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The development of the tourism industry is a crucial mechanism for enhancing the tertiary sector and promoting local economic growth. This study focuses on traditional villages in the southern Anhui region, analyzing the characteristics of the evolution of their tourism spatial structure and the underlying driving forces. The objective is to provide foundational insights for rural tourism and policy development in the region. Utilizing ArcMap 10.8, we assess the evolution of the tourism spatial structure through the selection of 14 indicators across three dimensions: resource endowment conditions, the regional tourism development environment, and the local economic construction environment, thereby establishing an evaluation system. The Entropy Weight-TOPSIS method is employed for comprehensive data analysis. The findings indicate: 1) The development status of tourism in traditional villages is gradually declining, significantly impacted by the pandemic; 2) Among the six cities in southern Anhui, Huangshan and Wuhu exhibit relatively favorable development conditions, while Ma'anshan and Xuancheng are at moderate levels. Chizhou and Tongling are facing weaker development states; 3) Regional investment, commercial value, and ecological environmental protection capabilities are the three primary driving factors influencing the evolution of tourism spatial structure in southern Anhui, followed by environmental quality and cultural heritage preservation. Therefore, policymakers should place greater emphasis on boosting tourism development in Chizhou and Tongling, enhancing regional investment levels, and improving the commercial value and ecological protection capabilities of tourism spaces. Furthermore, attention must be devoted to environmental quality and cultural heritage preservation within the rural tourism landscape of southern Anhui to ensure sustainable development.

Traditionally, “ancient villages” are communities that date back to a previous era, possess abundant traditional resources, and hold significant historical, social, cultural, ecological, and economic significance. This study examines the geographical and chronological development of 2957 traditional communities in the Yangtze River Basin and extensively employs GIS spatial analysis, geostatistical analysis, and historical literature review to study the evolution of the locations of traditional settlements under various factors. The study’s findings revealed that: (1) From a geographical standpoint, the traditional villages in the study area present a distribution state of “two cores, small aggregation, and many dispersions”. The two core clusters are located at the intersection of Hunan, Guizhou, and Chongqing provinces, where the natural geographical advantages attracted people from different dynasties to settle here. (2) From a temporal perspective, the quantity of traditional villages shows a growing trend, and the distribution center of each dynasty shows an east–west direction. Among them, the shift from the Song to the Yuan dynasties marked the period of greatest change in village distribution, which originated from the Song Dynasty’s quick economic growth. In addition, the village distribution was clustered in the eastern part of the country, adapting to the needs of commercial trade. When the Song Dynasty fell, the society was in turmoil, and the villages were transferred to the central region to avoid the war. The Yuan Dynasty also laid down the fundamental distribution pattern of conventional villages. (3) From the standpoint of choosing a village location, most of them are distributed in mountainous, hilly, and plain regions; the gentle slopes of 0°~15° are favored by people. Sufficient water sources, abundant precipitation, and a suitable climate are also necessary choices. (4) From the perspective of driving factors, traditional village distribution in the basin is impacted by historical, cultural, social, and ecological factors. Included among these, traditional village distribution is inversely connected with socio-economic variables. Under the interaction of two factors, the distribution will be more affected. To summarize, the complex human geographic factors together create the conventional village dispersal pattern, and examining these elements holds substantial practical importance for comprehending, safeguarding, and preserving traditional villages.

As a model of the symbiotic wisdom between humans and nature, traditional villages carry rich historical and cultural values in their existence. However, the rapid urbanization process has led to the destruction and even disappearance of many traditional villages, and surviving villages urgently need to cope with the severe challenge of protecting their original ecology and cultural environment. To preserve the heritage of traditional villages, it is necessary to investigate their geographic distribution and influencing factors. We have conducted research and statistics on traditional villages using Geographic Information System (GIS) spatial analysis technology (GIS), described in detail the complex interrelationships among natural, social, and cultural variables in the distribution and evolution of villages, and analyzed the relevant influencing factors qualitatively and quantitatively. The results of the research show that (1) in terms of geographical distribution, traditional villages in Guizhou tend to exhibit a high degree of agglomeration and clustering, and their distribution structure is characterized by “small aggregation and scattering, with many cores and few peripheries”. (2) Most traditional villages in Guizhou appeared after the end of the Qing Dynasty. (3) Natural and cultural factors influence the design and layout of traditional settlements, and socioeconomic and historical culture influence the evolution of traditional settlements. These factors also influence the formation of traditional villages and the changes in their geographical distribution. This study provides a scientific basis for the sustainable development of traditional villages in Guizhou Province. It explores a new way to study and protect the spatial patterns of traditional villages.

