Economic Analysis of Fish Production Using Different Feed Types Practiced in Dhanusha District, Nepal

A study on the economic analysis of fish production using different feed types practiced in Dhanusha district was conducted in 2018. Out of 600 fish farmers, sixty fish farmers(10%) from the Fish Superzone region i.e. Janakpur sub-metropolitan city, Bideh municipality, Sahidnagar municipality, Kamala municipality, Hanspur municipality, Janaknandani rural municipality and Aaurahi  rural municipality, selected using simple random sampling, were surveyed using semi-structured questionnaire. The study revealed that locally formulated mash feed was commonly used feed type in which rice bran and mustard oil cake (RB+MOC) was the principle feed ingredient. 55% of the farmers used rice bran and mustard oil cake (RB+MOC), 20% used rice bran, mustard oil cake and soybean (RB+MOC+SOB), 10% used rice bran, mustard oil cake and fish meal (RB+MOC+FM) and 15% farmers mineral and vitamin (RB+MOC+MIN/VIT) in their feed formulation. The productivity of the fish production in feed type RB+MOC+SOB (3.41±1.02) was significantly higher than other feed type.  The total variable cost per ha (5.23±2.11) was found significantly(p<0.05) higher in feed type RB+MOC+SOB. Similarly, gross margin (4.44±2.74) received by farmers of feed type RB+MOC+SOB was also significantly high(p<0.05). The Benefit: Cost (B:C) ratio of the study area was found to be 1.69, high being of feed type RB+MOC+SOB(1.84) compared to others. The feed type RB+MOC+SOB is seen as a economically profitable one in the study area because of the high productivity, profit and B:C ratio. High feed cost was the major problem followed by the unavailability of feed. Fish farming can be a profitable business in Dhanusha with large opportunity to increase the fish production with increasing protein sources in the feed used. Farmers should be provided sufficient information, trainings and be encouraged to incorporate the protein rich sources like soybean and fish meal in the feed prepared to increase the productivity and ultimately return

Invited Article: First Flight in Space of a Wide-Field-of-View Soft X-Ray Imager Using Lobster-Eye Optics: Instrument Description and Initial Flight Results

We describe the development, launch into space, and initial results from a prototype wide eld-of-view (FOV) soft X-ray imager that employs Lobster-eye optics and targets heliophysics, planetary, and astrophysics science. The Sheath Transport Observer for the Redistribution of Mass (STORM) is the rst instrument using this type of optics launched into space and provides proof-of-concept for future ight instruments capable of imaging structures such as the terrestrial cusp, the entire dayside magnetosheath from outside the magnetosphere, comets, the moon, and the solar wind interaction with planetary bodies like Venus and Mars

Climatic risks and impacts in South Asia: extremes of water scarcity and excess

This paper reviews the current knowledge of climatic risks and impacts in South Asia associated with anthropogenic warming levels of 1.5°C to 4°C above pre-industrial values in the 21st century. It is based on the World Bank Report “Turn Down the Heat, Climate Extremes, Regional Impacts and the Case for Resilience” (2013). Many of the climate change impacts in the region, which appear quite severe even with relatively modest warming of 1.5–2°C, pose significant hazards to development. For example, increased monsoon variability and loss or glacial meltwater will likely confront populations with ongoing and multiple challenges. The result is a significant risk to stable and reliable water resources for the region, with increases in peak flows potentially causing floods and dry season flow reductions threatening agriculture. Irrespective of the anticipated economic development and growth, climate projections indicate that large parts of South Asia’s growing population and especially the poor are likely to remain highly vulnerable to climate change

Traditional use and management of NTFPs in Kangchenjunga Landscape: implications for conservation and livelihoods

Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs), an important provisioning ecosystem services, are recognized for their contribution in rural livelihoods and forest conservation. Effective management through sustainable harvesting and market driven commercialization are two contrasting aspects that are bringing challenges in development of NTFPs sector. Identifying potential species having market value, conducting value chain analyses, and sustainable management of NTFPs need analysis of their use patterns by communities and trends at a regional scale. We analyzed use patterns, trends, and challenges in traditional use and management of NTFPs in the southern slope of Kangchenjunga Landscape, Eastern Himalaya and discussed potential implications for conservation and livelihoods. A total of 739 species of NTFPs used by the local people of Kangchenjunga Landscape were reported in the reviewed literature. Of these, the highest number of NTFPs was documented from India (377 species), followed by Nepal (363) and Bhutan (245). Though the reported species were used for 24 different purposes, medicinal and edible plants were the most frequently used NTFP categories in the landscape. Medicinal plants were used in 27 major ailment categories, with the highest number of species being used for gastro-intestinal disorders. Though the Kangchenjunga Landscape harbors many potential NTFPs, trade of NTFPs was found to be nominal indicating lack of commercialization due to limited market information. We found that the unsustainable harvesting and lack of marketing were the major constraints for sustainable management of NTFPs sector in the landscape despite of promising policy provisions. We suggest sustainable harvesting practices, value addition at local level, and marketing for promotion of NTFPs in the Kangchenjunga Landscape for income generation and livelihood improvement that subsequently contributes to conservation

Session 2 -Mapping and Soil Micronutrient Status Mapping Spatial Zinc Distribution in Rupandehi District, Nepal

Abstrac

Pressure Equilibrium Between The Local Interstellar Clouds And The Local Hot Bubble

This is the published version. Copyright © 2014. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.Three recent results related to the heliosphere and the local interstellar medium (ISM) have provided an improved insight into the distribution and conditions of material in the solar neighborhood. These are the measurement of the magnetic field outside of the heliosphere by Voyager 1, the improved mapping of the three-dimensional structure of neutral material surrounding the Local Cavity using extensive ISM absorption line and reddening data, and a sounding rocket flight which observed the heliospheric helium focusing cone in X-rays and provided a robust estimate of the contribution of solar wind charge exchange emission to the ROSAT All-Sky Survey 1/4 keV band data. Combining these disparate results, we show that the thermal pressure of the plasma in the Local Hot Bubble (LHB) is P/k = 10,700 cm−3 K. If the LHB is relatively free of a global magnetic field, it can easily be in pressure (thermal plus magnetic field) equilibrium with the local interstellar clouds, eliminating a long-standing discrepancy in models of the local ISM

Connecting Warning with Decision and Action: A Partnership of Communicators and Users

In this chapter, we explore the challenges of achieving a level of awareness of disaster risk, by each person or organisation receiving a warning, which allows them to take actions to reduce potential impacts while being consistent with the warning producer’s capabilities and cost-effectiveness considerations. Firstly we show how people respond to warnings and how the nature and delivery of the warning affects their response. We look at the aims of the person providing the warning, the constraints within which they must act and the judgement process behind the issue of a warning. Then we address the delivery of the warning, noting that warning messages need to be tailored to different groups of receivers, and see how a partnership between warner and warned can produce a more effective result. We include illustrative examples of co-design of warning systems in Argentina and Nepal, experience in communicating uncertainty in Germany and the Weather-Ready Nation initiative in the USA. We conclude with a summary of aspects of the warning that need to be considered between warner and decision-maker when designing or upgrading a warning system

THE STRUCTURE OF THE LOCAL HOT BUBBLE

Diffuse X-rays from the Local Galaxy (DXL) is a sounding rocket mission designed to quantify and characterize the contribution of Solar Wind Charge eXchange (SWCX) to the Diffuse X-ray Background and study the properties of the Local Hot Bubble (LHB). Based on the results from the DXL mission, we quantified and removed the contribution of SWCX to the diffuse X-ray background measured by the ROSAT All Sky Survey. The "cleaned" maps were used to investigate the physical properties of the LHB. Assuming thermal ionization equilibrium, we measured a highly uniform temperature distributed around kT = 0.097 keV ± 0.013 keV (FWHM) ± 0.006 keV (systematic). We also generated a thermal emission measure map and used it to characterize the three-dimensional (3D) structure of the LHB, which we found to be in good agreement with the structure of the local cavity measured from dust and gas