This interesting but all a bit wordy and meandering.
Tldr: The air force was using the average dimensions of their pilots to design aircraft. Coincident to this, there was a large number of downed planes questionably attributed to "pilot error" but that many believed to be from an unknown cause. A recruit from Harvard charged with collecting data on pilots realized few people were close to the average, and recommending cockpits be fit to each individual. The AF took the recommendation and eventually companies produced aircraft with adjustable seating and cockpits.
Tldr: The air force was using the average dimensions of their pilots to design aircraft. Coincident to this, there was a large number of downed planes questionably attributed to "pilot error" but that many believed to be from an unknown cause. A recruit from Harvard charged with collecting data on pilots realized few people were close to the average, and recommending cockpits be fit to each individual. The AF took the recommendation and eventually companies produced aircraft with adjustable seating and cockpits.
Tldr tldr: dont just reach for the average