The ecological security of the water environment is a key element in evaluating the dynamic balance and ecological service functions in the construction of urban ecological civilizations. Through the regional study of water resources in Huizhou, we selected 24 indicators in five dimensions of the DPSIR theory, such as “driving force-pressure-state-impact-response”, and constructed an ecological evaluation index system of the water environment. Combined with the entropy weight TOPSIS model, the analysis was carried out for spatial differentiation features and spatio-temporal deduction features, and the results showed that the weight coefficients of the spatial differentiation features for the guideline layer exhibited significant stratification characteristics. The overall spatial and temporal interpretation characteristics of the water’s environmental ecology in the Huizhou region from 2016 to 2021 showed a pull-up enhancement effect. The relative proximity value showed a 63.43% increase from 0.361 in 2016 to 0.590 in 2021 over the six-year period. The region is characterized by regional differences in the ecological carrying capacity of the water environment, which is high in the south-east and low in the north-west. The top three areas in the quantitative calculation of the ecological carrying capacity of the water environment are Shexian County, Jixi County, and Qimen County, in that order.

Against the backdrop of slowing economic growth and increasing environmental pressure, the Yangtze River Delta city cluster, as one of the largest city clusters in the world, has become more driven in its pursuit of high-quality development. We constructed a system of 24 evaluation indexes and used entropy-weighted TOPSIS to calculate and study the high-quality development index of urban agglomerations in the region. First, the level of high quality development (HQD) of the Yangtze River Delta city cluster generally improved from 2010 to 2021, with 2017 was the best year, while 2010 was the worst year. Second, in the multidimensional evaluation of HQD, Jiangsu excels in innovation and people's livelihood with 0.524 and 0.534, respectively; Shanghai (0.531) excels in coordinated development; Zhejiang excels in green and economic development with 0.557 and 0.484, respectively; and Anhui lags behind in all aspects. Third, the development process of HQD in the Yangtze River Delta region is uneven, and the level of HQD development varies greatly among the city clusters in the province. The measurement results show that Shanghai (0.511) has the highest score, followed by Zhejiang (0.484), Jiangsu (0.440) and Anhui (0.435). Fourth, spatial correlation analysis shows that Shanghai and Jiangsu are mainly distributed in the double-high region, Zhejiang is distributed in the high-low region, while Anhui is concentrated in the low-low region. The results of this study help us understand more deeply the characteristics and challenges of high-quality development in the Yangtze River Delta urban agglomerations and provide a scientific basis for more precise urban development policies.

The evaluation of land ecological security (LES) evaluates how human activity and land use affect land ecosystems. Its ultimate objective is to provide guidance and assistance for decision making in order to preserve and restore the efficacy and health of terrestrial ecosystems. The assessment model presented in this article is comprehensive and integrates the advantages of both subjective and objective weighting techniques. This study extends the “Pressure–State–Response” (PSR) model to “Driver–Pressure–State-Impact–Response” (DPSIR) and combines it with TOPSISI to determine the weights of each contributing component. Furthermore, the geographical and temporal distribution patterns of regional land ecological security levels were investigated using GIS geostatistical approaches. According to this study, (1) the Yangtze River Delta region’s LES index, with a mean value in the fairly safe range, is generally safe. The year 2019 marks an inflection point for the index, with the highest level of ecological safety on land. The primary element is the modification of environmental policies that are enacted by the government. (2) The LES status is divided into two stages during the course of this study. The Yangtze River Delta region’s LES quickly develops throughout the first stage (2012–2019), which sees a shift in the safety rating from IV to II. The second stage (2019–2023) sees a progressive improvement in the LES index and a shift in the safety category from Class II to Class I. (3) Important variables influencing the geographical distribution of LES in the Yangtze River Delta region include barrier elements, including soil and water erosion areas, flood disaster areas, grain planting areas, urban green covering areas, and effective irrigation areas of farmland.

The Huizhou region is an important area of traditional Chinese culture, and currently, the state of the village’s surroundings in this area is still not perfect. In this study, seven districts (counties) in the Huizhou region were selected for research. The Rural Habitat Environment (RHES) Indicator Program is based on the concept of Socio-Economic-Natural Complex Ecosystems (SENCE) and constructs 18 metrics in three dimensions. Trends and influencing factors were analyzed using entropy weight TOPSIS and a Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) for the years 2013–2022, and spatial and temporal evolution was measured using Geographic Information Systems (GISs). The findings show that the composite index for the Huizhou region grew from 2013 (0.3197) to 2022 (0.6806). Second, the Tunxi District belongs to the high index–high economy category. The Shexian, Xiuning, and Qimen counties belong to the high index–low economy category. Huizhou District and Huangshan District belong to the low index–high economy category. Yixian County belongs to the low index–low economy category. Third, all districts (counties) show an upward trend, and Huangshan District has the best RHES condition. Shexian County ranks relatively low in the comprehensive index.

