Integrated studies of physical geography in China: Review and prospects

Fu, Bojie; Pan, Naiqing

doi:10.1007/s11442-016-1298-8

Cited by 29 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 75 publications

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“…Emphasizing the impact of human activities on the terrestrial ecosystem is a crucial pathway for promoting the development of physical geography (Fu & Pan, ). In recent decades, studies focused on assessing human activity intensity have rapidly developed, including proposing the concept and assessment method for human modification, human footprint, and anthropogenic biomes (Ellis, Klein Goldewijk, Siebert, Lightman, & Ramankutty, ; Sanderson et al., ; Theobald, ).…”

Section: Potential Roadways To Face Current Challengementioning

confidence: 99%

Current challenges in distinguishing climatic and anthropogenic contributions to alpine grassland variation on the Tibetan Plateau

Zhang

Liu

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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Quantifying the impact of climate change and human activities on grassland dynamics is an essential step for developing sustainable grassland ecosystem management strategies. However, the direction and magnitude of climate change and human activities in driving alpine grassland dynamic over the Tibetan Plateau remain under debates. Here, we systematically reviewed the relevant studies on the methods, main conclusions, and causes for the inconsistency in distinguishing the respective contribution of climatic and anthropogenic forces to alpine grassland dynamic. Both manipulative experiments and traditional statistical analysis show that climate warming increase biomass in alpine meadows and decrease in alpine steppes, while both alpine steppes and meadows benefit from an increase in precipitation or soil moisture. Overgrazing is a major factor for the degradation of alpine grassland in local areas with high level of human activity intensity. However, across the entire Tibetan Plateau and its subregions, four views characterize the remaining controversies: alpine grassland changes are primarily due to (1) climatic force, (2) nonclimatic force, (3) combination of anthropogenic and climatic force, or (4) alternation of anthropogenic and climatic force. Furthermore, these views also show spatial inconsistencies. Differences on the source and quality of remote sensing products, the structure and parameter of models, and overlooking the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of human activity intensity contribute to current disagreements. In this review, we highlight the necessity for taking the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of human activity intensity into account in the models of attribution assessment, and the importance for accurate validation of climatic and anthropogenic contribution to alpine grassland variation at multiple scales for future studies.

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Section: Potential Roadways To Face Current Challengementioning

confidence: 99%

Current challenges in distinguishing climatic and anthropogenic contributions to alpine grassland variation on the Tibetan Plateau

Zhang

Liu

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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“…The challenge would be to identify those researchers whose background is primarily physical geography. It would also be worthwhile to investigate the broader applicability of the findings by focussing on a specific country, such as China [112], and also to investigate changes in approach over time.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Contribution of Physical Geographers to Sustainability Research

Day

2017

Sustainability

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Abstract:A physical geographers' scope of practice is not defined by any regulatory or academic organization, so perception of the potential contribution of physical geography to sustainability research has been nebulous or informal, at best. In order to understand what physical geographers can do to enhance sustainability, this paper describes a systematic review of peer-reviewed research on sustainability published in three physical geography journals. The results show that physical geographers are active in sustainability research in terms of a spatial perspective, an understanding of human interactions with the environment, and an ability to recognize, interpret, and project environmental change and its impacts. The depth of this understanding is facilitated by a physical geographers' understanding of the natural world, process and system concepts, the ways that systems are linked and interact, and a willingness to deploy a wide range of methodologies to secure that knowledge. The expertise of physical geographers makes an important contribution to sustainability research and should be considered when multidisciplinary teams are assembled.

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“…It is rooted in classic Chinese philosophy that man is an integral part of nature. Therefore, knowing how to preserve the harmony between nature and humans has always been an important domain in geographical science (Fu and Pan, 2016;Leng et al, 2017). Recently, discussions surrounding the variable patterns of human prehistoric sites and their geographic context in China have begun to focus on the relationship between the spatial-temporal distribution of settlement sites and the geographical environment (Liu and Feng, 2012;Li et al, 2013;Chen et al, 2015;Wang et al, 2015;Putzer et al, 2016;Weiberg et al, 2016;Dutt et al, 2019;Lu et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution of Neolithic site distribution (9.0–4.0 ka BP) in Anhui, East China

Sun

et al. 2020

J. Geogr. Sci.

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Based on archaeological surveys of Neolithic cultural development and GIS spatial analysis, this study reproduced the main characteristics of temporal distribution and settlement selection of the sites from the Neolithic Age in Anhui and identified a relationship between environmental evolution and human activity. The results show that altitude, slope direction, and slope gradient were consistent among the settlements at different stages of the Neolithic Age in Anhui, and the sites were mostly distributed in hilly and plain areas on southeast-or south-facing slopes of low gradients close to rivers. We determined that early Neolithic Age (9.0-7.0 ka BP) sites were scattered in small numbers and likely had little cultural exchange with communities of other provinces. The environmental characteristics of various regions in Anhui indicated that the climate was warm and humid with extensive water distribution. The sites of the mid Neolithic Age (7.0-5.0 ka BP) increased rapidly with wide distribution. They were mainly distributed in the plain area north of the Huaihe River and the southwestern areas of Anhui. In the mid Neolithic Age, the warm and humid climate gradually dried, and our ancestors slowly developed cultural exchanges. The largest number of sites existed during the late Neolithic Age (5.0-4.0 ka BP), and were distributed throughout the province. During this period, the overall climate was relatively dry, but humans could still obtain water and other resources through migration. The relatively benign climate facilitated cultural interaction and exchange, which increased during this time, and the Wanjiang culture

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Integrated studies of physical geography in China: Review and prospects

Cited by 29 publications

References 75 publications

Current challenges in distinguishing climatic and anthropogenic contributions to alpine grassland variation on the Tibetan Plateau

Current challenges in distinguishing climatic and anthropogenic contributions to alpine grassland variation on the Tibetan Plateau

The Contribution of Physical Geographers to Sustainability Research

Evolution of Neolithic site distribution (9.0–4.0 ka BP) in Anhui, East China

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