“The conclusions of most good operations research studies are obvious.”

— Robert E. Machol

Cited in: Paul Dickson (1999) The official rules and explanations. p. 14
Machol named this the "Billings Phenomenon". Dickson explains: "The name refers to a well-known Billings story in which a farmer becomes concerned that his black horses are eating more than his white horses. He does a detailed study of the situation and finds that he has more black horses than white horses, Machol points out."
Principles of Operations Research (1975)

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Robert E. Machol 24

American systems engineer 1917–1998

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“The conclusions of most good operations research studies are obvious.”

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