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This fundamental investigation aimed to deliver a new theoretical perspective to address the brain drain problem from Northeast China. The amenity theory could provide a robust ideological foundation that enables cities to attract talent and drive urban innovation and development. This study explores the spatial–temporal pattern evolution of talent inflow to Northeast China based on data from the China Migrant Dynamic Survey (CMDS) from 2012 to 2018. It utilizes spatial analysis methods and geographic detectors to interpret the factors that influence the spatial heterogeneity of talent inflow from the perspective of urban amenities. The following results were obtained. First, the trend in the number of talent inflows displays an initial increase followed by fluctuations before inflow destinations are concentrated in four major cities and certain resource-based cities in Northeast China. Second, a high-quality labor force is engaged in varied industries. Talents with different academic qualifications could avail themselves of diverse employment choices, primarily in information transmission, software, and information technology services. Those with undergraduate and postgraduate degrees could find positions in the education industry. Third, the talent flow mode has gradually changed from interprovincial to intercity movements within a particular province. However, the mode of talent flow differs according to discrete academic qualifications. Most postgraduates choose the interprovincial flow, and undergraduates and junior college students predominantly select the intercity flow within a particular province. Fourth, the inflow of talent to destinations in Northeast China is based on artificial amenities and tends toward cities that offer efficient public services, abundant leisure facilities, and innovative soft and hard environments. The major factors that affect the spatial differentiation in talent inflow to a city include the number of hospital beds per 10,000 people, scientific research, creative practitioners, talent-related policies, exhibition halls and other leisure and entertainment venues, and average housing prices in the city. Most interactions between artificial environment amenity factors and other elements are better than their individual effects, especially the interactive configuration of affordable urban housing prices, high-quality public resources, such as education and health care, and abundant leisure and entertainment facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyzing the spatial agglomeration and characteristics of urban functional elements and effectively identifying the polycentric pattern of a city can provide a scientific basis for urban planning. This study, on the basis of point‐of‐interest (POI) data, designs a weighted overlay‐analysis method that is based on functional categories, spatial agglomeration, and POI weights to identify the spatial‐agglomeration pattern and polycentric urban structure of Shenyang, China. Our results show that Shenyang has a significant polycentric urban structure. The POI elements in the municipal center in the second ring road show concentration and a contiguous distribution pattern. The POI element distribution near the city is scattered, and the spatial distribution of hotspots is uneven. The urban centers in the city planned by the government and those that we have identified differ. Because of the remote location and insufficient support facilities, the municipal subcenters and district centers do not play the role of decentralization as intended. Further strengthening the overall industrial planning and transportation apparatus is necessary in order to enhance the outward radiation and inward attraction of municipal subcenters. Our weighted overlay method realizes effective identification of the polycentric urban structure and can provide relevant reference for urban research and planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coexistence of urban expansion and shrinkage in China has become increasingly apparent; therefore, the current strategic model of growth-oriented urban planning as the top-level design needs to be adjusted. This paper focuses on the city of Baishan, which is a typical shrinking city in China, and explores the feasibility of implementing the concept of smart shrinkage planning in shrinking cities in China by constructing a coupled PLUS-SD model. The results demonstrate the following conclusions: (1) The overall simulation of the coupled PLUS-SD model is superior to that of the PLUS model. In Baishan, the areas with the most changes in construction land will be located at the edges of the landforms by 2030. (2) Using the traditional planning scenario would only exacerbate the rate of construction land expansion in Baishan, deepening the incongruity between the city's population and construction land. (3) The smart shrinkage scenario will require strict control of the scale of construction land and optimization of the structure of the urban construction land, which would push the city in the direction of healthy and sustainable development. (4) The concept of smart shrinkage planning is a scientific and feasible plan for realizing the efficient and sustainable use of construction land in shrinking cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Village classification is the first step to implementing China's rural revitalization (RR) strategy, and understanding the geographic differences in the distribution of village types helps to grasp the pathway of their unique development. This study spatialized 9250 villages in Jilin Province (divided into six types) of China, and their distribution characteristics and influencing factors were examined using methods such as kernel density estimation, Ripley's K function, the co-location quotient, and Geodetector. The results indicate that the spatial distribution balance and density of village types are different. All types of villages show an agglomeration distribution pattern, but the scale and intensity vary. There is a strong spatial association