Urban Areas In China Research Articles

Influence of Spotted Doves Diet on Their Survival in China Urban Areas

The study of urban birds is not an uncommon occurrence. The total amount of food in cities is higher than in rural wild environments, but bird biodiversity is reduced. As a common bird in many cities in China, the spotted dove's feeding choice may determine its dominant position in the urban ecosystem. In this literature review, from the perspective of the food selection of the spotted dove, through its nesting behaviors, diet, and adaptation to the urban ecosystem, the living situation of the spotted dove in China is described, and the reasons for its adaptation to the urban ecosystem are analyzed. At the same time, some suggestions for improving the biodiversity of urban ecosystem based on the living habits of the spotted doves were also discussed

Rural-urban differentials of prevalence and lifestyle determinants of pre-diabetes and diabetes among the elderly in southwest China

BackgroundDiabetes has become a major public health problem in China. A better understanding of diabetes determinants and urban-rural differences is essential to crafting targeted diabetes prevention measures for the elderly living in both urban and rural areas. This study aimed to compare rural-urban differentials in prevalence and lifestyle determinants of pre-diabetes and diabetes among the elderly in southwest China.MethodsA cross-sectional health interview and examination survey was conducted among individuals aged ≥ 60 years in both a rural and urban area of China. Anthropometric measurements, including height, weight, and waist circumference, as well as blood pressure and fasting blood glucose measurements were taken. Associated risk factors for pre-diabetes and diabetes were evaluated using multivariate logistic regression analysis.ResultsIn total, 1,624 urban residents and 1,601 rural residents consented to participate in the study. The urban prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes (46.8% and 24.7%, respectively), was higher than the rural prevalence (23.4% and 11.0%, respectively, P<0.01). Urban elderly participants had markedly higher prevalence of obesity, central obesity, and physical inactivity than their rural counterparts (15.3%, 76.0%, and 9.2% vs. 4.6%, 45.6%, and 6.1%, P<0.01). In contrast, rural elderly adults had higher prevalence of smoking than urban ones (23.2% vs. 17.2%, P<0.01). Obese (OR 1.71, 95% CI 1.27–2.30 vs. OR 1.73, 95% CI 1.30–3.28) and centrally obese participants (OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.18–2.15 vs. OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.32–2.54) were more likely to suffer from diabetes in both urban and rural regions. Furthermore, urban current smokers had a higher probability of suffering from diabetes (OR 1.58, 95% CI 1.11–2.25), while hypertension was positively associated with the prevalence of diabetes in the rural area (OR 2.13, 95% CI 1.54–2.95). Obese participants in the rural area were more likely to suffer from pre-diabetes (OR 2.50, 95% CI 1.53–4.08), while physical inactivity was positively associated with prevalence of pre-diabetes in the urban area (OR 1.95, 95% CI 1.37–2.80).ConclusionPre-diabetes and diabetes are more prevalent among urban older adults than their rural counterparts in southwest China. The identified rural-urban differentials of lifestyle factors have significant impacts on prevalence of pre-diabetes and diabetes. Thus, tailored lifestyle interventions are needed to improve diabetes prevention and management among the elderly in southwest China.

Research on the Synergistic Development Measurement of Construction Land Scale and Population Scale in Urban Areas of Counties in China

In order to quantitatively portray the degree of synergistic development of construction land scale and population scale in county urban areas in China, this paper uses elasticity coefficient model and deviation coefficient model to measure the sequential change characteristics, spatial divergence differences and the degree of synergistic development of population scale and construction land scale of county units in each province in China based on the data of China Urban and Rural Construction Statistical Yearbook from 2006 to 2016. The results of the study show that: ①Both the number of population and the area of land for construction in counties in China show a trend of first increasing and then slightly decreasing, reaching a peak in 2014 and then slowly decreasing; ②In the process of rapid urbanization, the urbanization rate of county units in China is much smaller than the national average urbanization rate, and the urbanization level of counties is less than half of the national urbanization level. Therefore, the main force driving China’s urbanization process comes from the development of large and medium-sized cities, rather than county units. Besides, population transfer is more inclined to large and medium-sized cities than to county cities; ③ Based on the elasticity coefficient model, it is concluded that except Henan, Shanxi and Qinghai provinces, the other provinces in China are in a situation where the scale of construction land in county urban areas is not coordinated with the scale of population, and the type of incoordination is of the type of A disproportionate growth of people and land (the growth rate of the scale of construction land area and the scale of population are both positive and the growth rate of the former is greater than that of the latter); ④According to the deviation coefficient model, it is concluded that the scale of construction land scale and population growth in county units in China are not coordinated. Eighteen provinces in China are in a state of high dissonance, accounting for 64. 29% of the total. The average deviation coefficient for their degree of coordination is 2. 32, much higher than the average coefficient of deviation of 1. 5 in China. The relevant research results can provide theoretical reference for realizing the sustainable and healthy development of county cities, optimizing the structure of county units and improving utilization efficiency of county unit resources.

