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Abstract: The nonferrous mining industry in China has been exploiting rich domestic mineral resources in order to sustain rapidly economic and social development. The paper chooses the tailing dam region as the research object in the Shuikoushan, and researches the distribution of Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd, As, Cr, which reveals heavy metal migration regularities in layers from new and old tailing dam region. In addition, this article focuses on making the research of Potential Ecological Risk Index appraisal to the heavy metal contamination level. The results showed that the concentrations of heavy metals in old tailing dam region were much higher than those of in the new tailing dam region. As well, the concentrations of most heavy metal reduced progressively with the soil depth increasing for the new tailing dam region, while the change tendency was inversely for the old one. Potential ecological risk index showed that the potential ecological risks were at low and low to moderate level in tailing dam region. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Zhangjiajie Sandstone Peak Forest Geopark in northwest Hunan Province, China, is a comprehensive geopark containing many spectacular quartz sandstone landforms, limestone karst landscapes and various other important geoheritage resources. It is listed as a UNESCO World Geopark and is also part of the World Heritage Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area for its important landscape features. Many of the sandstone landforms, particularly the vast number of thin pillars or spires, are very unusual and serve as the core landscapes of the geopark. But Zhangjiajie displays a diverse range of landform types, exhibiting spectacular patterns and regular distributions. In this paper, the geomorphic traits, distribution pattern and constraints of the sandstone landforms of the Zhangjiajie Geopark are examined. Our study indicates that in the outcropping areas, the sandstones display four distinctive levels from 300 to 1,000 m above sea level, and these extend clearly from the highest sandstone plateau platform to the center of the valleys. The high sandstone platforms developed close to a flat high-level erosional surface, and subsequent erosion into this plateau has resulted in successively lower levels of landforms that transition gradually from peak walls, peak clusters, peak forests and peak pillars to remnant peaks in the lower valley bottoms. The form and distribution of the Zhangjiajie sandstone landforms are primarily dominated by the geological setting, particularly the presence of brittle structures (fractures and joint sets) trending NNW, ENE and NE. Triggered by the episodic tectonic movements, major streams and escarpments frequently occur along these structural directions, while some of the peak walls, peak clusters and peak forests have their longer elongated axes corresponding to NE or NNW directions, with an increased density of peak forms at the intersection of these fractures and joints. The geometry of the diverse sandstone landforms is also influenced to a certain degree by the climatic, water system distribution, lithologic properties, biological process, meteorological features and denudation processes. The suite of quartz sandstone landforms in Zhangjiajie can be compared with other sandstone landscapes regionally, and our interpretation of the sandstone peak forest formation processes offers a significant contribution to the study of topographic features and the geomorphic evolution of sandstone landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In the late Triassic epoch, China is one of the few wide spread and resourceful coal basin countries, but the exploration of most regions is not enough for the development and utilization of coal resources, especially. Stratigraphic sequence and coal are well developed in Shaoshan coal field in the upper Triassic formation which is a primary coal-bearing stratum. Due to the complexity of regional tectonics and coal accumulation, there is not a clear understanding about sedimentary environment and paleogeography in late Triassic. Based on the analysis of outcrop and drilling data in detail, the research work of the paper consist of identification of sedimentary facies type and model of the study area and the drawing of lithofacies palaeogeography maps. The research findings are basis to the exploration and forecast of coal resources in Shaoshan coal field of eastern Hunan. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: E-government system can contribute to the work efficiency of public service and deal the governmental transactions conveniently by decision makers. However, numerous systems haven’t integrated GIS functionality and information, which can extend the value of application systems by increasing accuracy, visuality, and productivity. In addition, the systems are difficult to rapid response against the changes of business requirements, and the program is hard to develop. This paper discusses the building and configuration technology, plugin technology for integration development by taking advantage of the enabling technologies of SOA and GIS. Within the model, the architecture of building platform that integrated GIS workflow system, visual form designer, and operation platform is described. The goal of the proposed design is to provide loosely coupled architecture to improve flexibility and reduce complexity of development, in particular, WebGIS function can be developed quickly, achieving the diverse GIS business establishment. Finally, the feasibility of using building platform to build e-government is showed in land and resources department of Hunan province. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: With China''s rapid economic growth, low-carbon economy is an inevitable choice in China. Development of lowcarbon service sector is not only the objective requirement of sustainable economic development in the 21st century, but also an inevitable choice for service industry development in Hunan. This paper try to explore under the new service development model transformation goals and the financial crisis after the new situation of China''s service sector, firstly introduced the status and characteristics of the low-carbon service sector in Hunan, and then analysis problems and put forward countermeasures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper reports a geochemical study of trace metals and Pb isotopes of sediments from the lowermost Xiangjiang River, Hunan province (P. R. China). Trace metals Ba, Bi, Sc, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo, Cd, Sn, Sb, Pb, Tl, Th, U, Zr, Hf, Nb and Ta were analyzed using ICP-MS, and Pb isotopes of the bulk sediments were measured by MC-ICP-MS. The results show that trace metals Cd, Bi, Sn, Sc, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Sb, Pb and Tl are enriched in the sediments. Among these metals, Cd, Bi and Sn are extremely highly enriched (EF values >40), metals Zn, Sn, Sb and Pb significantly highly (5 < EF < 20), and metals Sc, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu and Tl moderately highly (2 < EF < 5) enriched in the river sediments. All these metals, however, are moderately enriched in the lake sediments. Geochemical results of trace metals Th, Sc, Co, Cr, Zr, Hf and La, and Pb isotopes suggest that metals in the river sediments are of multi-sources, including both natural and anthropogenic sources. Metals of the natural sources might be contributed mostly from weathering of the Indosinian