Monday, February 28, 2011

Metarhizium anisopliae as Eco-friendly Antimalarial Biopesticide

Malaria is one of the major public health problem for Nepal, indeed all developing countries are facing the problem. Although epidemics of malaria has been reduced, emergence of drug resistant Plasmodium spp (causative agent of malaria), poor sanitation, agricultural dependency etc. still making malaria as frightening.

Living in the Terai region of Nepal was avoided due to malaria. This is the fact of just 60-70 years ago. During Rana rule in Nepal, prisoners were sent to this Terai area as punishment, where malaria was a big threat. After the discovery of anti-malarial drugs, deforestation and people's migration began and the Terai gradually overcrowded and become Nepal's dense populated area. I remember, whole houses were sprayed by DDT to get rid from the diseases transmitted by mosquito. But DDT exhibited serious environmental and public health hazards. And neither, malaria could be eliminated.

The finding (gift of science and research ?) from the University of Maryland may be helpful to combat malaria and mosquito related diseases in Eco-friendly and biological way. A fungus Metarhizium anisopliae, which is a plants symbiont protecting plants from insect, infects mosquito and some other insects and attenuates then kills. This fungus has been genetically modified (GM) and have very narrow host range e.g., only infect harmful insects. Also, this GM fungus express SM1 and scorpion proteins, toxic to Plasmodium sporozoites in mosquito that enhance the rate of killing in short time period. This fungus easily invade and infect the mosquito through the surface like if contacted to cuticle; unlike bacterial and viral infection. So, like DDT, spore of this fungus can be sprayed in bed net, house; so that it would be easily contact with mosquito and to eliminate Plasmodium spp. And, it could infect larvae of mosquito, hence meta-acid and hazardous chemicals can be replaced by the fungal spore in ditches and stagnant water pool.

However, whether this genetic engineered fungus can survive freely in environment or work significantly? Or might it create bad impact in ecology? Or will it be available easily for poor countries to use? What happens if it infect honey bee and other beneficial insects ? We have to wait.

Reference: Fang et al., Science (25 February, 2011), 331; 1074-1077

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Spy thru' Mozilla Firefox or else ?

       Every-time when I open Firefox, after computer start (not after restart of Firefox without restarting the computer), CPU fan run in the fastest speed with busy HDD indicator for initial 15 minutes. This was surprising, it shouldn't be, and in another user account; no such abnormality could be seen.
       Upon checking the “System Monitor”, the CPU was busy and astonishingly there was peak in the graph of sent and received items, even-though, I hadn't opened any web site. I don't remember that I had activated any automatic update in this Fedora 12. 
Peak in this graph is indicating something is downloading
Here CPU is busy and making cooling fan work hard
CPU, memory and network usage graph in Fedora
 I deleted this user profile and recreated with the same name, the problem solved. Again after few months later, the problem reappeared in both user accounts this time, and I deleted and reopened both with the same name, and nowadays working well. However, I am still skeptical what was uploading and downloading or installing or whether, was it normal process ?