Analysis on the Spatial Structure and Interaction of Aviation Network and Tourism Efficiency Network in Major Cities in China

Tourism efficiency is crucial for measuring sustainable tourism development. Examining the relationship between aviation and tourism efficiency networks is key to promoting their synergistic development in China's urban areas. This study employs various methods, such as complex network analysis method, entropy-weighted TOPSIS, tourism efficiency gravity model, and quadratic assignment procedure, to analyze the networks' spatial structure evolution characteristics and interaction effects. Results show that (1) China's major cities' aviation network has improved its organizational efficiency and formed a "double rhombus-single axis" spatial evolution pattern of the axis-spoke network. The number of intermediary networks and hub cities in the central and western regions has increased. (2) The tourism efficiency network adopts a "honeycomb" structure pattern with the simultaneous layout of "point-to-point" and "star" networks. The network's tourism efficiency follows "Pareto's Law," and tourism cities above the second level form a club group development. The tourism efficiency development potential area is shifting to the southwest. (3) The aviation and tourism efficiency networks exhibit a clear trend of synergistic evolution with a "path locking" phenomenon between them. Differences in tourism resource endowment, labor advantage, and capital advantage positively impact the aviation network's structure. Conversely, differences in revenue capacity and market scale negatively impact the structure. The aviation scale advantage, openness, intimacy, and influence exhibit decreasing positive effects on the tourism efficiency network's structure.

Contributing Factors to the Changes in Public and Private Transportation Mode Choice after the COVID-19 Outbreak in Urban Areas of China

The COVID-19 pandemic has tremendously affected the whole of human society worldwide. Travel patterns have greatly changed due to the increased risk perception and the governmental interventions regarding COVID-19. This study aimed to identify contributing factors to the changes in public and private transportation mode choice behavior in China after COVID-19 based on an online questionnaire survey. In the survey, travel behaviors in three periods were studied: before the outbreak (before 27 December 2019), the peak (from 20 January to 17 March 2020), and after the peak (from 18 March to the date of the survey). A series of random-parameter bivariate Probit models was developed to quantify the relationship between individual characteristics and the changes in travel mode choice. The key findings indicated that individual sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., gender, age, ownership, occupation, residence) have significant effects on the changes in mode choice behavior. Other key findings included (1) a higher propensity to use a taxi after the peak compared to urban public transportation (i.e., bus and subway); (2) a significant impact of age on the switch from public transit to private car and two-wheelers; (3) more obvious changes in private car and public transportation modes in more developed cities. The findings from this study are expected to be useful for establishing partial and resilient policies and ensuring sustainable mobility and travel equality in the post-pandemic era.

A survey study on early detection of young children with disabilities in urban and rural areas of China.

This study aimed to understand how children and families access early intervention in China. Timely identification and high-quality intervention is expected to prevent and reduce the occurrence and severity of chronic functional impairment for children with disability and is of great significance to individuals and the society. The current study recruited 1129 caregivers of children with disabilities from rural and urban areas of China were recruited to participate in a survey. (a) The first concern about development was raised, usually by the parents, when a child with disabilities was 26 months of age, (b) developmental screening took place 4 months after the first concern and diagnostic evaluation happened 7 months after, (c) the types of early intervention programme varied across urban and rural areas and (d) child and family factors were found associating with age of detection. Findings highlight the concerningly late age of children being identified for early intervention and disparities in services between urban and rural areas in China. Implications are provided for practitioners, policy makers and future research.

