ASSESSING THE IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE HYDROLOGY OF THE INDRAWATI RIVER BASIN, NEPAL

Abstract. This study details climate change assessment of the hydrological regime of Indrawati basin of Nepal. The study uses Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model to delineate, discretize and parameterize the Indrawati basin to compute model's input parameters. The model was then run for 1990–2014 to simulate the discharge at the outlet (Dholalghat). The coefficient of determination R2 and Nash-Sutcliffe (ENS) were used to evaluate model calibration and validation. The results found were satisfactory for the gauging station R2 = 0.951 and ENS = 0.901 for calibration and R2 = 0.937 and. ENS = 0.906 for validation. The calibrated hydrological model was run for the future climate change scenario using the RegCM4-LMDZ4 data and the relative changes with the baseline scenarios were analyzed. The comparison suggests that the historical trend of flow is decreasing at the rate of 0.55 m3/s per year. According to RegCM4-LMDZ4 simulations, the trend is going to continue but at a flatter rate. The decreasing trend is observed to be very less. The characteristic peak flow month in the historical scenario is August but the RegCM4-LMDZ4 led simulated flows suggest a shift in monthly peak to October suggesting decrease in monsoon flows and a subsequent significant increase in flows from October to January

Ionization Study of Isomeric Molecules in Strong-field Laser Pulses

Citation: Zigo, S., Le, A. T., Timilsina, P., & Trallero-Herrero, C. A. (2017). Ionization Study of Isomeric Molecules in Strong-field Laser Pulses. Scientific Reports, 7, 8. doi:10.1038/srep42149Through the use of the technique of time-of-flight mass spectroscopy, we obtain strong-field ionization yields for randomly oriented 1,2-dichloroethylene (1,2-DCE) (C2H2Cl2) and 2-butene (C4H8). We are interested in studying the effect of conformal structure in strong-field ionization and, in particular, the role of molecular polarity. That is, we can perform strong-field ionization studies in polar vs non-polar molecules that have the same chemical composition. We report our findings through the ionization yields and the ratio (trans/cis) of each stereoisomer pair as a function of intensity

Silver Chalcogenide Based Memristor Devices

We have fabricated two-terminal chalcogenide-based devices containing Ge2Se3 and Ag that function as memristors. These devices have been electrically characterized at room temperature using quasi-static DC methods, AC sinusoidal methods, and AC pulse testing methods. In all cases, the devices exhibit memristive behavior

Development of a 1 kW Gravitational Water Vortex Hydropower Plant Prototype

A pilot testing of a Gravitational Water Vortex Hydropower Plant (GWVHP) has been done to evaluate the applicability in a real-world scenario and validate the results from the lab-scale model. A scaled-up model of a capacity of 1 kW was constructed for the evaluation purpose. The test provided data in good agreement with a lab-scale model and a proper visualization to install Gravitational Water Vortex in real-world scenarios. The project lasted for nearly four months and thus provided important information on the problems that might arise in scaling up the lab model to a micro-hydro system. The pilot testing shows an overall plant efficiency of 49%, validating the lab-based studies conducted beforehand. The information obtained from this pilot study shall be implemented in a micro-hydro project on a larger scale

Soil analysis gis-based fertility assessment and mapping of agricultural research station, Pakhribas, Dhankuta, Nepal

