Segmenting consumers to inform agrifood value chain development in Nepal

The Nepalese government is piloting agricultural projects that are described as taking a value chain approach to development. Although consumer value lies at the core of value chain man-agement principles, none of these projects adopts a consumer perspective. This is an example of a more widespread gap in both the literature and practice as to how consumer perspectives can be used in the development of agrifood value chains in developing countries. This paper addresses this gap by surveying consumers of tomatoes in Nepal, segmenting them using cluster analysis and demonstrating how consumer segmentation can provide strategic direction for value chain development. The research identifies four distinct segments of tomato consumers in Kathmandu. The high value consumer segment, which is also the largest segment, places most importance on credence-based attributes that cannot be ensured unless a whole-chain effort is employed, indi-cating that developing value chains would be necessary if this need is to be met, and that such effort would pay off. An analysis of existing supply chains shows discrepancies between con-sumer expectations and the delivery of value, suggesting improvement opportunities to develop these chains

Prevalence of Duesenberry’s Relative Income Hypothesis in Nepalese Economy

Present paper examines the prevalence of Duesenberry’s relative income hypothesis in Nepalese economy during 1974/75-2019/20 through ARDL bound tests under DEF and Davis-SK specifications. The ARDL under DEF specification is found to be not valid. However, the ARDL bound test under Davis-SK specification is found valid. There exists cointegration among average propensity to consume, demonstration effect and ratchet effect. The coefficient of demonstration effect is found to be negative and that of ratchet effect to be positive as reported by ARDL models. The error correction model also implies that short run shocks significantly affect long run relations among the variables. The departure from the long term growth path due to short run shocks is adjusted by 11.3 % over the next year as indicated by error correction model. This study throws some lights in policy perspective. It is recommended that government of Nepal should impose heavy tax on the consumption of durables and luxuries to discourage consumption and encourage rate of saving, which is most inevitable in Nepalese economy to foster growth of employment and income

Analysis of multi-channel wind loading using proper orthogonal decomposition

2014 Summer.Includes bibliographical references.Wind tunnel testing utilizing multi-channel pressure measurement system leads to large volume of the acquired wind pressure data. In the presented research, use of Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD), to analyze such data, is described. Wind pressure time series acquired for a generic low-rise building were used in the analysis. First, the pressure covariance matrices were calculated. They were subsequently used to determine the pressure eigenvalues and the eigenfunctions. These quantities were next employed to calculate the POD principal coordinates. Finally, the eigenvectors and the principal coordinates were used to reconstruct the pressure time series. This analysis was carried out for pressures exerted on the whole building and on its distinct surfaces - side walls and roof. The convergence of the pressure time series reconstruction was inspected. The mean, standard deviation and the peak values of the reconstructed pressure were evaluated. The effects of wind direction on the original and reconstructed pressures were investigated. The POD modal contributions and the convergence of the pressure reconstruction were quantified. Overall, the obtained results were found to be consistent with findings of related POD studies reported by other researchers. High spatial and temporal resolutions of the wind loading data used in the present research made possible refined quantification of the effects of the studied parameters

Structural Properties of Ferroelectric Lead (zirconium0.5,Titanium0.5)Oxygen3 Nanotube Array and Electronic Structure of Lao delta-doped strontium titanate

In this Dissertation we begin with two introductions on: 1) ferroelectricity and related phenomena, and 2) novel properties of Oxide electronics and the generation of two dimensional electron gas. We then give theoretical background of density functional theory (including LDA+U) and pseudopotentials. The first part of research work is about structural, polarization, and dielectric properties of ferroelectric Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT) solid solution in the form of a nanotube array, embedded in a matrix medium of different ferroelectric strengths. We use the effective Hamiltonian derived from first-principles and finite-temperature Monte Carlo methods to determine the various properties. We revealed different polarization phases of the system in the absence of an external electric field and explained these properties in microscopic detail. In the second part, we study the effects of compressive biaxial inplane strains on the electronic and structural properties of Lanthanum Oxide $\delta$-doped Strontium Titanate supercell. We use first-principles density functional calculations within the local density approximation including also on-site Coulomb interaction energy. We approached the problem by comparing the band structures, localization of electronic states, and cation-anion displacements of unstrained and strained systems. We found a critical strain above which there are abrupt changes in conduction band dispersions and cation-anion displacements, indicating that inplane biaxial strain can drastically tune the properties of this system, which may have potential technological applications

An Overview of the Conceptualization, Theoretical Foundations and Rationale for Developing a Local Curriculum

This paper presents an overview of local curriculum development, which involves designing a curriculum that is customized to the specific needs and context of a particular school, community, or region. The conceptualization and theoretical foundations of this approach are based on the principles of student-centered education, cultural responsiveness, and meeting the needs of the local community.  The rationale for local curriculum development is based on the belief that a personalized curriculum can enhance student engagement and achievement, address their needs and interests, promote equity and inclusion, and encourage innovation. In conclusion, this paper asserts that local curriculum development is an essential aspect of modern education that can improve the effectiveness and engagement of the education system by better serving the needs and interests of students

Factors associated with smokeless tobacco use among pregnant women in rural areas of the Southern Terai, Nepal