Brown leaf spot of Prunus serrulata Caused by Colletotrichum fioriniae in Sichuan, China.

Prunus serrulate Lindl is widely cultivated in urban areas of China. It is mainly used for wood cultivation and urban landscaping. In May 2021, new leaf spot disease was observed in Chengdu city (30°42' to 30°45'N, 103°51' to 104°7'E), with 69.3% disease incidence, which could inhibit leaf growth and reduce their biomass. A planting area of more than 1000 square meters was investigated. The diseased leaves were mostly concentrated in the lower position of plants, where the humidity was higher. The disease infected P. serrulata leaves and occurred in the field from March to October, with the highest incidence in early May. The typical symptoms initially appeared as brown necrotic lesions on the margin of the leaves. The lesions then enlarged gradually and developed into reddish brown spots, eventually coalescing into large irregular, necrotic lesions with dark brown margins. Finally, the diseased leaves withered and died. Conidiomata were not formed on the diseased tissue. Ten symptomatic leaves were collected from 5 different trees in the planting area. Infected tissues from ten samples were cut into small pieces of 3 × 3 mm. The infected tissues were surface-sterilized by 3% sodium hypochlorite and 75% ethanol respectively for 30s and 60s, and rinsed three times in sterile water. Then they were blot-dried with autoclaved paper towels and cultured on potato dextrose agar (PDA) amended with streptomycin sulfate (50 μg/mL), and incubated at 25°C for 4 to 8 days. After culturing for 8 days at 25℃ and 12 h/12 h light/dark on PDA, the colony diameter reached 67.5 to 78.6 mm. The colonies were initially white, cottony, then became light pink to misty rose at the center, and the reverse side of the colony turned dark red to red and had pale yellowish borders. The conidia were straight, smooth-walled, colorless, fusiform with acute ends, measuring 8.2 to 16.7 × 3.1 to 5.9 μm in size (n = 100). For molecular identification, the genomic DNA of the representative isolate RBWY202105 was extracted using a fungal genomic DNA extraction kit (Solarbio, Beijing). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) [ITS1/ITS4 (White et al., 1990)], histone3 (HIS3) [CYLH3F/CYLH3R (Crous et al. 2004)], chitin synthase (CHS-1) [CHS-79F/CHS-345R (Carbone & Kohn, 1999)], actin (ACT) [ACT512F/ACT (Carbone & Kohn, 1999)], β-tubulin (TUB2) [BT2A/BT2B (O'Donnell et al., 1997)], and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) [GDF/GDR (Templeton et al. 1992)] were amplified. Sequences were deposited in GenBank (ITS: ON000436, HIS3: ON014581, CHS-1: ON014579, ACT: ON014583, TUB2: ON014582, and GAPDH: ON014580). BLAST results indicated that the ITS, HIS3, CHS-1, ACT, TUB2 and GAPDH sequences showed >99% identity with Colletotrichum fioriniae (Marcelino & Gouli) R.G. Shivas & Y.P sequences at NCBI (GenBank MW497230 (561/582), MT740312 (415/415), KU736865 (258/258), MK680659 (246/246), MK967342 (757/757), and MW656269 (263/263)). The conidial suspension (1 × 106 conidia/ml) was used for inoculation by spraying leaves of ten 4-year-old P. serrulata plants for pathogenicity test. Fifteen leaves of each plant were inoculated with spore suspensions on the leaves (600 μl per leaf). The same amount of control leaves was sprayed with sterilized distilled water as a control. Finally, all potted plants were placed in a greenhouse at 25°C under a 16 h/8 h photoperiod and 67 to 78% relative humidity. After ten days, the symptoms observed on the inoculated plants were similar to those of the original diseased plants, but the controls remained asymptomatic. Colletotrichum fioriniae was re-isolated from the infected leaves and identified by both morphological characteristics and DNA sequence analysis (The ITS, HIS3, TUB2, CHS-1, GAPDH and ACT genes). The pathogenicity test was repeated thrice, which showed similar results, confirming Koch's postulates. To our knowledge, this is the first report of brown leaf spot on P. serrulata caused by C. fioriniae in China. The identification of C. fioriniae could provide relevant information for taking management strategies and further research on the Prunus serrulata disease.