granites (GR) and Palaeozoic sandstones (PL), and metals of anthropogenic sources were contributed from Pb-Zn ore deposits distributed in upper river areas. Metals in the lake sediments consist of the anthropogenic proportions, which were contributed from automobile exhausts and coal dusts. Thus, heavy-metal contamination for the river sediments is attributed to the exploitation and utilization (e.g., mining, smelting, and refining) of Pb-Zn ore mineral resources in the upper river areas, and this for the lake sediments was caused by automobile exhausts and coal combustion. Metals Bi, Cd, Pb, Sn and Sb have anthropogenic proportion of higher than 90%, with natural contribution less than 10%. Metals Mn and Zn consist of anthropogenic proportion of 60-85%, with natural proportion higher than 15%. Metals Sc, Cr, Co, Cu, Tl, Th, U and Ta have anthropogenic proportion of 30-70%, with natural contribution higher than 30%. Metals Ba, V and Mo might be contributed mostly from natural process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schistosomiasis is a chronic and debilitating parasitic disease that has often been neglected because it is a disease of poverty, affecting poor rural communities in the developing world. This is not the case in the People's Republic of China (PRC), where the disease, caused by Schistosoma japonicum, has long captured the attention of the Chinese authorities who have, over the past 50–60 years, undertaken remarkably successful control programs that have substantially reduced the schistosomiasis disease burden. The Dongting Lake region in Hunan province is one of the major schistosome-endemic areas in the PRC due to its vast marshland habitats for the Oncomelania snail intermediate hosts of S. japonicum. Along with social, demographic, and other environmental factors, the recent completion and closure of the Three Gorges dam will most likely increase the range of these snail habitats, with the potential for re-emergence of schistosomiasis and increased transmission in Hunan and other schistosome-endemic provinces being a particular concern. In this paper, we review the history and the current status of schistosomiasis control in the Dongting Lake region. We explore the epidemiological factors contributing to S. japonicum transmission there, and summarise some of the key research findings from studies undertaken on schistosomiasis in Hunan province over the past 10 years. The impact of this research on current and future approaches for sustainable integrated control of schistosomiasis in this and other endemic areas in the PRC is emphasised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Based on the definition of carbon footprint and elements that affect it, a model was constructed for empirical research, using data of cities in Hunan Province from 2005 to 2009, to calculate the amount of carbon footprint and to analyze the relationships between carbon footprint and each of the elements, including population, level of economic development, industrial structure and energy structure. In addition, this paper also puts forward solutions to further low-carbon development of Hunan Province in the areas of low-carbon development mechanism energy structure low carbon life style and talent development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The model and shape equation of compression and shear fracture nucleus of rock of earthquakes are briefly recounted in this paper. Recently rock breaking areas with two special shapes have been discovered on palisade of foundation pit excavated for dam in Hunan Province, PR China. The on-the-spot investigation indicates that all two broken areas once had the stress concentration point, and the broken area was initiated and expanded from this point. Both internal crack propagation and the outline shape are consistent separately with the rock compression and shear fracture nucleus with leaf shape of KI, KII mode and the rock compression and torsion fracture nucleus with bud shape of KI, KIII mode given by the shape equations. The further research on the forming process of rock compression and shear fracture nucleus is helpful for impending earthquake prediction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a successful application of dynamic compaction (DC) as a remedy to strengthen a poorly compacted expressway in Hunan (China). Comprehensive laboratory and in situ field tests were employed to determine the optimum drop height, number of tamping, grid spacing, and depth of densification that will achieve the most desirable results without damaging the underlying structure (culvert). Based on the density measurements and field observation, it was found that under Case I-2 conditions, the density increased from under 84 % to over 95 %. When the drop height was at 12 m, it caused heaving, an indication of displacing the soil plastically with no volume change. Thus, the optimal compaction parameters based on Case I-2 conditions were found to be 3.5 m spacing, 10 m drop height, 10 ton mass, and six tampings. The effectiveness of the DC under Case I-2 conditions was clearly demonstrated from the standard penetration test results, with a decrease of about ten blow counts for the top 4 m soil. In addition, there was a relative densification improvement of 50 % for the top 4.5 m soil. Case I-2 conditions were recommended to the highway authority, and it had been implemented to the entire expressway. A surface overlay was subsequently applied to the re-compacted embankment. To date (Spring 2010), no noticeable distresses have been observed after ~12 months of opening to traffic. No structural damage to the underlying culvert was found either. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overload attributable to increased vehicle loads is becoming an increasingly serious issue in highway transportation. Overload results in damages to bridge structures, degradation of their load-carrying capacities, and even collapse of bridges, which may cause loss of lives and properties. Hence, the actual load-carrying capacity of existing bridges with many years of service and obvious damages is becoming an important concern for researchers and engineers. In this paper, field experiments were conducted on a simply supported concrete girder bridge located at Province Road 209 of Hunan Province, China. Test loads were applied to the bridge through a group of hydraulic jacks to simulate the heavy vehicle loads of 196 and 294 kN on single-lane loaded and two-lane loaded cases. The results showed that at the deflection limit, the measured load-carrying capacity of the tested bridge was much higher than the designed value. During experiments, the transverse connection stiffness of the bridge varied insignificantly. Cumulative damage of the structure was observed when the simulated cyclic loads were increased to three times the weight of the 294 kN truck on a two-lane loaded case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data collected from a survey of 1,622 relatively low-income households in Changsha in January 2007, this paper compares gender disparities in employment and disposable income among the relatively poor urban population in China. We found that although there is no difference in the probability of either gender being employed, male respondents have higher levels of disposable income than females. The Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition technique was used to determine whether education and age can explain part of the wage gap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines mining management in Chenzhou and Guiyang prefectures in