Population ageing is becoming one of the major challenges that cannot be overlooked in the process of socioeconomic development in china. China has entered into the ageing society since 2000. Based on the county-scale data in the 2000 and 2010 censuses and using standard deviational ellipse (SDE) and geographical detector methods, this study systematically analyzed the spatial distribution characteristics and regional differences of population ageing. The results are as follows: First, Population ageing varies spatially. Population ageing on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau usually shows an even distribution. Population ageing on the southeastern side of China usually shows a center-periphery type of distribution and coastal-inland contrast. Second, the mean value of aged population proportion increased from 6.7% to 8.0% between 2000 and 2010. By 2010, China had become an aged society. The counties that had high percentage of aged population concentrated in the interior, the Northeast, and along the silk road economic region. The spatial pattern of population ageing is relatively stable, but significant difference was found in the trend of population ageing change. Third, there are regional differences in the population ageing of China, characterized by differences between urban areas and the countryside, ethnic minority regions and other regions, and poverty-stricken region and non-poverty areas. But the direction of change is not consistent. Last, There are many factors affecting population ageing level of counties, mainly including population ageing of the year 2000, population age structure, natural conditions, emigration rate, and economic development stage. The distribution of social and economic development level was not consistent with the distribution of population ageing change.
The spatial patterns and characteristics of overall inbound tourism markets are an important basis for setting out tourism development strategies in certain regions and across China. The patterns and structures of the inbound tourism market not only depend on the tourist capacities of each region, but also the interactive relationships between the origins and destinations (O-D). This study builds a Chinese inbound tourism market affiliated matrix of provinces to source countries in view of O-D interaction, which is based on a 2-mode network analysis from social network theories, and then analyzes the network by centralities models and singular Value Decomposition (SVD) so as to reveal the functions of each province in the network and the interactive patterns. It concludes that: first, larger tourist capacity of provinces does not create more structural advantages in tourism market interaction network. The overall construction is relatively balanced, and the centralities of provinces are similar to their neighbors'. But otherwise, Korea, Japan, America, and so on, which are the major sources of Chinese inbound tourism market, become the core actors in the network. Second, there are three clusters in the inbound tourism affiliated network, which are the balanced cluster of Asia-Europe to multi-regions in China; the cooperative cluster of Russia to the north-south region of China; the transit cluster of Europe-America to port and inland of China. This is a basis for provinces to select tourist source countries and cooperation partners. These findings may inform inbound tourism marketing program and strategy development, planning itineraries, and designing tourism products for provinces in China.
Carbon sources and sinks are key factors for low-carbon development. Carbon surplus and deficit caused by carbon sources and sinks is the basis for formulating low-carbon development strategy and policy. Based on energy consumption data, output of key industrial products, and the IPCC standard of carbon emissions, and using the results of other research, carbon sources from energy consumption and the productive process of cement, steel, and synthetic ammonia are calculated for Henan Province. On the basis of remote sensing image analysis, carbon sinks are divided into arable land, forest, and grassland. According to the carbon emission coefficient and carbon absorption coefficient and the amount of carbon sources and sinks , the spatial and temporal variation of carbon surplus and deficit are calculated and analyzed. Through the research, we reached the following conclusion: (1) Carbon emissions and per capita carbon emission in Henan Province showed a rising trend from 2005 to 2013, and the average annual growth rates were 11.22% and 10.72%, respectively. The spatial variation was also clear. Per capita carbon emissions for the western, northern, and central areas of Henan Province were relatively high, but were relatively low in the southern and southeastern areas. (2) Energy consumption was the key carbon source in Henan Province. Carbon emissions from energy consumption showed a gradually rising trend, but its share in total carbon emissions was decreasing. Cement and steel productions were another important source of carbon emissions. The related carbon emissions and share in total carbon emissions showed a gradually increasing trend. The emissions and share of ammonia production were relatively low. (3) Carbon sinks in Henan Province are mainly composed of arable land and forest, and the proportion of grassland is very low. Carbon sinks in Henan Province decreased from 6384.83 million tons to 6337.78 million tons from 2005 to 2013, with an average annual reduction rate of 5.88 million tons. This was primarily due to nonagricultural construction that converted part of the arable land and forest land into built-up areas. (4) Overall Henan Province was in a carbon deficit state. From 2005 to 2013, both the size of carbon deficit and the number of areas with carbon deficit status were increasing. The southeastern and western regions of Henan Province were in a carbon surplus or low deficit state, while other regions were in a carbon deficit state. (5) To facilitate low-carbon development, improving energy structure, adjusting industrial structure, and optimizing land use to reduce carbon sources and add carbon sinks should be promoted in Henan Province.