Using nighttime light data to estimate water evaporation inside buildings in China's urban areas

AbstractUrbanization has a great impact on urban evapotranspiration. Water evaporation inside buildings is an important part of urban water vapor resources and a crucial core of urban hydrological processes. The systematic studies on building water evaporation (BWE) are mostly the method of experimental monitoring. This study proposed a new method to simulate and estimate water evaporation flux inside buildings in urban areas. Based on the nighttime light data and urban per capita gross domestic product (GDP), a new modeling system was built to simulate the total BWE. Building area was calculated using the nighttime light data. And the BWE coefficient Df was estimated according to the important indicator of economic development per capita GDP value. Then the water evaporation inside urban buildings and the spatial distribution of water evaporation inside buildings in typical cities could be obtained. The results showed that the total amount of water evaporation inside buildings in China's urban areas was 24.5 billion m3. Among the 31 provincial capitals in China, Shanghai had the largest BWE of 1.08 billion m3. The minimum water evaporation of buildings in Lhasa was 20.0 million m3. Studies of BWE can assess urban water budgets, support on‐demand allocation of water resources, and provide a fundamental understanding of the relationship between water resources and energy heat island effects in urban areas.

Application And Validity Analysis of IoT In Smart City Based On Entropy Method

ABSTRACT This work aims to analyze the application of IoT in the construction of smart city using entropy method, and explore the validity of IoT in smart city based on the input-output perspective. Based on the SC IoT-oriented EIS model, this work can analyze the development status of 31 Chinese smart cities. From 2011–2020, Shanghai(0.1177–0.1607), Beijing(0.1049–0.1132) ,Guangzhou(0.013–0.1378), Chongqing(0.0708–0.1019) are the four cities with the best status of smart city, the development status of smart city in many central and western regions is still relatively low, such as Taiyuan (0.0151–0.0198), Changchun(0.0202–0.0223),Wuhan(0.0638–0.0331), Xining(0.0102–0.0111),Urumqi(0.0147–0.0167). From the input perspective, the input of capital and labor in IoT has obviously positive correlation with the development of smart city, which have significantly promoted the development of smart city. From the output perspective, IoT has not only promoted the economic development of smart city, but also caused a series of environmental pollution problems. In conclusion, the application of the IoT has promoted the development of smart city, China should further strengthen the investment in IoT technology, so that it can solve the problems of unbalanced development and environmental pollution in urban areas of china

Whole-genome sequencing to characterize the genetic structure and transmission risk of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Yichang city of China.

The burden of both general and drug-resistant tuberculosis in rural areas is higher than that in urban areas in China. To characterize the genetic structure and transmission risk of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in rural China, we used whole genome sequencing to analyze clinical strains collected from patients in two counties of Yichang for three consecutive years. From 2018 to 2020, sputum samples were collected for cultures from patients with suspected tuberculosis in Yidu and Zigui county, and DNA was extracted from the positive strains for genome sequencing. The online SAM-TB platform was used to identify the genotypes and drug resistance-related mutations of each strain, establish a phylogenetic tree, and calculated the genetic distances between pairwise strains. Twelve single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were used as thresholds to identify transmission clusters. The risk of related factors was estimated by univariable and multivariable logistic regression. A total of 161 out of the collected 231 positive strains were enrolled for analysis, excluding non-tuberculous mycobacterium and duplicate strains from the same patient. These strains belonged to Lineage 2 (92, 57.1%) and Lineage 4 (69, 42.9%), respectively. A total of 49 (30.4%) strains were detected with known drug resistance-related mutations, including 6 (3.7%) multidrug-resistant-TB (MDR-TB) strains and 11 (6.8%) RIF-resistant INH-susceptible TB (Rr-TB) strains. Six of the MDR/Rr-TB (35.3%) were also resistant to fluoroquinolones, which made them pre-extensively drug-resistant TB (pre-XDR-TB). There were another seven strains with mono-resistance to fluoroquinolones and one strain with resistance to both INH and fluoroquinolones, making the overall rate of fluoroquinolones resistance 8.7% (14/161). A total of 50 strains (31.1%) were identified as transmission clusters. Patients under 45 years old (adjusted odds ratio 3.46 [95% confidential intervals 1.28-9.35]), treatment-naive patients (6.14 [1.39-27.07]) and patients infected by lineage 4 strains (2.22 [1.00-4.91]) had a higher risk of transmission. The drug resistance of tuberculosis in rural China, especially to the second-line drug fluoroquinolones, is relatively serious. The standardized treatment for patients and the clinical use of fluoroquinolones warrant attention. At the same time, the recent transmission risk of tuberculosis is high, and rapid diagnosis and treatment management at the primary care needs to be strengthened.

