“National Science Day 2015” Observed at TU-PNC
TU-PNC, Sept. 18: The third “National Science Day” was celebrated at the Institute of Science and Technology, Tribhuvan University, Prithvi Narayan Campus, Pokhara on 1 Ashoj 2072 BS with an objective of raising awareness about the benefits of science. The celebration was entitled as “Trends and Emerging Issues in Scientific Research: A Talk Programme on the Auspicious Occasion of Science Day 2015.”
The celebration function was presided over by Assistant Campus Chief Nandalal Adhikari, and inaugurated and attended by Campus Chief Prof. Dr. Devendra Bahadur Lamichhane as chief guest.
The opening and welcome speech was delivered by Prof. Dr. Chandra Bahadur Thapa who also heads the Department of Botany and Microbiology. Addressing the programme, he said that today’s celebration is the first event outside the Kathmandu valley and the third occasion in Nepal. He also stated that science and technology is indispensable for the development of the country. “Without investing money on science, no country can make progress in the world,” he added.
On the auspicious occasion of the day, two discussion papers were presented, followed by interaction between the presenters and the participants. The first paper entitled “Recent Developments and Scope of Nanoscience” was presented by Prof. Dr. AD Mishra of the Department of Chemistry. During his presentation, he defined the concept “nanoscience”, discussed different kinds of nanoscience and its application to various aspects of everyday human life such as health, food, technology, etc. He defined the term “nanoscience” as “the study of structures and materials on the scale of nanometers.” He further stated that “Nanoscience is not new, exists in nature in variety of natural phenomena. It was some 5,000 years old to come in human knowledge.”
Similarly, Prof. Dr. Vikash Kumar KC, a faculty at the Department of Statistics presented a paper on the topic “Research Paradigm, Trends and Issues in Applied Scientific Research”. Speaking about the main objective of the paper, he said that the researchers of science should understand the societal concerns about the impacts of technology. He further stated, “The main global challenges we are facing today is to be addressed in the multifaceted context of economy, society, environment and technology”. “Sustainable development is only possible if all the dimensions that influence development are addressed appropriately,” he emphasized. His paper was interdisciplinary in nature. Clarifying the focus of his paper, he was stated “Interdisciplinarity involves the combining of two or more academic disciplines into one activity (e.g. a research project). It is about creating something new by crossing borders.”
The practice of observing “Science Day” was first recommended at the World Conference on science in Budapest in 1999 to recongnize the relationship between science and society. Later established by UNESCO in 2001, the “World Science Day for Peace and Development” is observed worldwide on 10 November each year. In Nepal, the first “National Science Day” of Nepal was celebrated on 1 Ashoj 2070 BS with the slogan “Science and Technology for Development” (the slogan was selected by NAST through a national contest). With this first celebration, the government had decided to observe Ashoj 1 every year as the National Science Day from 2013. The day also commemorates the annual anniversary of Amrit Science Campus (ASCOL), the first science campus in the country.
Speaking at the closing ceremony, Assistant Campus Chief Adhikari expressed his confidence that the National Science Day would promote scientists, researchers and academicians in PN Campus and in the western region of Nepal
Published by: Institute of Sc. & Tech
Published on 2015-09-18
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