Research on innovation linkages of cities has an important significance for revealing characteristics of innovative spatial structure and forming strategies for regional innovation development. This article uses a spatial interaction model to measure the spatial structure of innovation linkages among 21 cities in Guangdong Province in 2003 and 2012, with the aim to reveal the change of the spatial structure. Strategies for the development and optimization of spatial structure of innovation linkages in Guangdong Province are discussed based on data analysis and principles of urban spatial organization. The article concludes that the spatial structure of innovation linkages in Guangdong province shows a new "core-periphery" structure and the Pearl River Delta cities are at the core of this structure, which shows a weakening and differentiation trend compared to the past. The overall degree of network linkage is enhanced, and there is a tendency of anti-polarization in periphery regions of the Pearl River Delta. From 2003 to 2012, the number of innovation center cities dropped from 6 to 5. Both radiation range and direction of innovation center cities experienced some changes, and innovative radiation intensity showed a "strong-strong combination" pattern. In the future, the existing spatial pattern of innovation linkages should be optimized and regional polycentric network innovative pattern should be built on the regional scale.
The identification of different functional types of commercial center in a city is of great significance to understanding the spatial structure of business. Compared to the traditional methods, the analysis of big data produces more accurate result and is more convenient. Taking the 59125 POI (Point of Interest) data of Guangzhou City as the basic data, we identified the boundaries of the multi-functional commercial centers and explore their spatial structure and pattern by using the methods of kernel density analysis, statistical analysis, and nearest distance analysis. The result shows that: (1) The commercial area structure presents a clear dual-core distribution, with the Yuexiu District and the Tianhe District constituting the cores. (2) Different types of commercial centers show clear spatial variations. The urban services center and the public service center are located in the Yuexiu District and the business center and the financial center are located in the Tianhe District. Entertainment centers present the characteristics of dispersed clusters. (3) The spatial structure of business is a combination of zones and clusters. The urban services, public service, and business functions are concentrated in the inner zones and the entertainment functions can be found in all areas.
Hourly communication area (HCA) study has attracted significant attention in China within the context of urban agglomeration research. Using ArcGIS 10.1, this study analyzes the data on traffic networks as well as from the surveys conducted in Xiamen-Zhangzhou-Quanzhou urban agglomerations (XZQ), Fujian Province, in 2014 to delineate theoretical HCAs by applying the convex hull method, establish the actual HCAs according to the intra-city travel time, delineate the intra-city HCAs based on travel time satisfaction using Baidu map, and explore satisfaction to intercity travel time and intra-city travel time using questionnaire survey results. The analysis shows that: (1) The extent of theoretical HCAs of XZQ is beyond the borders of the cities, with areas of 15473.3 km2, 16356.7 km2, and 19276.9 km2, respectively. Furthermore, this article shows that the travel time to long-distance transport stations in XZQ ranges from 31 to 61 minutes, resulting in a reduction in the actual HCAs of 91.7%, 82.9%, and 83.9%, respectively, compared to the theoretical HCAs. There are only a few areas of intersection between neighboring cities. (2) The respondents in XZQ usually spend more than 60 minutes on the way to the coach stations and more than 90 minutes to the railway stations by bus, and the travel time falls in the Unsatisfactory, even Very unsatisfactory critical time category. The intra-city HCAs of Very satisfactory, Satisfactory, Medium, Unsatisfactory, and Very unsatisfactory categories are 17.91 km2 (0.39%), 45.58 km2 (1.00%), 112.76 km2 (2.47%), 212.20 km2 (4.65%), and 4179.46 km2 (91.50%), respectively, expand along the main roads in the city and are in quasi-concentric circles. (3) 67.71% of the respondents reported Very satisfactory and Satisfactory intercity travel time, whereas 69.1% of the respondents reported Very unsatisfactory and Unsatisfactory intra-city travel time, which shows that the intra-city transportation of XZQ has not met the demand of the majority of the respondents, and the intra-city urban transportation systems should be improved. We recommend that the government should improve the HCA especially the intra-city HCA in XZQ. Policies should not only focus on the intra-city public transit systems but also build adequate public transit terminals to facilitate passenger transfer, such as new metro or light rail systems.