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

नेपालीमा ब्लग लेखन र ब्लग भेला, एक अनुभव

       यो टाँसो दैंतरीमा (dautari.org) नेपाली ब्लग भेलामा मैले राखेका कुराहरुलाई क्रमबद्ब गरेको मात्र हो ।
       मेरो ब्लग खोल्नुको उद्धेश्य, मैले रचना गरेका टुक्रा-टुक्री साहित्य पस्कनु र लेखाइमा निखार ल्याउनु थियो । तर, एक त नेपालीमा टाइप गर्नुको झर्को, टाइप गरिहालेपनि कापीमा लेखे जस्तो ह्रस्व-दीर्घ मिलाउन अनी स्क्रिनमा शुद्ध बर्ण उतार्नको कठिनाईले गर्दा आफ्नो लेख आँफैलाई अनौठो लाग्ने भएकोले नेपाली लेखलाई निरन्तरता दिन सकेन । यसकारणले अनियमित नै भएपनि अङ्रेजीमै बिशेष गरी कम्प्युटर, बिज्ञान तथा प्रविधी परिधिका तथा केही अनुभवका लेख लेखेर भए पनि उपस्थिती जनाइरहे । अशुद्ध लेख्नु भन्दा नलेख्नु नै बेश भन्ठानेर बसे पनि कहिले-काँही चाँही लेख्न खसखस लाग्ने रहेछ । अङ्रेजीको आफ्नो लेखमा व्याकरण अशुद्ध भएपनि अङ्रेजी आफुले त्यती नजान्ने भएकोले आँफैले पढ्दा त्यती अनौठो लाग्दैन ।
       नेपालीद्वारा लेखिएका सयौं ब्लग भए पनि आफ्नै मौलिकताले भरीएका र नियमित हुने (महिनामा कम्तिमा १ लेख) त २०-२२ वटा मात्र पाएको छु, जसको म नियमित पाठक हुँ । तर त्यसमध्ये पनि सदैव शुद्ध र व्याकरण मिल्ने लेख हुने त जम्मा ८-१० वटा मात्र भए जस्तो लाग्छ । त्यस्तै झिलिमिली बनाएका ब्लगहरु पनि धेरै छन्, जुन खुल्न धेरै समय लाग्छ किनकी नेपाल मा अझै पनि सुस्त गतिकै ईन्टरनेट छ । साथै नेपाली ब्लगको संख्यात्मक भन्दा पनि मौलिकतामा र रचनात्मक लेखमा ध्यान पुर्‍याउनु पर्ने जस्तो देखिन्छ । blogger.com.np त्यस्तै अरु वेबसाईटमा सम्पूर्ण नेपाली ब्लगरहरुको नामाँकन त छ । तर, कुन बिषय बस्तु मा लेखिएको हो, समुह छैन । त्यसैले, विकीपिडीयामा नेपाली ब्लगको जानकारी, गुगल समूह वा अरु कुनै वेबसाईट बनाएर नेपाली ब्लगरहरुको बिषयसुचीको आधारमा समूह पनि बनाउन पहल गर्ने कि ? जस्तो समाचारमुलक, कथा, साहित्य, बिज्ञान, प्रविधी, अर्थ, राजनैतीक ब्लग इत्यादी.
       अर्को कुरा, प्राय: ब्लगहरुमा समाचारहरुमात्र (अथवा कुनै सामाग्री भए), त्यो पनि अरुको चोरी गरेर लेखिएका छन्, मलाई त्यस्ता ब्लग खोल्नै मन लाग्दैन । अरुको चोरी गर्ने र कपी पेस्ट गर्ने ब्लगहरु त म आजकाल बहिस्कार गरेको छु, ति ब्लग मैले खोल्दै खोल्दैन; त्यसैले सबै जनाले नखोल्दिए-नहेर्दिए ती चोरी गर्नेहरु निरुत्साहित हुन्थे कि ? बिज्ञापन हेरिदिएर सहयोग गरे जस्तै शुद्ध लेख्न पनि सुझाव र प्राविधिक सहयोग गरिदिए, अनी लिंक साटासाट गरिदिए पनि नेपाली ब्लग प्रवर्दनमा सहयोग पुग्ने थियो ।
       सोख नहुने हो भने त ब्लग लेख्न सार्है झन्झटिलो र पट्यारिलो काम हो । नियमित र रचनात्मक नेपाली लेख ब्लग मार्फत ईन्टरनेटमा उपलब्ध गराइदिनुहुने सम्पूर्ण नेपाली ब्लगरहरुप्रति हार्दिक आभार ब्यक्त गर्दछु ।

Saturday, February 05, 2011

Nepal, Nepali and Blogging; Experience of Nearly a Decade

       What comes between computer hardware and software? I certainly say, Nepal. Ridiculous, isn’t it? Let me explain. China has been dominating in production of computer parts (hardware) including CPU and India is advance in software design and outsourcing, Nepal is between them (but geographically).
       Could it be possible technically or really towards the development of computer hardware or software or both in New Nepal / e-Nepal? Probably Not! during my life. Success may skew towards software but electricity availability condition …….? Somewhat improvement in IT sectors like telecommunication, Nepal could be an example. But no enough to mention in example, I assume. However, a decade ago, there was trend (fashion) to learn and get trained in basic computer and still it is an essential skill to get any kind of job. Also, it was the matter of self dignity. But it has been limited only in training, not extended to any discovery or industrialization.
       My engrossment was in electronics. Trend to learn computer, and my engrossment / enthusiasm in computer hardware (and still! nevertheless could become a professional), I used to spend several hours in computer related articles, experiments, and in cyber café (Rs. 30-50/hr, later Rs.15-25/hr). http://www.geocities.yahoo.com/bishnu.........(extinct) was the first website (or blog?) that I created. I was at learning stage of html code, jumped from hardware. Initially, it was used to view change in html code after change made using yahoo’s website builder. This site was used for html code practice (observe code, after change in template and vice versa), rather than to publish any article or any advertisement. Later, I used to post some jokes, computer tips (windows, and basic code of html).
       Half of my diary was filled with poems and stories (written in Nepali) and hence, I thought, only thought to post them in the website (geocities). Both, laziness and difficulty in typing and posting in Nepali font (Unicode was unknown to me at that time) made these literature unexposed to public. Later on King Gyanendra’s regime, I found blogspot and wordpress were better to post such kind of literature (in Nepali) and creativity. But the weakness in typing, achieving correct orthography in screen unlike in handwritten manuscript, enervated…oops! Although a revolution made due to Unicode system to post in Nepali, typing time, grammar and punctuation are still making obstacle to post article in Nepali language. I feel odd when reading Nepali article typed by me. I rarely posted these Nepali article (or deleted later) because some word I couldn’t type with correct spelling. I am poor in English, so, I rarely feel odd when reading grammatically mistaken my article.
       Therefore, again, both blogspot and wordpress were used to change template and to design in different ways (wordpress having less option) as in geocities in initial days. Posting and writing couldn’t be continued. Later a decision was made to write article in Nepali for wordpress and in English for blogspot, whatever may be the topic. Article proliferated in blogspot which I hadn’t imagined during opening of its account; just thought Nepali article and literacy will be proliferated as it is easy to create and write; but typing skill made it reverse.
       I salute them (I am not mentioning some important names at this moment, sorry) who not only continuing blog in Nepali but also encouraging other Nepali with correct grammar and spelling, and technical guidance.