An Analysis of Environmental Effect on VIIRS Nighttime Light Monthly Composite Data at Multiple Scales in China

Nighttime light (NTL) can provide valuable information about human activities. The temporal NTL variation has been previously explored, but the effect of environmental factors has not been fully considered. Here, this article focused on the environmental effect on NTL time series in China, using the visible infrared imaging radiometer suite (VIIRS) monthly products, Earth Observations Group (EOG) product, and Black Marble product, from January 2014 to December 2020. It was found that the NTL variations were statistically correlated with aerosols, vegetation, and surface albedo. NTL variations were negatively correlated with aerosol and vegetation, but positively correlated with surface albedo. Aerosol optical depth was important to explain the NTL variation among environmental factors. In 79% of urban areas in China, the adjusted <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">R</i> -squared of NTL and the three factors surpassed that of NTL and the two factors (vegetation and surface albedo) based on EOG product. In 60% of urban areas in China, the adjusted <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">R</i> -squared of NTL and the three factors surpassed that of NTL and the two factors (vegetation and surface albedo), based on Black Marble product. Both EOG monthly product and Black Marble monthly product were affected by aerosols, surface albedo, and vegetation at multiple scales. However, Black Marble product was less affected by aerosols than EOG product. This article suggests that environmental effect is crucial in the NTL variation. Understanding NTL temporal variation can improve the accuracy of time series VIIRS imagery for socioeconomic applications.

Effectiveness of Group-Based Interventions for Fall Prevention Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults - 7 Regions, 6 PLADs, China, 2019-2020.

Many of the current studies focusing on fall prevention interventions have been conducted in hospital settings within a select few urban areas in China, thus yielding limited evidence on the effectiveness of large-scale, multicenter, community-based interventions. In comparison to the control group, participants in the intervention group exhibited a 64% reduction in fall risk. Group-based fall prevention programs have demonstrated efficacy in mitigating fall risk among the elderly population. Group-based fall prevention interventions serve as a significant adjunctive resource for the management of elderly health within communities and offer compelling evidence to support the incorporation of fall prevention strategies into health policy frameworks in China.

Research on Professional Quality of Primary English Teachers in Urban Areas in China

Research on Professional Quality of Primary English Teachers in Urban Areas in China

Analyzing the Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Urban Land Use Expansion and Its Influencing Factors in Zhejiang Province, China.

The 21st century expansion of built-up areas due to rapid urbanization has recently been at the forefront of global land use/land cover research. Knowledge of the changing dynamics of urban land use is crucial for the monitoring of urbanization and the promotion of sustainable urban development. In this paper, Zhejiang Province was selected as the study area. It is a region with rapid urban growth located along the southeastern coast of China, with a highly developed economy but with a shortage of land resources. We employed remotely sensed and socio-economic panel data for the period between 1990 and 2020 to monitor urban land use changes and utilized the spatial Durbin model (SDM) to examine the urbanization process and the various driving factors of rapid urban expansion in Zhejiang Province, China, from 1990 to 2020. The study's results revealed substantial urban growth of about 6899.59 km2, i.e., 6.6%, whereas agricultural land decreased by 4320.68 km2, i.e., 4.19%. The rapid urban development was primarily attributed to the transformation of farmlands, forestlands, and water bodies into built-up areas by nearly 86.9%, 6.94%, and 6.06%, respectively. The built-up areas revealed features of spatial clustering. The study showed that the expansion hotspots were mainly distributed within the urban fabric of cities such as Hangzhou, Ningbo, Jinhua-Yiwu, and Wenzhou-Taizhou. The results further revealed the substantial influence of urban growth on the local areas of the province. As the core explanatory variables, population and economic development significantly promoted local urban expansion. The study's findings indicated a positive spatial spillover effect as regards the influence of economic development on the study area's urban growth, whereas the spatial spillover effect of the population was negative. Therefore, economic development was a major driving factor contributing immensely to the expansion of urban areas in Zhejiang Province, especially in the 26 mountainous counties of the province. The study enriches our understanding of the transformation of LULC and the changing dynamics of urban areas in China and provides the necessary research data that are vital for urban land-use planners and decision-makers to overcome the negative consequences of the expansion of urban areas due to the continuous economic growth of China.

