Washington State University

About: Washington State University is a education organization based out in Pullman, Washington, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Gene. The organization has 26947 authors who have published 57736 publications receiving 2341509 citations. The organization is also known as: WSU & Wazzu.

Causal Ambiguity, Barriers to Imitation, and Sustainable Competitive Advantage

Abstract: This article addresses the issues of competitive advantage and competitor imitation. It is argued that tacitness, complexity, and specificity in a firm's skills and resources can generate causal ambiguity in competency-based advantage, and thus raise barriers to imitation. Reinvestment in causally ambiguous competencies is necessary to protect the advantage. Without reinvestment, attritional effects of continued competitive action will cause decay in the barriers to imitation. From this theorizing, research propositions are suggested, which, ultimately, will lead to an improved understanding of competitive advantage sustainability.

GW170104: Observation of a 50-Solar-Mass Binary Black Hole Coalescence at Redshift 0.2

Abstract: We describe the observation of GW170104, a gravitational-wave signal produced by the coalescence of a pair of stellar-mass black holes. The signal was measured on January 4, 2017 at 10∶11:58.6 UTC by the twin advanced detectors of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory during their second observing run, with a network signal-to-noise ratio of 13 and a false alarm rate less than 1 in 70 000 years. The inferred component black hole masses are 31.2^(8.4) _(−6.0)M_⊙ and 19.4^(5.3)_( −5.9)M_⊙ (at the 90% credible level). The black hole spins are best constrained through measurement of the effective inspiral spin parameter, a mass-weighted combination of the spin components perpendicular to the orbital plane, χ_(eff) = −0.12^(0.21)_( −0.30). This result implies that spin configurations with both component spins positively aligned with the orbital angular momentum are disfavored. The source luminosity distance is 880^(450)_(−390) Mpc corresponding to a redshift of z = 0.18^(0.08)_( −0.07) . We constrain the magnitude of modifications to the gravitational-wave dispersion relation and perform null tests of general relativity. Assuming that gravitons are dispersed in vacuum like massive particles, we bound the graviton mass to m_g ≤ 7.7 × 10^(−23) eV/c^2. In all cases, we find that GW170104 is consistent with general relativity.

The Chlamydomonas Genome Reveals the Evolution of Key Animal and Plant Functions

Abstract: Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a unicellular green alga whose lineage diverged from land plants over 1 billion years ago. It is a model system for studying chloroplast-based photosynthesis, as well as the structure, assembly, and function of eukaryotic flagella (cilia), which were inherited from the common ancestor of plants and animals, but lost in land plants. We sequenced the approximately 120-megabase nuclear genome of Chlamydomonas and performed comparative phylogenomic analyses, identifying genes encoding uncharacterized proteins that are likely associated with the function and biogenesis of chloroplasts or eukaryotic flagella. Analyses of the Chlamydomonas genome advance our understanding of the ancestral eukaryotic cell, reveal previously unknown genes associated with photosynthetic and flagellar functions, and establish links between ciliopathy and the composition and function of flagella.

The Emergence and Development of Life Course Theory

Abstract: Today, the life course perspective is perhaps the pre-eminent theoretical orientation in the study of lives, but this has not always been the case. The life histories and future trajectories of individuals and groups were largely neglected by early sociological research. In the pioneering study, The Polish Peasant in Europe and America (1918-1920), W. I. Thomas (with Florian Znaniecki) first made use of such histories and trajectories and argued strongly that they be investigated more fully by sociologists. By the mid-1920s, Thomas was emphasizing the vital need for a “longitudinal approach to life history” using life record data (Volkart, 1951, p. 593). He advocated that studies investigate “many types of individuals with regard to their experiences and various past periods of life in different situations” and follow “groups of individuals into the future, getting a continuous record of experiences as they occur.” Though this advice went unheeded for decades, Thomas’s early recommendations anticipated study of the life course and longitudinal research that has become such a central part of modern sociology and other disciplines.

Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Econometrics

Abstract: This book interweaves inferential approaches and theory and practice in econometrics. Basic statistical and linear algebra concepts are introduced as they are needed to give life to the statistical model under study. Most econometric applications start with a tentative theory or hypothesis a sample of data and the goal of learning something about the phenomena under study from the limited set of observations. Therefore a sample of data that may be used to investigate a particular economic hypothesis is presented to motivate the analysis of each of the statistical models presented. This linkage between the economic process that is thought to have generated the data and a particular statistical model is a unifying theme throughout the book. It progresses from the special case of investigating the possibilities for determining the location and scale parameters for a population from a sample of observations to investigating a complex simultaneous system of structural equations under general stochastic assumptions. To ensure that the reader understands the basic concepts and conclusions as they relate to linear statistical models simple special case models are evaluated and then the analysis is repeated for the general case. The 1st half of book gives the student a solid introduction to the formulation and use of linear statistical models. The 2nd half introduces the student to the econometric problems that arise when it is taken into account that economic data are stochastic dynamic and simultaneous and that the optimal statistical procedure sometimes changes as we change the statistical model the amount and type of information used and the measure of performance.