Soil fertility evaluation has been considered as a most effective tool for sustainable planning of a particular region. This study was conducted to determine the soil fertility status of the Agricultural Research Station, Pakhribas, Dhankuta, Nepal. The total 60 soil samples were collected randomly at a depth of 0-20 cm by using the soil sampling auger. For identification of soil sampling points A GPS device was used. The collected samples were analyzed for their texture, pH, OM, N, P2O5, K2O, Ca, Mg, S, B, Fe, Zn, Cu and Mn status following standard methods in the laboratory of Soil Science Division, Khumaltar. The Arc-GIS 10.1 software was used for soil fertility maps preparation. The observed data revealed that soil was dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) and yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) in colour, and single grained, granular and sub-angular blocky in structure. The sand, silt and clay content were 56.61±0.97%, 27.62±0.56% and 15.77±0.58%, respectively and categorized as loam, sandy loam and sandy clay loam in texture. The soil was very acidic in pH (4.66±0.07) and very low in available sulphur (0.53±0.11mg/kg), available boron (0.24±0.07mg/kg). The organic matter (1.34±0.07%), total nitrogen (0.09±0.003mg/kg), available calcium (605.70±31.40mg/kg), available magnesium (55.96±4.67mg/kg) and available zinc (0.54±0.22mg/kg) were low in status. Similarly, available potassium (115.98±9.19 mg/kg) and available copper (1.13±0.09 mg/kg) were medium in status. Furthermore, available manganese (36.31±2.82mg/kg) was high, whereas available phosphorus (105.07±9.89 mg/kg) and available iron (55.80±8.89 mg/kg) were very high in status. The soil fertility management practice should be adopted based on the determined status in the field for the sustainable production of crops. The future research strategy should be built based on the soil fertility status of the research farm

Direct and indirect costs of nephrolithiasis in an employed population: Opportunity for disease management?

Direct and indirect costs of nephrolithiasis in an employed population: Opportunity for disease management?BackgroundMore than 5% of the United States population has been diagnosed with nephrolithiasis and about one half of (first-time) stone formers will have a recurrence within 5 years. The prevalence of nephrolithiasis is concentrated among working age adults, yet little prior work has examined the economic burden of the disease on employers and their employees. We sought to estimate the direct and indirect costs of nephrolithiasis for working age adults (18-64) with employer-provided insurance.MethodsThis was an observational study using retrospective claims data. Detailed medical and pharmacy claims from 25 large employers and absentee data from a subset of firms were used to estimate the direct and indirect costs associated with nephrolithiasis in a privately insured, nonelderly population. Multivariate regression models were used to predict health care expenditures for persons with and without the condition, controlling for differences in patient (health status) and plan characteristics.ResultsMore than 1% of working-age adults were treated for nephrolithiasis in 2000. Prevalence was considerably higher among men and employees age 55 to 64. About one third of employees treated for nephrolithiasis in 2000 missed work due to the condition, with an average work loss for the entire treated population of 19 hours per person. Conditional on receiving treatment, the incremental costs of nephrolithiasis were $3,494 per person in 2000.ConclusionThe direct and indirect costs of nephrolithiaisis are substantial among working-age adults. Interventions that prevent recurrence among known stone formers may be a cost-effective component of disease management programs

Measurement of Length of Styloid Process by Orthopantomography

Background: Styloid process (SP) is an anatomical structure whose elongation is not well understood. Proper clinical and radiological assessment is needed to detect an elongated SP. Anatomical variation is also common. SP is said to be elongated if longer than 30 mm. Orthopantomogram (OPG) is also an imaging modality by which we can view SP. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the SP on OPG and identify eagle syndrome. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted on archived OPG radiographs available in the Department of Oral Radiology, Gandaki Medical College Teaching hospital and Research Centre. These radiographs were from patients who were subjected to radiographic examination for other dental problems. The length of SP was measured on both sides using the measurement tool bars on the accompanying analysis software. Results: Average length of SP on males was 26.5 mm ±14.4 mm in right and 25.5 mm ±6.19 mm in left; and on females was 23.78 mm ±5.93 mm on right and 24.7 mm ±10.44 mm in left. Elongated SP was more on males compared to females. Elongated styloid process (ESP) was more prevalent in 21 - 30 years of age group, similarly unilateral and bilateral elongation was also predominant on males compared to females. Conclusion: OPG is also useful for detection of an ESP in patients with or without symptoms and helps to avoid misdiagnosis of tonsillar pain or pain of dental, pharyngeal or muscular origin as well as Eagle syndrome (ES)