The rapid development of information and communication technologies has brought numerous electronic communication modes ((mobile) phone, short message service, email, and recently the popular online social networking sites) that have been expected to influence the role of spatial and relational distances in interpersonal interactions. Based on online "traces" of Sina micro-blog users' interactions in the last two weeks, respondents in our questionnaire survey were required to record and answer questions of (1) who did you interact more often, locals or non-locals and (2) who did you interact more often, acquaintances or strangers in real life. Answers were used in our analysis of the role of spatial distance and relational distance in online social networks. Our findings show that (1) there is a clear tendency of respondents interacting with locals and acquaintances in their real life; (2) respondents' tendency to interact with locals and acquaintances is impacted by their socioeconomic traits, living environment, and information and communication technologies use; (3) theoretically online social networking sites enable users to overcome the distance decay effects and thereby to enlarge their social networks. However, spatial and relational distances sustained the social networks in real life in interpersonal interactions in online social networks.
In recent years, urban public service facilities have increased rapidly. Spatial accessibility measurement can be applied to assess the soundness of public service facilities distribution. Among various kinds of methods, the Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area (2SFCA) method is relatively straightforward, and the greatest strength of the method is that it overcomes the restriction of using only pre-defined regional boundaries. Therefore it is most widely used. However, further research is needed to improve its accuracy. Many recent improvements to the 2-step floating catchment area method generally account for distance-decay within a catchment or enable the usage of variable catchment sizes. In order to improve the method, this study conducted a case study of green space accessibility analysis for the city of Shanghai using the census data of 2000 and 2010 and raster GIS analysis. The result was compared to the original 2-step floating catchment area method output. The results show that the raster Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method is a more precise method than the Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method for measuring the spatial accessibility to green space. A map of spatial accessibility was developed to show the geographic distribution of spatial accessibility to green space in Shanghai. Spatial accessibility is higher in the peri-urban part as compared to the central part of the city. The raster Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method can reduce the error of Kriging spatial interpolation. In the Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method the result is expressed as values at the center points of streets and these values are discrete. But in the raster Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method the green space accessibility of a point in the space is computed for the grid cell. Thus the raster Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method is more precise than the Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method. Also, the raster Gaussian based 2-step floating catchment area method calculates the exact number of demand within a catchment. The green space accessibility example is used to demonstrate the advantage of the improved method, but it can also be applied in other urban public service facility studies.
