Statistical Modeling in Agriculture: From Foundational Concepts to Modern Applications

This chapter discusses various scientific questions related to agriculture and how they necessitated the birth and development of important statistical methods. It reflects on and elaborates questions arising directly from the agricultural revolution, which motivated the development of foundational statistical concepts such as regression and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). We then describe a set of contemporary questions, including a detailed statistical study on the correction of Teesta River flow measurements, which supports the agricultural needs of India and Bangladesh. We also present a study on modeling the shape of contiguous precipitation areas captured by satellite imagery, addressing scientific questions related to rainfall convective systems. This model serves as a foundation for further modeling and method development. Additionally, the chapter presents statistical models for rare and extreme yet impactful events. It concludes with future directions of development of statistical methods in these areas, considering the opportunities and challenges that come with modern large and complex data.