Background: Tobacco use among women during pregnancy leading to poor maternal and child health outcomes has been well documented. However, factors influencing use of smokeless tobacco in Nepal has not yet been well established. This study aims at exploring the factors related to smokeless tobacco use among pregnant women in rural southern Terai of Nepal. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was performed at 52 wards within 6 Village Development Committee in Dhanusha district of Nepal. A total of 426 expectant mothers in their second trimester were selected using a multistage cluster sampling method. Descriptive and regression analyses were done to explore the factors that influence smokeless tobacco use. Results: In a total of 426 pregnant mothers, one in five used tobacco in any form. Among the users, 13.4% used smokeless tobacco. Pregnant mothers who were smoking tobacco (AOR 6.01; 95% CI (1.88-19.23), having alcohol consumption (AOR 3.86; 95% CI (1.23-12.08), stressed (AOR 5.04; 95% CI (1.81-14.03), non-vegetarian (AOR 3.31;(1.84-13.03), not attending regular mothers’ group meetings (AOR 4.63; (1.41-15.19), and not-exposed to mass media (AOR 5.02; (1.89-13.33) were significantly associated with smokeless tobacco use. Similarly, mothers of age group 20-34 years, dalit, aadibasi and janajati, hill origin, no education and primary education were more likely to use smokeless tobacco than their counterparts. Conclusions: Factors such as smoking tobacco, alcohol consumption, stress, and poor education were found to be significantly associated with smokeless tobacco use among pregnant women in southern Terai of Nepal. This requires an immediate attention develop an effective strategy to prevent and control smokeless tobacco use among pregnant women in southern Terai of Nepal

Flipping Back of Extrahelical Guanine after Methyl Repair

Methylation at O6 atom of guanine is a type of DNA damage which can cause a cancer. This damage at O6 atom of guanine in a DNA can be transferred to SG atom of cysteine in O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT). Flipping out of methylated guanine from its base stack is essential to give off the methyl adduct (CH3) to AGT. AGT receives the methyl adduct at cysteine leaving guanine demethylated, but still in flipped out orientation. The repair mechanism of DNA would be completed only when the extrahelically flipped guanine returns back into the base stack, which is considered as the final step of the DNA repair mechanism. Here, the intrahelical flipping mechanism of repaired guanine has been studied. The work is further extended to examine the stability of hydrogen bonds between guanine and its pair partner cytosine. The overall result shows that intrahelical rotation of repaired guanine is possible and the base pairing is stable as the ordinary hydrogen bonding. BIBECHANA 19 (2022) 201-20

Flipping Back of Extrahelical Guanine after Methyl Repair

Methylation at O6 atom of guanine is a type of DNA damage which can cause a cancer. This damage at O6 atom of guanine in a DNA can be transferred to SG atom of cysteine in O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT). Flipping out of methylated guanine from its base stack is essential to give off the methyl adduct (CH3) to AGT. AGT receives the methyl adduct at cysteine leaving guanine demethylated, but still in flipped out orientation. The repair mechanism of DNA would be completed only when the extrahelically flipped guanine returns back into the base stack, which is considered as the final step of the DNA repair mechanism. Here, the intrahelical flipping mechanism of repaired guanine has been studied. The work is further extended to examine the stability of hydrogen bonds between guanine and its pair partner cytosine. The overall result shows that intrahelical rotation of repaired guanine is possible and the base pairing is stable as the ordinary hydrogen bonding. BIBECHANA 19 (2022) 201-20

Optimal Balance between Heating, Cooling and Environmental Impacts: A Method for Appropriate Assessment of Building Envelope’s U-Value

In Europe, the recent application of regulations oriented to zero-energy buildings and climate neutrality in 2050 has led to a reduction in energy consumption for heating and cooling in the construction sector. The thermal insulation of the building envelope plays a key role in this process and the requirements about the maximum allowable thermal transmittance are defined by country-specific guidelines. Typically, high insulation values provide low energy consumption for heating; however, they may also entail a risk of overheating in summer period and thus negatively affect the overall performance of the building. In addition, the embodied energy and related emissions caused by the manufacturing and transportation processes of thermal insulation cannot be further neglected in the evaluation of the best optimal solution. Therefore, this paper aims to evaluate the influence in terms of embodied and operational energy of various walls’ thermal insulation thicknesses on residential buildings in Europe. To this end, the EnergyPlus engine was used for the energy simulation within the Ladybug and Honeybee tools, by parametrically conducting multiple iterations; 53 variations of external wall U-value, considering high- and low-thermal-mass scenarios, were simulated for 100 representative cities of the European context, using a typical multifamily building as a reference. The results demonstrate that massive walls generally perform better than lightweight structures and the best solution in terms of energy varies according to each climate. Accordingly, the wall’s thermal transmittance for the samples of Oslo, Bordeaux, Rome and Almeria representative of the Continental, oceanic temperate, Mediterranean, and hot, semi-arid climates were, respectively: 0.12, 0.26, 0.42, and 0.64 W/m2K. The optimal solutions are graphically reported on the map of Europe according to specific climatic features, providing a guidance for new constructions and building retrofit