Ordering Sherpa Life Through Their Rituals: Symbolic/Interpretative Perspective (A Review of Sherpas Through Their Rituals By Sherry B. Ortner)

Occasional Papers in Sociology and Anthropology - Volume 8, 200

Society, Socialization and Social Order through the Hindu Festivals in Nepal

Festivals impart entertainment in society people participate in socialization and festivals act as a mechanism to resolve the social tensions conflicts and social stress through participation of their members It provides a platform to express share and understand their ideas to others through interactions In a way it imparts societal glue because it offers people meaning and purpose for their lives and it gives definite values and meanings That s why people believe in religious religions offer ceremonies and festivals socialize their members with their values and ultimately festivals work an agency to control the behavior of people either imparting hope or creating by fear In fact religions rituals and festivals are practices required or expected of members of faith and usually honor the divine power or powers worshipped by believers the also remind adherents of their religious duties and responsibilities The objectives of this research article is to indentify how religion rituals and festivals are working as a mechanism to control social behavior how these functions in society to socialize the members and how they maintain the social order in such a diverse community like Nepal The diversities based on religions caste culture language etc was found in Nepa

Detection of Anti- Leptospira

Leptospirosis is a globally distributed zoonosis with varied clinical outcomes and multiorgan involvement in humans. In this study conducted from July 2011 to December 2011, 178 serum samples from patients suspected of leptospirosis were tested by Panbio IgM ELISA at National Public Health Laboratory, Kathmandu, out of which 51 (28.65%) were positive for anti-Leptospira IgM antibody. Leptospirosis was more common in people in their 2nd and 3rd decades of their life which together comprised 56.86% of the total positive cases. Most of those tested positive were farmers followed by students and housewives. Both animal contact and water contact seemed to play significant roles in disease transmission. Symptoms were vague with the most common being fever, headache, myalgia, abdominal pain, vomiting, jaundice, and diarrhoea. Life style heavily dominated by agronomical and farming activities in Nepal is conducive to leptospirosis transmission. Leptospirosis seems to be a significant public health problem in Nepal but is underestimated. In resource poor countries like Nepal where laboratories performing MAT or maintaining cultures are rarely available, serological test like ELISA could well depict the scenario of the disease prevalence

Structure and magnetism of NiFeMnGaxSn1-x (x=0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.00) Heusler compounds

The crystal structure and magnetic properties of NiFeMnGaxSn1-x (x = 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75 and 1.00) Heusler compounds have been investigated experimentally and theoretically. The computational results suggest that NiFeMnGa0.75Sn0.25 is nearly half-metallic with a spin polarization P of 87%. The bulk samples prepared using arc-melting and annealing exhibit a high degree of Y-type order. All the investigated samples show ferromagnetic spin order with the Curie temperatures ranging from 284 K for NiFeMnGa to 408 K for NiFeMnSn. The intermediate composition NiFeMnGa0.75Sn0.25, which is predicted to be nearly half metallic, has a saturation magnetization of 66.50 emu/g and Curie temperature of 326 K. These results indicate that the NiFeMnGa0.75Sn0.25 alloy has potential for spin-transport-based devices

Dalit identity in urban Pokhara, Nepal

Urban migration by Nepalese Dalits has not only provided them with social, economic and educational opportunities, but also the possibility of escaping traditional caste-based discrimination. However, despite making the most of opportunities provided by the city, Dalits have not been able to pursue their political agenda to the extent of other ethnic communities. This study in the city of Pokhara, Nepal, explored Dalit identity using two rounds of focus group discussions involving a total of 23 individuals drawn from a range of Dalit caste groups with a variety of livelihoods. The results describe the caste-based discrimination experienced by the participants and the different strategies they employ to either reinvent themselves by changing names; or embracing their caste-heritage and taking advantage of affirmative action programmes. Whilst urban migration can provide some relief from discrimination, the study reveals that caste still remains prominent in the lives of Dalits in Pokhara. The paper argues that Dalit unity and elimination of intra-Dalit caste-based discrimination are needed in order to institutionalise their citizenship rights in post conflict Nepal

Magnetic and magnetocaloric properties of Pr2-xNdxFe17 ribbons

The structural, magnetic and magnetocaloric properties of Fe deficient Pr2-xNdxFe17 (x = 0.5, 0.7) alloys prepared by arc-melting and melt- spinning have been investigated. The room temperature x-ray diffraction patterns show that the samples are nearly single-phase and crystallize in the rhombohedral Th2Zn17-type crystal structure. The Curie temperatures determined from the thermomagnetic curves are 302 K and 307 K for Pr1.5Nd0.5Fe17 and Pr1.3Nd0.7Fe17, respectively. The peak magnetic entropy change and the relative cooling power at field change of 50 kOe are 3.01 J/kgK and 345 J/kg for Pr1.5Nd0.5Fe17, and 4.31 J/kgK and 487 J/kg for Pr1.3Nd0.7Fe17, respectively. The absence of magnetic and thermal hysteresis with relatively high cooling efficiency suggests that the alloys have potential for magnetic refrigeration