Tourism development is an important way to protect and utilize intangible cultural heritage resources. This study defined the concept of intangible cultural heritage resource tourism development, discussed the characteristics of intangible tourism resources, and formed the indicator system of intangible cultural heritage resource development potential based on characteristics of the resources, including resource endowment, possibility for visual display and experience, tourism development conditions in the heritage site, and other factors. Indicators of the evaluation include value of the heritage, cultural influence of the heritage, inheritance status, innovation ability, product derivation, tourist experience, visual display, target group attracted, and other influencing factors of intangible cultural heritage resource development. A total of 28 indicators and indices were selected and organized into five levels, including target, comprehensive evaluation, element evaluation, factor evaluation, and evaluation indicator, and they were weighted. The three comprehensive evaluation indices are experience (with a weight of 0.4211), tourism development conditions in the heritage site (with a weight of 0.3504), and resource endowment (with a weight of 0.2285), indicating that visual display and experience of resources is the most important factor influencing the potential of intangible cultural heritage resource tourism development. For the operationalization of the indicator system, a resource scoring table was put forward. Taking Suzhou City as an example, intangible cultural heritage resources of the provincial level and above were evaluated, among which three were classified as level three tourism resources, 16 as level two tourism resources, and 29 as level one tourism resources, and 41 are without value for tourism development. The results show that derivative products, suitability for visual display, level of appeal, and heritage protection situation produce an effect on whether the intangible resources can become tourist resources; comprehensive evaluation decisively influences the potential of tourism resources for tourism development. Intangible cultural heritage of handicraft and folk custom are of high tourism development potential and intangible cultural heritage resource of folklore, traditional sports and entertainment, acrobatics and traditional medicine are of low tourism development potential. Empirical research proves that the intangible cultural heritage resource tourism development potential indicator system developed in this research is useful and can provide scientific support for tourism destinations to assess intangible cultural heritage resources and develop tourism.
Soil erosion on the loess hillslope shows clear vertical zonal differentiation. From upslope to downslope locations, the erosion zones are sheet erosion zone, rill erosion zone, and shallow gully erosion zone. Sediment concentration of sheet erosion zone has important impacts on detachment, deposition, and transportation processes of rill erosion zone. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between steady sediment concentration and different influencing factors including loess soil type, rainfall intensity, and slope gradient. The relationship between steady sediment concentration and shear stress, stream power, and unit stream power were also examined. The impacts of loess soil type, rainfall intensity, and slope gradient on sediment concentration in rain-induced sheet flow were examined by artificial rainfall experiment from June to August 2015. Two loess soils from Yangling and Changwu districts were subjected to simulated rainfall using a detachment tray under infiltration condition. Two rainfall intensities of 90 and 120 mm/h were simulated on slope gradients from 10° to 25°, resulting in rain-induced overland flow. The sediment was sampled at several time intervals and sediment concentration was determined. Different hydraulic parameters including flow velocity, shear stress, stream power, and unit stream power were measured. The results show that: (1) Sediment concentration demonstrated a similar trend under different conditions: first sharply decreased and then became steady. A new equation can be used to model changes of sediment concentration, with the minimum value of the equation as steady sediment concentration. Sediment concentration was greater at higher rainfall intensity and steeper slope gradients. With slope gradient increasing from 10°to 25°, sediment concentration increased from 4.3 to 6.25 kg/m3 and 9.56 to 18.53 kg/m3 at rainfall intensities of 90 and 120 mm/h on Lou soil hillslope; and increased from 4.76 to 12.42 kg/m3 and 9.72 to 19.08 kg/m3 at rainfall intensities of 90 and 120 mm/h on Dark loessil soil hillslope, respectively. The steady sediment concentration was lower with higher fractal dimension of loess particles. The impacts of factors on steady sediment concentration are in the following order: fractal dimension of loess particles > rainfall intensity > slope gradient; (2) Unit stream power was the hydrodynamic parameter that was most closely correlated with steady sediment concentration, and a new model including rainfall intensity, unit stream power, and fractal dimension of loess particles was advanced to calculate steady sediment concentration. The impacts of factors on steady sediment concentration are in the following order: fractal dimension of loess particles > rainfall intensity > unit stream power.