Residents’ Preference for Urban Green Space Types and Their Ecological-Social Services in China

With accelerated urbanization and rapid expansion of the urban population, there is an increasing demand among urban residents for urban green spaces (UGS) and the ecosystem services (ES) they provide. The existing research mostly focuses on the spatial pattern of UGS types and ES provided by different UGS but ignores that residents’ preferences for UGS types and their ecological and social services should also be incorporated into the spatial planning decision-making of UGS. A web-based questionnaire was distributed randomly in urban areas of China and 1050 valid samples were collected in this study. Descriptive statistical analysis methods, structural equation modeling, and Pearson correlation were used to parse the residents’ preference for both UGS types, ecological–social services, and the relevant impact factors. The results showed that: (1) the strongest preference of residents for UGS and their ecological and social services are the attached green space, “beautifying the city”, and “physical and mental relaxation”, respectively; (2) the leading factors for residents’ access to UGS are “age” and “sufficient time”, except for attached green space. The most significant effect on both ecological and social services is the “season” factor. Further, “social gathering” and “exercise” are the services most and least likely to be affected. (3) Future planning of UGS should reinforce construction of attached green space and improve the aesthetics-related ES they provide. Construction of park green space and plaza green space should be enhanced to deal with the aging trend in society. Further, maintaining the existing construction of attached green space and building regional green space are crucial to the sustainability of UGS and its ecological–social services.

Impact of main residential locations on depressive symptoms among older adults in China: A Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition analysis.

With the development of urbanization in China, the scale of internal migration and the number of immigrants among older adults are increasing. This requires paying attention to the living conditions and environment of immigrants. Many studies note a gap in the prevalence of depressive symptoms among older adults living in different main residential locations. However, few studies have examined the extent to which main residential locations influence depressive symptoms among older adults. This study aims to quantify the effect of main residential locations on depressive symptoms. For this study, we used data from the 2018 Chinese Longitudinal Health and Longevity Survey and randomly selected 8,210 individuals aged 65 years and older were from the community to determine the effect of main residential locations on depressive symptoms among older adults. We further used the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition method to quantify the explanatory factors of depressive symptom gaps among older adults and to estimate the relative effect of individual characteristics on depressive symptoms. In this study, we noted significant differences in depressive symptoms among older adults in different main residential locations. Rural-urban migrants had higher depressive symptom scores (7.164). According to the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition analysis, the high proportion of the depressive symptom gap can be explained by years of education, income, and exercise among different main residential locations groups. In addition, in the main parts of the explained differences, the proportions of the limitation of activities of daily living (2.28, 0.46, and -52.11%) showed opposite effects, while their share in different main residential locations groups varied widely. Urbanization has resulted in more rural people moving to urban areas in China; Rural-urban migrants have the highest prevalence of depressive symptoms, which needs attention. Thus, there is an urgent need to integrate the health insurance and pension policy for urban and rural residents. This study provides a basis for formulating health policies and promoting the mental health of older adults in China as well as in low- and middle-income countries.

Epidemiology and risk factors for myopia development

AbstractMyopia due to high prevalence in recent years gained importance in epidemiological studies. It is estimated that 1.4 billion people were myopic in 2000, and it has been predicted that by 2050 the number will reach 4.8 billion. It is known that children with early onset and/or rapid progression are at risk of complications associated with high myopia in the future, including retinal detachment, glaucoma, cataract, optic disk changes and maculopathy.The myopia prevalence ranges from 0.7% in Saudi Arabia to 65.5% in the Haidian district of Beijing; with the highest prevalence in schoolchildren in East Asia and Singapore, urban areas of China, Taiwan and South Korea. In Europe the prevalence rates reached 42.7% in a 10–19‐year French cohort. Interestingly, the majority of the studies reporting on myopia prevalence with non‐cycloplegic measurements compared with cycloplegic measurements reported much higher prevalence rates.The major risk factors for myopia onset and progression include parental myopia, ethnic differences, less time outdoors, increased near work and reading distance less than 30 cm, population density and socioeconomic status.

