your work in the field of forestry.?

P.S. If anyone has any ideas on which forestry book Box stumbled on, leave a comment. My best guess is it was published in the 1930s or early 1940s, likely from a British author.