eastern Hunan, discussing the conflicts between government officials and merchants as well as provincial and prefectural officials over the rights to manage mines. The essay argues that the government's conception of trade was heavily influenced by ideas of "rent seeking" and it was this objective, rather than the development of the mines, which drove changes in government policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years there has been an outpouring of studies on local religious traditions found in different regions of China. That scholarship—which has uncovered new religious traditions and lineages—invites us to revise many earlier narratives about the contours of Chinese religious history and has helped to challenge problematic earlier assumptions of Chinese Religions as monolithic entities that were largely the same across the length and breadth of China. One of the areas for which there remains a paucity of local studies, however, is the Hunan region. This essay aims to provide a local geographical study of the Daoist history in the Hunan region, from its inception up to the present day. While I attempt to provide a history of general contours, the focus is primarily on early developments and what can be gleaned from the textual record. The earliest phase of Daoist history in the central Hunan region is difficult to assess, but it appears that Buddhism and Daoism both developed and took root in this region from the third century to the fourth century. The initial center of Daoist activity in Hunan was at Nanyue, and Daoism is found at the Qingxia guan (originally called the Dongzhen guan) in Baling, which was built in the Liang dynasty (535--546), and the Dengzhen guan in Liling. During the Tang dynasty many new abbeys were built in the central Hunan region (including Nanyue, Chenzhou, Ningyuan, Changde, Liuyang, Chaling, Xiangyang, Wuling, Shaoyang, Xinhua, and Yueyang). Since it is not plausible in the confines of this essay to attend to the history of each of those sites I have focused my attention on the Daoist history of Wenxian shan, one of the significant early Daoist sites in the Xinhua region which some have described as being the birthplace of Daoism in the central Hunan region. By the Ming dynasty Zhengyi Daoism had become particularly influential in the Xiangtan region. Although Zhengyi Daoists became dispersed throughout the villages of Hunan, from the Ming into the Qing dynasty, it was, however, Quanzhen Daoism that came to assert its influence at the major Daoist institutions in the central Hunan region— including those in Changsha, Nanyue, Yueyang, Liuyang, Taoyuan, Taojiang, and Liling. The present focus here on the largely institutional history of Daoism in central Hunan is not meant to preclude, however, the importance of local vernacular and exorcistic traditions, but in attempting to establish the early history of Daoism in Hunan—at least prior to the Ming dynasty—it is very difficult to say anything for certain about those local vernacular traditions. In order to begin to fill in some of the history that might be missed due to an emphasis on institutional history, the final section of this paper discusses the value of a rich body of material that comes from the interiors of statues from the Hunan region relating the history of the main deity of Nanyue and his transformation into a popular god named Nanyue shengdi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eliminating all forms of poverty in the world is the first United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG). Developing a scientific and feasible method for monitoring and evaluating local poverty is important for the implementation of the SDG agenda. Based on the 2030 United Nations SDGs, in this paper, a quantitative evaluation model is built and applied to all poverty-stricken counties in Hunan Province. First, based on the SDG global index framework and local index system of China, a local SDG index system for poverty-related goals is designed, and the weights of the indexes are derived using an entropy method. The scores obtained for counties and districts with data available are then taken as the true value for the poverty assessment. Second, using National Polar-orbiting Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (NPP-VIIRS) nighttime light images and land use and digital elevation model data, six factors, including socioeconomic, land cover, terrain and traffic factors, are extracted. Third, we then construct multiple linear evaluation models of poverty targets defined by the SDGs and machine learning evaluation models, including regression trees, support vector machines, Gaussian process regressions and ensemble trees. Last, combined with statistical data of poverty-stricken counties in Hunan Province, model validation and accuracy evaluation are carried out. The results show that the R2 and relative error of the localized, multiple linear evaluation model, including all six factors, are 0.76 and 19.12%, respectively. The poverty-stricken counties in Hunan Province were spatially aggregated and distributed mainly in the southeastern and northwestern regions. The proposed method for regional poverty assessment based on multisource geographic data provides an effective poverty monitoring reference scheme for the implementation of the poverty eradication goals in the 2030 agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The uppermost 5-15 m of the Douling Formation in the southern Hunan area, South China, yields a diverse fauna comprised of ammonoids, bivalves, and brachiopods. The brachiopods reported in this paper consist of 51 species in 34 genera and are dominated by the Lopingian (Late Permian) species associated with a few species persisting from the underlying Maokouan (Late Guadalupian). This fauna is of earliest Wuchiapingian in age as precisely constrained by the associated conodont Clarkina postbitteri postbitteri and the Guadalupian-type ammonoid fauna of the Roadoceras-Doulingoceras Zone in the brachiopod horizon. The discovery of the Lopingian species-dominated brachiopod fauna in the earliest Wuchiapingian in southern Hunan suggests a much less pronounced effect of the pre-Lopingian crisis (end-Guadalupian mass extinction) than the end-Changhsingian mass extinction in terms of brachiopods, a contemporaneous Onset of the Lopingian recovery/radiation during the pre-Lopingian crisis period, and taxonomic selectivity of the pre-Lopingian crisis in terms of different fossil groups. New taxa are Echinauris doulingensis n. sp., Pararigbyella quadrilobata n. gen. and n. sp. and P. doulingensis n. gen. and n. sp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides the first real-world evidence of Giffen behavior, i.e., upward sloping demand. Subsidizing the prices of dietary staples for extremely poor households in two provinces of China, we find strong evidence of Giffen behavior for rice in Hunan, and weaker evidence for wheat in Gansu. The data provide new insight into the consumption behavior of the poor, who act as though maximizing utility subject to subsistence concerns. We find that their elasticity of demand depends significantly, and nonlinearly, on the severity of their poverty. Understanding this heterogeneity is important for the effective design of welfare programs for the poor. (JEL D12, O12) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to develop a brief screening instrument of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for young victims of natural disasters. Data were derived from flood victims in 1998 and 1999 in Hunan, China. A representative population sample