between agglomerative promotion (AP) and stable improvement (SIm) villages, as well as between characteristic protection (CP) and prospering frontier and enriching people (PE) villages. The factors affecting their distribution include terrain undulation, the percentage of arable land, the distance to the county town, road network density, population density, gross domestic product (GDP), and industrial enterprise density. The influencing factors for the distribution of village types are closely related to the function of each village. Based on the differences in the spatial distribution and influencing factors of different village types, policy suggestions are given for classified development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world is experiencing the largest wave of urban growth in history. Maintaining the rapid growth of cities without causing land and resource shortages is a severe problem that must be solved urgently. With the rapid development of globalization and information technology, the meaning of land comprehensive carrying capacity presents new changes. It is no longer entirely dependent on local resources and is likely to benefit from intercity connections beyond urban boundaries. However, can an inter-city network be a non-local solution to sustain urban growth without increasing land pressure? To address this question, this study adopted 287 cities in China as the research object to describe the spatial carrying characteristics of land at the national level by constructing an evaluation index system for land comprehensive carrying capacity. Furthermore, we constructed a population flow network model through social network analysis to explore the influence of intercity network on land comprehensive carrying capacity. Our findings are as follows: (1) The regional differentiation characteristics of land comprehensive carrying capacity at the national scale are evident, and reveal a spatial pattern significantly related to the urban economic development level. (2) The weighted in-degree, weighted degree centrality, and betweenness centrality in the intercity network positively impact the land comprehensive carrying capacity, and land use efficiency has a partial mediating effect. (3) Land comprehensive carrying capacity can be determined by non-local factors rather than local factors. As an effective non-local channel, strengthening intercity population flow and network integration can flexibly manage urban land scarcity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Northeast China has seen a remarkable transition from rustbelt to economic revival over the past decade. However, promoting sustainable economic growth is a major issue facing Northeast China after entering the middle‐income stage of development. Based on a panel data set of 34 prefecture‐level cities in Northeast China from 2001 to 2018, this paper constructs a human capital index in terms of both quantity (educational capital) and quality (health capital) and uses the generalized method of moments (GMMs) to explore the spatial–temporal effects of human capital on economic growth under the "middle‐income trap." The results show that a key factor keeping Northeast China in the middle‐income stage is the loss of highly qualified labor and that the previous attribution of the economic downturn to the population exodus is inaccurate. Although the results of this study indicate that the demographic dividend during the demographic transition period has ended in Northeast China and that the associated low‐cost advantage has been lost, the "talent dividend" can still be obtained by improving the level of human capital and thus promoting sustainable economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge of the patterns of location of retail stores in urban areas supports the development of effective urban planning and the reasonable allocation of commercial facilities. Using point of interest data and consumer survey data in three main commercial districts in Changchun, China, this study investigates the spatial structures of commercial districts and the patterns of distribution of retail stores to assess the determinants of the development of retail stores in commercial districts. Kernel density estimation, nearest neighbor index, and Pearson's correlation analysis were used for this study. The following conclusions are drawn. (1) The spatial distribution of retail stores in Changchun commercial districts generates the coexistence of a concentration in the core area and diffusion in the peripheral area. The emergence of shopping malls has challenged the traditional single-center structure, resulting in the transformation of commercial districts from single-center to multicenter layouts, while also producing a hierarchical trend in development. (2) The Chongqing Road and Hongqi Street commercial districts have a relatively high spatial concentration of retail stores. Retail stores in Guilin Road exhibit distinct characteristics, namely, stores selling textiles, clothing, and daily necessities show the highest concentration, and food, beverage, and tobacco outlets as well as integrated stores show the lowest concentration. (3) The selected locations of the differing categories of stores on Chongqing Road strongly correlate, and textile, clothing, and daily necessity stores show a high correlation with other retail categories. (4) Four main factors affect the development and spatial layout of retail in the commercial districts. First, the interaction between consumer behavior and location choice in retail stores promotes the evolution of retail formats and trends in the development of comprehensive, specialized, and hierarchical retail commercial spaces. Second, the retail format determines the spatial layouts and the historical inheritance of the format. Third, governmental planning and policies lead to the agglomeration and diffusion of commercial activities in different areas. Fourth, such spatial clustering effects are an external driving factor for integration and aggregation among retail formats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]