A Study on the Emergency Shelter Spatial Accessibility Based on the Adaptive Catchment Size 2SFCA Method

In order to access the spatial accessibility of emergency shelters, the relationship between the supply and demand of emergency shelters in the two dimensions of space and non-space must be comprehensively considered. Meanwhile, it is vital to understand the competitive relationship among emergency shelters. However, there are disadvantages when using the two-step floating catchment area (2SFCA) method and the improved 2SFCA method when addressing these issues. This study proposes the adaptive catchment size 2SFCA (A-2SFCA) method to calculate spatial accessibility values, which can work alongside the two relationships mentioned above. The analysis procedure of the A-2SFCA method has two stages. Firstly, this method adjusts the catchment size of the shelters by observing how crowded they are and repeatedly using this statistic in a service subset. At the end of this stage, every catchment area is determined. Secondly, the catchment areas are used to calculate the spatial accessibility values. The method was used to study a region in the Tianjin urban area in China. The proposed A-2SFCA and fixed-coverage-based two-step floating catchment area (FC2SFCA) methods are employed to measure and compare the spatial accessibility values. The result shows that the spatial accessibility in Tianjin urban area is unstable. The spatial accessibility result obtained from the A-2SFCA method is more reasonable than the FC2SFCA method when analyzing the reasonable catchment areas of emergency shelters. The A-2SFCA method provides a method for determining the catchment size of public service providers, which can be used for the accessibility analysis of various other public facilities.

Peri-urban villages in Kunming, Southwest China: history of change with dual urban–rural characteristics

The process of absorbing villages into urban areas in China is of major significance and can follow several paths. Specifically, the dual urban and rural characteristics of villages located close to cities provide new opportunities and constraints for active community engagement. This paper examines two related options through case studies in Kunming, Southwest China, and the interface between the urban and the rural in peri-urban studies. One village was transformed from a collective landholding system into a village shareholding company. In this case, villagers’ self-construction and redevelopment activities significantly changed the built environment in the settlement. The second village was transformed into a new urban residential community by property developers. In this process, villagers also had their hukou [household registration] status altered from ‘rural’ to ‘urban’. The study illustrates the variable transition processes between rural and urban in this particular region and highlights the relationship between villagers and their surrounding environment. It is argued that peri-urban spaces in Southwest China retained their distinctiveness and certain rural characteristics despite the integration through the urbanisation process, and that the relationships between villagers and their surrounding built environment are constantly being re-appropriated and reinvented.

Employability skills of the next generation of Chinese factory workers

PurposeThe main purpose of this study was to develop and test an employability scale in a Chinese context. Moreover, the authors investigated how socioeconomic status indicators (education and occupation of parents, household income and hukou, i.e. household registration location) affect the endowment and development of adolescents' employability skills in China.Design/methodology/approachData were collected via paper-based surveys from 1,146 vocational school students in rural and urban areas in China at two points in time one year apart. The authors developed a scale to measure employability skills in China and conducted general linear modeling to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe findings indicate that adolescents whose parents have more education, highly skilled occupations, relatively affluent household income and urban hukou are more likely to attain higher employability skills than those from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds. Moreover, adolescents with these background characteristics tend to improve their employability skills more than those without such characteristics. This suggests that social capital may further widen the inequality gap among adolescents.Research limitations/implicationsThe framework of employability skills focuses on the general basic transferable employability skills of vocational students. Future studies could develop measures of employability skills for college graduates and widen the measurements of social capital based on the study’s findings. The findings suggest that higher education institutions should be encouraged to integrate resources to improve education inequality between rural and urban regions to the disparity in adolescents' employability skills development.Originality/valueBuilding on Western frameworks, the study defines and develops an employability scale in the Chinese context that can be a practical measurement tool for researchers, educators and policymakers. The authors investigated the endowment and development of employability skills in relation to social capital. Exposure to social capital tends to affect an individual's skills and capability development at an early stage, and in the long term, this calls attention to access to quality education between rural and urban youth.