of 6,852 subjects 7–15 years of age was selected. Among them, 6,073 (88.6%) were interviewed. Multistage sampling was used to select the subjects and PTSD was ascertained with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: 4th Edition (DSM-IV). We randomly assigned 80% (4,851) of the study subjects to construct the screening instrument (construct model) and the remaining 20% (1,222) subjects to examine the model (validation model). Logistic regression analysis and receiver operating characteristics curves were utilized to select a subset of symptoms and cutoff point from the pre-structured questionnaires. A seven-symptom instrument for PTSD screening was selected. Scores of 3 or more on this instrument were employed to define positive cases of PTSD with a sensitivity of 96.9%, specificity 99.0%, positive predictive value (PPV) 82.6%, and negative predictive value (NPV) 99.8%. The brief screening instrument developed in this study is highly valid, reliable, and predictable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of the present paper was to examine the disposition of individuals in Hunan, China who are found not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder or defect. Method: Self-developed questionnaires were mailed to the family members of 240 patients who had received forensic psychiatric evaluations at the forensic psychiatric assessment center of Central South University, between 2001 and 2002. Results: One hundred and seventy questionnaires were fully completed and returned by the patients' family members. According to the answers, 64.1% (109 patients) were found not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder or defect. In 87.6% of the cases, a judgement of guilty was in agreement with the psychiatrist's recommendation concerning criminal responsibility. A total of 61.8% of the patients found not guilty were discharged to their families and did not receive any further psychiatric treatment. Conclusion: In most cases, judicial decisions are consistent with a psychiatrist's opinion of criminal responsibility due to a mental disorder or defect. After such adjudication, further psychiatric treatment is often neglected due to the lack of resources and information. Hunan, China must make a continued investment into the availability and quality of outpatient mental health treatment for forensic patients after they have been discharged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to describe HIV/AIDS knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions and identify personal risk behaviors among undergraduate students in China. A descriptive, cross-sectional survey of 1326 students between ages 17 through 28 was conducted in 2002. Results indicated that students held considerable misconceptions about HIV transmission by casual contact and needle sharing as well as stigmatizing attitudes about injection drug use, homosexuality and HIV-positive women who bear children. Results indicated that 14% of Chinese university students are sexually active and risk behaviors tended to increase with age. Additionally, 24% of the students considered themselves to be at moderate to very high risk of contracting HIV and 40% of sexually active students never used condoms. Therefore, it is important to design HIV prevention strategies that target university students in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Define WQL and HA considering ecological demands of water quantity and fluctuation. • The general process of defining ecological objectives can be applied to other reservoirs. • Incorporate ecological objectives into operation model with economic objective. • Set up different scenarios to search for optimal reservoir operation strategy. The construction and operation of reservoirs arise the problems in downstream river of hydrological regime alteration and threat to freshwater biodiversity. Currently, most researches on reservoir operation model considering downstream ecology just quantify single ecological objective, which is difficult to reflect the downstream ecological demands comprehensively. To address the challenges above, this paper divides the parameters in Indicators of Hydrological Alteration (IHA), a widely used tool reflecting flow regime from multiple perspectives but seldom applied to guide practice reservoir operation, into two categories to reflect ecological demands of water quantity and fluctuation respectively. Then, two ecological objectives of Water Quantity Level (WQL) and Hydrological Alteration (HA) are defined to be incorporated into reservoir operation model with the economic objective of Hydropower Production (HP) for generating optimal operation strategy coordinating economic and ecological benefits. The case study of a typical reservoir in Hunan Province, China shows that: 1) two ecological objectives defined can reflect the alteration of hydrological regime from the perspective of water quantity and fluctuation accurately; and 2) compared with historical operation strategy and optimal operation strategies in the other two scenarios, the optimal operation strategy in scenario C is proved an excellent strategy to guide operation practice reconciling the economic benefits of hydropower plant with the ecological benefits of downstream river, which can balance two objectives of WQL and HA well with high level HP and make the released flow maintain more regime of natural flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impatiens longshanensis (The LSID for the name Impatiens longshanensis is: 77219154-1) sp. nov. and I. lihengiana (The LSID for the name I. lihengiana is: 77219153-1) sp. nov., from Hunan, China, are described and illustrated here. The molecular phylogenetic study suggests that I. longshanensis and I. lihengiana should be placed in the I. sect. Impatiens. A detailed description, diagnostic characters between the two new species and allied species, pollen and seed morphology, and color photographs are provided. In addition, based on wide sampling, we found that the longifilamenta group, an endemic group to China, whose members have basal lobes of lateral united petals with long filamentous hairs, shows significant morphological variability. In this paper, we discuss the taxonomic significance of morphological characteristics within this group. Based on a literature review and observation of living materials in the field, an updated identification key for this group is also proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a by-product of Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR, InSAR) technique, interferometric coherence is a measure of the decorrelation noise for InSAR observation, where the lower the coherence value, the more serious the decorrelation noise. In the densely vegetated area, the coherence value could be too low to obtain any valuable signals, leading to the degradation of InSAR performance and the possible waste of expensive SAR data. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) value is a measure of the vegetation coverage and can be estimated from the freely available optical satellite images. In this paper, a multi-stage model is established to quantitatively estimate the decorrelation noise for vegetable areas based on Landsat-derived NDVI prior to the acquisition of SAR data. The modeling process is being investigated with the L-band ALOS-1/PALSAR-1 data and the Landsat-5 optical data acquired in the Meitanba area of Hunan Province, China. Furthermore, the reliability of the established model is verified in the Longhui area, which is situated near the Meitanba area. The results demonstrate that the established model can quantitatively estimate InSAR decorrelation associated with the vegetation coverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-22487-4 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the results of a June 1980 survey of 1069 children in Changsha, Hunan Province. The data have been unavailable previously either in Chinese or in English. In general, they suggest that comparisons of single children with children from multiple-child families in China regarding quality of life, intellectual development, and behavioural traits are similar to comparisons conducted in the United States and other western countries. As in many western studies, single children in China appear to have a better quality of life than children with siblings. Regarding intellectual development, single children in China perform better than those with siblings, a finding which is consonant with the family intactness model of Falbo. Single children in Changsha are little different from ones from multiple-child families on various aspects of behaviour, and are more co-operative and less hostile. These findings are the opposite of those of the Shanghai study, the other major analysis of single children in China; the Shanghai survey indicated that single children were not as well-behaved as those with siblings, a finding that caused some concern among Chinese social scientists. To the extent that the findings of the Changsha study, and not those of the Shanghai study, reflect the situation of single children in China, this could mean that the one-child family planning campaign may not be having a negative impact on children's behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Traditional residences are among the most important tangible cultural heritage. This paper evaluates and explores the quality of individual traditional residences and the heritage value of a complex of traditional residences in Western Hunan in China. The former indicates how well the external characteristics of the building are preserved, whilst the latter refers to the integration of use values, ecology principles and cultural features. Based on the survey of the selected 7 traditional villages, the authors have built a spatial database of these villages on the strength of GIS, RS and GPS techniques, and employed an architectural evaluation method to grade the exterior quality of individual traditional residences, followed by the construction of an evaluation indicator system and the use of entropy weight method to score the value of traditional residences, thereby systematically unveiling how indicators influence the value of traditional residences. The results reveal that well-preserved and prime-quality traditional residences are quite rare. Average-quality individual traditional residences outnumber other quality levels in all selected traditional villages. These villages differ in the value of their traditional residences, which is susceptible to both natural and cultural factors. Architectural elements play a dominant role, and the change in architectural form serves as an important criterion for determining whether the traditional residence in question has been transformed into a modern building. The value of traditional rural residences is mainly reflected in the authenticity of the architectural form and the building material, which are crucial to the intact pass-down of their unique architectural styles. • Traditional residences were systematically investigated based on GIS, RS and GPS. • The quality of individual traditional rural residences was quantified and analyzed. • Well-preserved and prime-quality traditional residences are quite rare. • The entropy weight method was used to estimate the value of traditional residences. • The influencing factors of the value of traditional residences were unveiled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China launched seven emissions trading scheme (ETS) pilots in 2011, and a national ETS, at the end of 2017 in an attempt to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and drive its extensive energy transition in a cost-effective way. The Hubei province pilot ETS has operated since 2014, and an analysis of its effectiveness can provide lessons for the nascent national system. This paper disaggregates Hubei's industrial carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions from 2005 to 2018 into economic scale, economic structure, energy efficiency, and energy structure effects using the logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI). Difference-in-difference (DID) models then assess the implementation effectiveness of this ETS, and its impact on the main influencing factors of the LMDI. Ten cities each in the Hubei and Hunan provinces are selected as treatment and control groups, respectively, in the DID models. Results show that the change in industrial CO 2 emissions is mainly due to the economic scale and energy efficiency effects. After the ETS implementation, the energy structure effect has a limited impact on emissions, while the economic structure effect makes a negligible contribution. Moreover, the implementation of the ETS has had little demonstrable impact on industrial CO 2 emissions, gross domestic product (GDP), energy consumption intensity, and CO 2 emission intensity. This lacking of impact is caused by the GHG monitoring capacity deficits of the local Development and Reform Commission, and irrational quota allocations. Effective supervision and quota allocation should be developed to increase the impacts of the ETS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study we systematically reviewed 1203 research papers published between 2008 and 2018 in China and recorded related data on eight kinds of soil heavy metals (Cr, Pb, Cd, Hg, As, Cu, Zn, and Ni). Based on that, the pollution levels, ecological risk and health risk caused by soil heavy metals were evaluated and the pollution hot spots and potential driving factors of different heavy metals in different provinces were also identified. Results indicated accumulation of heavy metals in soils of most provinces in China compared with background values. Consistent with previous findings, the most prevalent polluted heavy metals were Cd and Hg. Polluted regions are mainly located in central, southern and southwestern China. Hunan, Guangxi, Yunnan, and Guangdong provinces were the most polluted provinces. For the potential health risk caused by heavy metals pollution, children are more likely confront with non-carcinogenic risk than adults and seniors. And children in Hunan and Guangxi province were experiencing relatively larger non-carcinogenic risk. In addition, children in part of provinces were undergoing potentially carcinogenic risks due to soil heavy metals exposure. Furthermore, in our study the 31 provinces in mainland China were divided into six subsets according to corresponding potential driving factors for heavy metal accumulation. Our study provide more comprehensive and updated information for contributing to better soil management, soil remediation, and soil contamination control in China. Image 1 • Cd and Hg were the most polluted heavy metals in soil across China. • The ER values for Cd in 30 provinces varied from moderate to very high risk. • Hunan, Guangxi, Yunnan and Guangdong were confirmed as priority control provinces. • Children are undergo larger health risk than adults and seniors in China. • Controlling factors of heavy metals accumulation in different provinces were mapped. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nighttime light (NTL) remote sensing data have been widely used to derive socioeconomic indicators at the national and regional scales to study regional economic development. However, most previous studies only chose a single measurement indicator (such as GDP) and adopted simple regression methods to investigate the economic development of a certain area based on DMSP-OLS or NPP-VIIRS stable NTL data. The status quo shows the problems of using a single evaluation index—it has a low evaluation precision. The LJ1-01 satellite is the first dedicated NTL remote sensing satellite in the world, launched in July 2018. The data provided by LJ1-01 have a higher spatial resolution and fewer blooming phenomena. In this paper, we compared the accuracy of the LJ1-01 data and NPP-VIIRS data in detecting county-level multidimensional economic development. In three provinces in China, namely, Hubei, Hunan and Jiangxi, 20 socioeconomic parameters were selected from the following five perspectives: economic conditions, people's livelihood, social development, public resources and natural vulnerability. Then, a County-level Economic Index (CEI) was constructed to evaluate the level of multidimensional economic development, with the spatial pattern of the multidimensional economic development also identified across the study area. The present study adopted the random forest (RF) and linear regression (LR) algorithms to establish the regression model individually, and the results were evaluated by cross-validation. The results show that the RF algorithm greatly improves the accuracy of the model compared with the LR algorithm, and thus is suitable for the study of NTL data. In addition, a better determinate coefficient (R2) based on the LJ1-01 data (0.8168) was obtained than that from the NPP-VIIRS data (0.7245) in the RF model, which reflects that the LJ1-01 data offer better potential in the evaluation of socioeconomic parameters and can be used to identify, both accurately and efficiently, multidimensional economic development at the county level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Caledonian veins overprinted by Yanshanian gold mineralization forming the gold deposits. • Metamorphic-derived barren Caledonian veins having H 2 O-NaCl-CO 2 fluids. • Magma and mantle-derived auriferous Yanshanian veins having H 2 O-NaCl fluids. The Jiangnan Orogen, situated between the Yangtze and Cathaysia blocks in South China, is an important gold-polymetallic metallogenic belt in China. Like many gold deposits hosted in Precambrian rocks in eastern China, the timing of gold mineralization in the Jiangnan Orogen, mostly hosted by Neoproterozoic rocks, has been controversial. A number of previous geochronological studies have suggested that mineralization ages range from Neoproterozoic to Cretaceous, with Caledonian (Early Paleozoic) and Yanshanian (Jurassic – Cretaceous) being considered most important. As Caledonian is the most important period of regional metamorphism, and Yanshanian is the most important period of granitic magmatism, the timing of mineralization is closely related to the genetic nature (orogenic versus post-orogenic) of the gold mineralization. This paper addresses these problems by studying the ages and characteristics of ore-forming fluids of two major gold deposits (Wangu and Huangjindong) in the central part of the Jiangnan Orogen, in northeastern Hunan. Muscovite Ar-Ar dating suggests that the bulk of the quartz veins in the Wangu and Huangjindong deposits were formed at ca. > 399 – 397 Ma, i.e., during the Caledonian orogeny, whereas gold mineralization (and associated veining) took place at ca. 142 – 130 Ma, i.e., during the Yanshanian orogeny. Fluid inclusions in the barren "Caledonian veins" are characterized by the H 2 O-NaCl-CO 2 system, homogenization temperatures of 266 – 276 °C and salinities of 5 – 5.4 wt% NaCl equivalent, similar to those found in many orogenic-type gold deposits, whereas the fluid inclusions in the gold-bearing "Yanshanian veins" (with abundant sulfides) overprinting the barren veins have a H 2 O-NaCl composition system, homogenization temperatures of 169 to 256 °C, and salinities from 8.7 to 15.2 wt% NaCl equivalent. It is proposed that both the Caledonian and Yanshanian veining events are controlled by the same fracture systems, with the former being formed in a relatively deep, orogenic deformation-metamorphic environment, and the latter in a relatively shallow, extensional environment accompanied by extensive granitic magmatism. Reactivation of the Caledonian structures during the Yanshanian orogeny, together with availability of sulfur and gold, possibly associated with granitic intrusions, played a key role in the formation of the gold deposits in northeastern Hunan and possibly elsewhere in the Jiangnan Orogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anisotropic characteristics is obviously performed for the marine shale in Northwestern Hunan, China, it's closely related to the developed bedding existing in shale formation layers. While the investigations of the shales' anisotropic behaviors under the different bedding angles are still lacking on comprehensive understanding in this region. In order to understand shales' anisotropic behaviors considering its bedding angle, in this paper, the mechanical properties and failure modes of the marine shales, as well as shales' fragments fractal behaviors were researched based on the elastic strain energy in the shales' failure process. The results show that, the elastic energy release and storage in the failure process of shale are depended on bedding angles, it decides the shales' failure modes, which including piercing blast failure, penetrating shear-slip failure, sliding failure, sliding-shear failure and tensile failure. The findings also indicate that under the different bedding angles, the correlations between the uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), elastic strain energy, and the elastic modulus can be established. Further, via fractal statistics, the relationship between fractal dimensions of the shales' fragments and elastic strain energy has also been obtained. Finally, a novel evaluation scheme was proposed to define the shale's anisotropy grade based on the elastic strain energy. This investigation is significant for the hydraulic fracturing performing design related with the anisotropy characteristics of the marine shale theory. • The correlation of the UCS, elastic strain energy is established to characterize the shale's anisotropy. • The fractal statistics is employed in characterizing the anisotropy of marine shale. • A novel evaluation scheme was proposed to define the shale's anisotropy grade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zhang, Y.X., 2020. Research on ecological environmental protection and utilization of water resource—investigation and data analysis on ecological practice of five villages in Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan and Gansu. In: Bai, X. and Zhou, H. (eds.), Advances in Water Resources, Environmental Protection, and Sustainable Development. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 115, pp. 522-525. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Based on the ecology practice condition investigation and data analysis in five villages from five provinces of Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan and Gasu, the rural ecological practice and relevant water resource protection regulations implementation present situation were analyzed. In this paper, it was discussed that there was regional differences about water resource protection regulation and the importance of the rural farmers to "green water and green mountains" and "gold and silver mountains", and the deeper problems of the ineffective transformation from "green water and green mountains" to "gold and silver mountains". Accordingly, corresponding countermeasure proposal was put forward. To build an ecological civilization, we should lead economic benefits with ecological benefits, turn ecological environmental advantages into advantages in ecological agriculture, ecological industry, ecological tourism and other ecological economies, promote the transformation of green water and green mountains into gold and silver mountains, create a beautiful ecological environment for China's economic development, and create good material conditions for China's residents' income. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydraulic fracturing is a widely used technique for oil and gas extraction from ultra-low porosity and permeability shale reservoirs. During the hydraulic fracturing process, large amounts of water along with specific chemical additives are injected into the shale reservoirs, causing a series of reactions the influence the fluid composition and shale characteristics. This paper is focused on the investigation of the geochemical reactions between shale and fracturing fluid by conducting comparative experiments on different samples at different time scales. By tracking the temporal changes of fluid composition and shale characteristics, we identify the key geochemical reactions during the experiments. The preliminary results show that the dissolution of the relatively unstable minerals in shale, including feldspar, pyrite and carbonate minerals, occurred quickly. During the process of mineral dissolution, a large number of metal elements, such as U, Pb, Ba, Sr, etc., are released, which makes the fluid highly polluted. The fluid–rock reactions also generate many pores, which are mainly caused by dissolution of feldspar and calcite, and potentially can enhance the extraction of shale gas. However, precipitation of secondary minerals like Fe-(oxy) hydroxides and CaSO4 were also observed in our experiments, which on the one hand can restrict the migration of metal elements by adsorption or co-precipitation and on the other hand can occlude the pores, therefore influencing the recovery of hydrocarbon. The different results between the experiments of different samples revealed that mineralogical texture and composition strongly affect the fluid-rock reactions. Therefore, the identification of the shale mineralogical characteristics is essential to formulate fracturing fluid with the lowest chemical reactivity to avoid the contamination released by flowback waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wang, Y.; Yang, Z., and Hong, Y., 2020. Distribution characteristics of Hakka dialects in Hunan Province: discussion on "Coastal-Inland" migration route. In: Yang, Y.; Mi, C.; Zhao, L., and Lam, S. (eds.), Global Topics and New Trends in Coastal Research: Port, Coastal and Ocean Engineering. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 103, pp. 575–580. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. Under the background of modernization and globalization, dialects have declined. Dialect is the carrier of regional culture and the important sign and content of regional cultural identity. The loss of dialect means the lack of regional culture. Therefore, the study of dialects is of great significance. In this paper, the spatial smoothing tool of GIS and Floating Catchment Area (FCA) are used to study the distribution of Hakka dialect in Hunan Province. The research shows that the Hakka dialects in Hunan are mainly distributed in the eastern and southern border areas of Hunan Province, especially in the southeast. There is no distribution of Hakka dialects in the central, northern and western areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Establishment of a maintenance service network has become increasingly urgent to ensure the safety and reliability of agricultural operation in busy farming seasons. This paper aims to design the maintenance service network in agriculture and focuses on the joint selection of service providers in network nodes. A novel intelligent decision-making approach is developed based on expert knowledge and machine learning techniques. First, a set of evaluation criteria for the group of service providers is defined from both qualitative and quantitative aspects. The adaptive fuzzy-neuro approach is proposed for selection of the group of service providers. Fuzzy rules designed by experts are applied for scheme classification and adaptive neural network is developed for the modification of memberships functions. Lastly, the proposed methodology is demonstrated by designing a real maintenance service network in Hunan, China. Experimental results in real application scenarios manifest that the proposed approach provides optimal solutions for decision making and providers' selection in a maintenance service network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water shortage and pollution are important issues for sustainable development. This paper establishes a model for water security evaluation based on water footprint indexes by using fuzzy comprehensive evaluation and the entropy value method. The model is then applied to the Hunan province in China for 2006–2016. First, the analysis shows that water footprint indexes can fully reflect the water security situation when combined with population facts and economic structure changes. Second, the result illustrates that the water footprint increased by 16.49% between 2006 and 2016, and Hunan's water security is in the more than safe situation. Third, a rise of 18.4% in the agricultural water footprint and the safe grade of food security imply that the efficiency of water management needs improving urgently, especially if we consider the expectation of an expanding population in the next decade. • Model for water security evaluation based on water footprint indexes. • Application to Hunan province of China for the period from 2006 to 2016. • Water footprint of Hunan province grew 16.49% between 2006 and 2016. • Water resources are used efficiently to create GDP, however, inefficiently in agricultural production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Printed sowing is a new sowing method for machine-transplanted rice. • Printed sowing reduces seed rate in machine-transplanted hybrid rice. • Printed sowing improves grain yield in machine-transplanted hybrid rice. Machine transplanting is an alternative establishment method to replace manual transplanting that reduces labor inputs in rice production. It is important to reduce the seed rate in mechanical transplanting, especially for hybrid rice with expensive seeds. Printed sowing (PS), i.e. pasting seeds to paper, is a new sowing method for reducing the seed rate. This study was conducted to compare seed rate, grain yield, and yield attributes in machine-transplanted hybrid rice between PS and manual sowing (MS). Field experiments were conducted in the early and late seasons of 2017 and 2018 in Yongan Town, Hunan Province, China. Seed rates under PS were 9.6–19.8 kg ha–1, which were lower by 2.73–5.65 times than under MS. PS produced 11 % higher grain yield compared to MS. The higher grain yields under PS compared to MS were mainly due to higher seedling quality, larger panicle size, higher spikelet filling percentage, higher aboveground biomass, and higher harvest index under PS than under MS. The better performance of yield attributes under PS compared to MS could be