Thursday, January 19, 2012

In Search of Yarsagumba: A Short Documentary

After watching this short documentary "In Search of Yarsagumba" by Asia Network for Sustainable Agriculture and Biosources, I could not remain without writing this blog post. I heard about a mystical medicinal power of Yarsagumba for the first time when I was in my middle school. But, I had no clue about how it looks like, how it test, and whether it has real medicinal properties! I didn't bother much myself to know more about this mysterious plant. It didn't catch my attention, in fact not only mine but majority of Nepalese people, until the Maoist armed conflict reached its peak. The plant came to controversy and took headlines of newspaper/TV not because of its biological properties but its use by Maoist to fund their civil war. This highly prized plant also caught media's attention due to the reports of conflicts between local collector and outside in the harvest time. Recently, Yarsagumba is near to the edge of the extinction due to overharvesting in Nepal (I guess in Tibet too). Local people do not have scientific knowledge and the government too does not have any program to educate people for its sustainable utilization. 

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Prime Story: Ghusia Karmachari (घुसिया कर्मचारीहरु)

Prime Story: Sting Operation by Himalayan TV
Three corrupt official  from Road Division Tanahu Nepal were caught in sting operation jointly carried out by Himalaya TV and Nepal Police. Road Division engineering duo Amarendra Karna and Abhinavdash Mulmi and Communication Operator Gauri Bahadur Thapa were arrested with bribe money. All three officials were later handover to The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) for further action.  

Friday, January 13, 2012

नेपाल सतिले सरापेको देश होइन

उच्च माध्यामिक विद्यालय संघ नेपाल (हिसान)को पाँचौं महाधिवेशनको महाधिवेशन उद्‌घाटनपछि 'परिवर्तित नेपालका लागि शिक्षा बहस'लाई सम्बोधन गर्दै प्रधानमन्त्री डा. बाबुराम भट्टराईले नेपाल सतिले सरापेको मुलुक नभएको बताएका छन्|  'यो कसैले सरापेको देश होइन; यो शिक्षाले जन्माएको मनस्थिति हो।'  उनले राज्यप्रति नागरिकको जिम्मेवारी हुनुपर्ने उल्लेख गर्दै 'राजनीतिमा युगान्तकारी परिवर्तन आयो तर शिक्षामा हामी त्यही पाठ्यक्रम र त्यही शिक्षा विधिमा छौं जसले जागिरे मनस्थिति सहितका व्यक्ति उत्पादन गर्छ, यसमा परिवर्तन आवश्यक' भएको बताए|' वक्तव्यमा डा. भट्टराईले उठान गरेका प्रश्नहरूको जबाफ हामीले सबैले खोज्नु हाम्रो कर्तव्य हो| असल नागरिक निर्माण गर्ने शिक्षा बिना भोलिको परिवर्तित सुन्दर नेपालको कल्पना गर्न सकिन्नएक पटक डा. भट्टराईको मनै छुने वक्तव्यको पूर्ण पाठ गर्नुस अनि  छातीमा हात राखेर सोच्नुस - मैले मेरो देशको लागि के गर्न सक्छु?  

नोट: मलाई मनपरेका वाक्यांशहरूलाई बोल्ड गरेको छु

वक्तव्यको पूर्ण पाठ

Sunday, January 8, 2012

A Nightmare in Las Cruces

A Nightmare in Las Cruces: On February 10, 1990 two cowards walked into the Las Cruces Bowl and changed the lives of many people. Seven people inside the bowling alley were forced at gunpoint to the floor and told to put their heads down. After stealing thousands of dollars from the safe, the killers shot all seven multiple times at close range, execution-style. The shooters then started a fire on the desk and fled. Dead at the scene were Amy Houser, Steven Teran, his step-daughter Paula, and Valerie Teran. Incredibly, Melissia Repass, Stephanie C. Senac, and Ida Holguin survived the brutal attack. Repass, just twelve at the time, made the heroic 911 call -despite being shot in the head- which saved three lives at the time. Four out of the seven shot were children, including a two and six year old. For almost twenty years, the two remaining survivors(Senac died in 1999), family members, and friends have had to live with this unspeakable event. The case is unsolved after twenty years and the Las Cruces Police Dept., the FBI, and Crimestoppers plead for your help.