Competing Easy-Axis Anisotropies Impacting Magnetic Tunnel Junction-Based Molecular Spintronics Devices (MTJMSDs)

Molecular spintronics devices (MSDs) attempt to harness molecules’ quantum state, size, and configurable attributes for application in computer devices—a quest that began more than 70 years ago. In the vast number of theoretical studies and limited experimental attempts, MSDs have been found to be suitable for application in memory devices and futuristic quantum computers. MSDs have recently also exhibited intriguing spin photovoltaic-like phenomena, signaling their potential application in cost-effective and novel solar cell technologies. The molecular spintronics field’s major challenge is the lack of mass-fabrication methods producing robust magnetic molecule connections with magnetic electrodes of different anisotropies. Another main challenge is the limitations of conventional theoretical methods for understanding experimental results and designing new devices. Magnetic tunnel junction-based molecular spintronics devices (MTJMSDs) are designed by covalently connecting paramagnetic molecules across an insulating tunneling barrier. The insulating tunneling barrier serves as a mechanical spacer between two ferromagnetic (FM) electrodes of tailorable magnetic anisotropies to allow molecules to undergo many intriguing phenomena. Our experimental studies showed that the paramagnetic molecules could produce strong antiferromagnetic coupling between two FM electrodes, leading to a dramatic large-scale impact on the magnetic electrode itself. Recently, we showed that the Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) was effective in providing plausible insights into the observation of unusual magnetic domains based on the role of single easy-axis magnetic anisotropy. Here, we experimentally show that the response of a paramagnetic molecule is dramatically different when connected to FM electrodes of different easy-axis anisotropies. Motivated by our experimental studies, here, we report on an MCS study investigating the impact of the simultaneous presence of two easy-axis anisotropies on MTJMSD equilibrium properties. In-plane easy-axis anisotropy produced multiple magnetic phases of opposite spins. The multiple magnetic phases vanished at higher thermal energy, but the MTJMSD still maintained a higher magnetic moment because of anisotropy. The out-of-plane easy-axis anisotropy caused a dominant magnetic phase in the FM electrode rather than multiple magnetic phases. The simultaneous application of equal-magnitude in-plane and out-of-plane easy-axis anisotropies on the same electrode negated the anisotropy effect. Our experimental and MCS study provides insights for designing and understanding new spintronics-based devices

Effect of planting geometry on yield and yield attributes of drought tolerant rice varieties in Nawalparasi, Nepal

A field experiment was conducted, to evaluate the yield and yield attributes of drought tolerant rice (Oryza sativa L.) varieties under different planting geometry in Narayani-7, Nawalparasi, Nepal from May to November, 2014. The experiment was carried out in two factor Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications consisting three rice varieties (Sukhadhan-4, Sukhadhan-5 and Radha-4) and four planting geometry (15 cm × 10 cm, 15 cm × 15 cm, 20 cm × 15 cm and 20 cm × 20 cm). The results revealed that the highest grain yield (6.5 t ha-1) was obtained from planting geometry 20 cm ×15 cm with highest number of effective tillers m-2 (342.6) and highest harvest index (44.8%) while, number of filled grains panicle-1 and panicle length was found statistically at par with 20 cm × 20 cm and 20 cm × 15 cm planting geometry. However, the straw yield and test weight were non-significant with different planting geometry. Regarding tested varieties, Sukhadhan-5 produced highest grain yield (6.1 t ha-1) with highest number of effective tillers (337 m-2), more number of filled grain panicle-1 (144) and more harvest index (44%) compared to other tested varieties in the experiment. The Sukhadhan-4 recorded the longest panicle (28.5 cm) while Radha-4 produced significantly highest straw yield (8.1 t ha-1). Thus, Sukhadhan-5 with planting geometry 20 cm × 15 cm found more economical and profitable to grow in rainfed lowland ecosystem in Terai and inner Terai areas of Nepal

Comparative Study of Active Power Curtailment Methods of PVs for Preventing Overvoltage on Distribution Feeders

© 2018 IEEE. Overvoltage is one of the major issues on distribution grids with high penetration of photovoltaic (PV) generation. Overvoltage could be prevented through the control of active/reactive power of PVs. However, given the high R/X ratio of low voltage feeders, voltage control by using reactive power would not be as effective as using active power. Therefore, active power curtailment (APC) of PVs, though not desirable, becomes necessary at times to prevent the overvoltage issues. Existing literature is rich in centralized and droop-based methods for APC and/or reactive power control of PVs to prevent overvoltage issues. In this context, this paper revisits the most popular existing methods, and evaluates the performance of droop-based and centralized methods using a typical North American 240 V low voltage feeder with 24 residential homes. In this work, our key findings are: a) droop-based methods provided conservative solutions or did not eliminate the overvoltages completely, b) power flow sensitivity based droop approach led to 13% more curtailment than the centralized approaches, c) centralized approach had 40% less energy curtailed compared with standard droop while no overvoltages were observed, and d) operating PVs at non-unity power factor in centralized approach led to 5% less energy curtailment