explained by improvements in morphological and physiological traits including number of vascular bundles and leaf photosynthetic capacity. Our study suggests that PS is a feasible method to reduce seed rate and increase grain yield in machine-transplanted hybrid rice production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Soil pH decreased by 0.07 annually after 20 years of applying NPK fertilizers. • Long-term application of organic fertilizer increased soil SOC content. • Organic fertilizer resulted in higher grain yield than NPK alone. • Applying organic fertilizer alone prevents soil acidification. Long-term fertilization causes declines in soil quality and crop yield, hindering current agricultural development. This paper is about the effect of long-term fertilization (20 years) in Hunan's Qiyang County. It was found that chemical nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) fertilizer lowered soil pH by an annual average of 0.07, while organic fertilizer increased soil pH by about 0.04. Furthermore, organic fertilizer and chemical fertilizer both increased total soil organic carbon (SOC). Long-term chemical NPK and organic fertilizer increased straw and grain yield of wheat and maize to a greater extent than did other fertilization methods. Thus, our results suggest that mixing organic fertilizer with chemical NPK fertilizer should prevent soil acidification and elevate crop yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between drilling fluid and shale has a significant impact on wellbore stability during shale oil and gas drilling operations. This paper investigates the effects of the drilling fluid activity on the surface and osmotic hydration characteristics of shale. Experiments were conducted to measure the influence of drilling fluid activity on surface wettability by monitoring the evolution of fluid-shale contact angles. The relationship between drilling fluid activity and shale swelling ratio was determined to investigate the osmotic hydration behavior. The results indicate that, with increasing drilling fluid activity, the fluid–shale contact angles gradually increase—the higher the activity, the faster the adsorption rate; and the stronger the inhibition ability, the weaker the surface hydration action. The surface adsorption rate of the shale with a KCl drilling fluid was found to be the highest. Regarding the osmotic hydration action on the shale, the negative extreme swelling ratio (b) of the shale was found to be: bKCl < bCTAB < bSDBS. Moreover, based on the relationship between the shale swelling ratio and drilling fluid activity, shale hydration can be divided into complete dehydration, weak dehydration, surface hydration, and osmotic hydration, which contributes to the choice of drilling fluids to improve wellbore stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spatial distribution characteristics of metal(loid)s (Cu, Zn, Cd, As, and Pb) in the soil of a silver smelting zone located in Chenzhou, Hunan province, China and their ecological toxicity were studied in this paper. The results showed that the average concentration of these metal(loid)s in the soil of the silver smelting yard and surroundings decreased in the order: Pb > Cu > Zn > As > Cd, and all of these metal(loid)s greatly surpassed the local background. In general, the concentration of metal(loid)s in soil decreased with the increase in distance from the pollution source in the horizontal direction. In addition, the metal concentration decreased with an increase of depth. The geo-accumulation index and toxic unit analysis revealed that the smelting yard was extremely contaminated and Cu, Cd, and As exhibited the most toxic effects in this area. Furthermore, in soils nearby smelting yard, higher contamination was found in the lower geographical forms than in the higher parts of the terrain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seepage capacity of the fluid is significantly enhanced in the carbonate rocks where fault-fracture network develops. Therefore, the scale, occurrence and spatial distribution of fault-fracture network are important factors controlling the development of epigenetic karst. Taking the Devonian-Carboniferous of Miaoqian area, southeastern Hunan, China as an example, this paper focuses on the controlling effects of fault-fracture network on epigenetic karst. The southeastern Hunan is located in the joint zone between the Yangtze plate and the Huaxia plate. In Indosinian period, the study area was in approximately S-N compressive setting, while in Yanshanian period it was converted to be in the WNW-ESE compressive setting. The fault-fracture network of the Devonian-Carboniferous in the Miaoqian area is the combined result of the above two periods of tectonic deformation. We utilized drones, laser range finder, 3D laser scanners and other equipments to make detailed measurements on geometries of the faults, fractures and karsts in Xijin Cave, Moonlight Cave, Jiuqu Cave, Moyanli Canyon and the surrounding region. The relationship between fault-fracture network and karst was analyzed, and the following conclusions are obtained: (1) the strong karst zone is controlled by reverse faults and shear joints developed in Indosinian and Yanshanian periods;(2) large karst caves mainly develop in the intersection of faults with different strikes; (3) the karst intensity is controlled by the scale, number of intersections and density of fault-fracture network. As the scale and density of fractures decrease, the karst intensity decreases from core to flanks; (4) The stalactite and stalagmites in the cave mainly develop along the reverse fault or large conjugate shear joints; (5) small dissolved pores and karst caves are mainly distributed as beads along the shear joints; (6) while fault-fracture network is not well-developed, karst intensity is weak with small dissolved fractures developing along bedding surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the soil ecosystem in China has been increasingly polluted by heavy metals. As such, this paper investigated the pollution degree and spatial distribution of available heavy metals and determined their sources in the paddy soil of red region in Hunan Province of China. A total of 80 topsoil samples were collected (0-20 cm) from the study area, and their spatial distribution and sources were analyzed using geostatistical and multivariate analysis. The results showed that the contents of available Cu, Zn, Ni, Cr, Cd, As, and Pb in the soil were 1.652, 1.057, 0.304, 0.747, 0.139, 0.295, and 6.348 mg/kg, respectively. Compared to soil background reference contents, all tested available elements exceeded the reference value except Ni and Pb. The spatial variation of available heavy metals was visualized by GIS. Correlation analysis was used to determine the association between soil properties and available heavy metals. The multivariate analysis suggested that the source contributions of the natural source, agricultural sources, and industrial activities accounted for 31.78%, 27.90%, and 15.48%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cause of formation of Hunan apparel industry has been expounded. and characteristic and development actuality of the five major apparel industry clusters have been analyzed in this paper. Finally, the authors has brought forward some suggestions on developing Hunan apparel industry, such as achieving resource sharing. implementing brand strategy, creating apparel culture, so as to make reference for Hunan province to build up the advanced industry status in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]