Released: May 31, 2011
Runtime: 103 mins



Alternative Links

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Death of the Iceman - BBC Horizon

In September 1991 two hikers made a sensational discovery - a frozen body high in the mountains, near the border between Austria and Italy. It turned out to be 5,300 years old, the oldest frozen mummy ever found. Named Ötzi the Iceman after the Ötztal area where he was found, he became a worldwide sensation.

The body was taken to Austria where scientists soon got to work on him. They analysed his bone density to find out how old he was (in his 40s, an advanced age for the time) and examined his wonderfully preserved belongings. The cause of his death remained a mystery. Now archaeologists are being joined by forensic scientists to investigate this unique case and new research has revealed a shocking answer.

A Shocking Discovery
Now scientists can tell a new story of the Iceman's death. Ötzi was attacked and managed to flee. As he ran he was shot in the back with an arrow. He pulled out the arrow shaft but the head remained stuck in his shoulder. He reached the top of the mountains but was now exhausted and weakened from bleeding. He could go no further, lay down and died.



Friday, January 6, 2012

Dubai Miracle or Mirage: A Documentary by National Geographic

DUBAI: MIRACLE OR MIRAGE? is a one-hour documentary that examines the world's most fascinating and fastest developing city-states. From ski slopes in the desert to man-made islands grouped to look like continents, Dubai is like no other place in the world. Surrounded by war zones, Dubai is an oasis of calm and the home of superlatives – the biggest building, the largest airport, the tallest hotel, the biggest mall, the richest horse race... the list goes on. Forty years ago it was a sleepy backwater, now Dubai is a magnet for the young and ambitious.

Part 1



Shanxi, China: City Built in the Mountains of Shan


Shanxi is highlighted on this map
Location Map (Source: Wikipedia)
The Hanging Temple or Hanging Monastery is a temple built into a cliff (75 m or 246 ft above the ground) near Mount Heng in Hunyuan County, Shanxi province, China. This architectural wonder was built during the late Northern Wei Dynasty (386 – 534) by a monk called Liao Ran. The extant monastery was largely rebuilt and maintained in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The monastery has survived more than 1,500 years before they were renovated during the 1900s. Built more than 1,500 years ago, this temple is notable not only for its location on a sheer precipice but also because it includes Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian elements. The structure is kept in place with wooden crossbeams fitted into holes chiseled into the cliffs.


Click here for more detail about the topic. 




View more presentations from Bhim Upadhyaya


My acknowledgement goes to related authors, slideshare, and Wikipedia.


Related Articles:
HangingMonastery (Xuankong Si)
The Incredible Hanging Temple of Hengshan

Monday, January 2, 2012

सुडान अभियुक्तका धरौटी सर्बोच्चले घटायो

यस्तै अदालती निर्णयहरुका कारण पनि नेपालमा भ्रस्टाचार दिनानुदिन मौलाउदै गएको छ| यहाँ भ्रस्टाचारको खुलाशा हुन्छ, अनि कारवाहीको नाटक मन्चन, र अन्तमा या त नाम मात्रैको सजाय या अदालती सफाई| यस्तै छ यहाको चलन| हेर्नुस एउटा यस्तै समचार, सुडान अभियुक्तहरुका धरौटी सर्बोच्च अदालतले घटाएको| एकदिन अधिकांस यी अभियुक्तहरुले सफाई पाएको समाचार आउदा पनि कुनै अनौठो मान्नु पर्ने छैन...किनकि बर्षौ देखि यहा यस्तै हुदै आएको छ...

सुडान अभियुक्तका धरौटी सर्वाेच्चले घटायो | मुख्य समाचार | :: कान्तिपुर ::



Sunday, January 1, 2012

Dream 2011 Results: Fedor Emelianenko Vs Satoshi Ishii

Fedor Emelianenko knocked out Satoshi Ishii in 2:29 of Round 1 in DREAM Heavyweight match held in Saitama, Japan on December 30th, 2011. When I first heard about this bout, my thought was what the hell Ishii going to do? He is a Judo Olympic champion but new to the MMA world. Although, Fedor had three consecutive loss in a row before his last fight, he is still one of the best and dangerous heavy weight fighter. He has tremendous edge over Ishii both in experience and striking departments. Ishii should wait more for this match. This is exactly the outcome what I was expecting. I think this is a worst decision made by Ishii and his team. Hope to see more improved Ishii in future.


Video: Fedor Vs Ishii (credit goes to up-loader)