Wind energy is generally considered a clean and environmentally friendly renewable energy source that can reduce societal dependence on fossil fuels. Wind energy has rapidly developed in recent years; developing technologies and the relatively low cost of wind energy production will make it a significant energy source in the future. At present, China's energy policy is gradually including wind energy. However, the environmental impact of installing and operating wind farms has not been thoroughly investigated. Although the impact of a wind farm will be a gradual process over a long period of time, and the impact may be difficult to measure, any environmental impacts cannot be ignored. Through analyzing the research status in China and internationally, this article summarizes eight aspects of wind farm impact, including on climatic change, vegetation, soil, and C/N cycle. In addition, this article summarizes the methods employed for evaluating the impacts. Finally, eight areas of concern may need to be investigated in the future to assess the impact of wind farms on the environment: (1) to evaluate the impact of wind farms on climate, more precise climate models need to be established or improved; (2) to explore the effect of wind farms on animals, it is necessary to identify what environmental factors play a decisive role in the activities of the animals, and whether these factors are universal in different wind farms; (3) to analyze and detect the impact of wind farms on vegetation, it is necessary to comprehensively use remote sensing monitoring and ecological survey methods to accurately identify the response mechanisms of different terrestrial ecosystems; (4) to study the impact of wind farms on the carbon and nitrogen cycles of the ecosystem, it is necessary to improve the acquisition of measured data, especially data acquisition over a long period of time, so as to form a long-term observation sequence for the analysis of greater spatial and temporal scale; (5) the impact of wind farms in different regions of the world on various environmental factors is not exactly the same. The study of a typical area to reflect the common problems of wind farm impact on the environment is a feasible approach at present; (6) while focusing on wind energy development, we also need to protect the productivity and biodiversity of the whole terrestrial ecosystems. Only on this basis can we accurately evaluate the relationship between wind farms and sustainable development; (7) in the environmental impact assessment (EIA) stage before the construction of wind farms, the current environmental impact assessment guidelines and standards should be improved, and the long-term complex influence of wind, solar, and other new energy on the environment should be taken into full account; (8) as the world's wind energy superpower, China should timely establish long-term observation and experiment stations to quantify the process, and emphasize the impact of wind farms on the environment from the broader temporal and spatial perspectives.
Trade-environment relationship is one of the major manifestations of the coupled human-environment system, exhibiting significant complexity and uncertainty. Studies on the environmental effects of trade (EET) seek to explore the complementary or competing relationship between free trade and environment conservation, and give birth to a series of theories and hypotheses. Since globalization has witnessed increasing global-local interactions, this article outlines a framework of global connection, national power, and regional development to review existing studies on EET. It highlights how the process (flows) and the outcome (stocks) of trade work together to generate EET. Based on neo-classical international trade theory, this study identifies three types of stocks, namely location, growth, and regulation. In contrast, the integration of international trade and investment indicates the importance of intra-industry trade. This study shows that existing literature on EET is primarily based on the global and national scale, showing a "top-down" trend, where the role of environmental regulation stands at the center. However, these studies failed to incorporate the localized factors and neglected the interaction between trade policy and environmental regulation. They are also confined to the "north-south" trade and cease to follow the changing geography of trade. Accordingly, this article argues that EET studies should pay closer attention to regional development from a "glocalization" perspective to: (1) consider the expanding trade-induced regional inequality; (2) adapt to the coexistence of intra-and inter-industry trade; and (3) produce a proper scale for the coordination between trade policy and environmental regulation.
With its role in promoting democracy, economic growth, improving health and alleviating poverty gradually being realized, social capital has become the focus of many research efforts in various disciplines. Geographers also realize that social capital plays an important part in explaining geographical phenomena. In recent years, researchers in China and abroad have undertaken various empirical studies based on specific issues, but the introduction of social capital in the study of geography remains to be of a short history. Especially in China, the study of social capital in geography lacks a systematic review and exploration of an analytical framework. Based on the examination of a large number of international and Chinese literature on this kind of research, this article systematically summarizes and reviews the studies from the following aspects: the spatiality of social capital, the introduction of social capital in solving geographical issues, the application of social capital in various sub-disciplines, such as economic geography, urban geography, health geography, and so on. Meanwhile, this article brings about a number of issues that should be further examined and some new research perspectives that deserve to be broadened in the near future. For example, the approach and framework of solving geographical issues from the perspective of social capital and the measurements of social capital in the field of geographical research. By doing so, this article attempts to promote the application of social capital in geographical studies and enrich theoretical research and practices of social capital.