Tourism ecological security is the basic guarantee for the sustainable development of tourist sites, Huizhou Cultural and Ecological Reserve is an important area for the im-plementation of ecological protection in China, and it is of great significance to carry out research on tourism ecological security. The study adopted the DPSIR model to construct a comprehensive evaluation index system for tourism ecological security and used entropy value-TOPSIS and ArcGIS software to analyze the inter-annual changes and spatial change characteristics of tourism ecological security in the study area. The results show that: firstly, the comprehensive index of tourism ecological safety in the study area from 2010 to 2021 shows a trend of “decreasing-increasing'' and an overall increasing trend; secondly, all the sub-systems show an increasing or stabilizing state in recent years during 2010–2021; the state and response sub-systems show an increas-ing or stabilizing state in recent years; and the state and response sub-systems show an increasing trend in recent years. Secondly, all the subsystems showed an increase or stabilization in recent years between 2010 and 2021, and the state and response sub-systems are the main systems to improve the ecological safety of tourism in the study area; thirdly, the difference in the level of ecological safety of tourism in each county of the study area increased and then narrowed from 2010 to 2021, and the change of safety level usually shifted between neighboring levels, and the probability of transfer-ring across the levels was relatively small. , Shexian County, Yixian County, Qimen County, Tunxi District, and the tourism eco-safety level of Huangshan District, Hui-zhou District, Jixi County, and Xiuning County increased at a faster rate than other counties. The study further extends the scale to the district and county level, tries to explore the relevant factors affecting the ecological security of tourism, and proposes countermeasures for the sustainable development of the study area based on the re-sults, which will bring some reference value to the ecological governance and policy formulation of this kind of research.

The general population’s assessment and perception of a city can be influenced by its skyline, which is one of its representatives. This paper uses semantic segmentation and exploratory factor analysis to conduct a study from two different perspectives, aiming to analyse the development and current situation of the skyline of Hefei’s political and cultural new district. By collecting pictures of the skyline of the New Administrative and Cultural District, the New Administrative and Cultural District of Hefei’s skyline is being studied for overall changes using the semantic segmentation method, and to evaluate the quality of the skyline in various years, the entropy weight–TOPSIS is employed. Through the literature investigation and creation status of the new political and cultural district, the index system is scientifically formulated to conduct a questionnaire survey, and its reliability and validity are tested. This study is conducted with exploratory factor analysis of factors that are vital in the city skyline. The results of this study show that (1) after the semantic segmentation of the pictures, it is found that the proportion of buildings and the proportion of vegetation are both rising; the proportion of buildings tends to level off after 2018, and the proportion of vegetation shows a uniform increase. In the relative proximity ranking, the overall trend is increasing, and the skyline is ranked first in 2024. (2) Two variables were identified based on the findings of the exploratory factor analysis: ‘skyline value’ and ‘neighbourhood ecological quality’. The results of this study show that the skyline of Hefei’s New Administrative and Cultural District in 2024 is the best overall, and that the skyline of the New Administrative and Cultural District has developed into one of the city images of Hefei, and that its optimisation can be considered in terms of the “quality of the surrounding ecological environment”.

IntroductionExposure to green space can bring many benefits to physical and mental health, but in China, the attractiveness of green space to youth groups seems to be not significant. The question of how to encourage young people to go out of the house to better perceive green space, enjoy nature, and promote physical and mental health is on our minds.MethodsThis study combines young people’s green space perception, green space use, and purpose of visit to explore its impact on the emotional health of youth groups, combined with the PANAS psychological data scale, an online questionnaire survey of 426 residents (18–35 years old) in three Chinese cities, and was used to construct a multiple regression model and AMOS structural equations.Results and discussionThe results of the study showed that, firstly, environmental attractiveness, environmental odor, and number of facilities were the key factors influencing adolescents’ landscape perception evaluation, while activity space, environmental odor, and environmental attractiveness had a greater impact on adolescents’ emotional well-being. Second, among adolescents’ visit purposes, socializing and fitness were more likely to help them generate positive emotions while resting and viewing activities were effective in helping them alleviate negative emotions. In addition, in terms of usage, residents who took public transportation as well as those who arrived on foot were the most emotionally healthy. The findings of this paper provide insights for public policymakers, urban planners, and landscape architects to better encourage youth participation in green spaces when they are installed.

The rapid development of modern industrial Civilization has put remote areas of China, especially Qinghai, in an increasingly unfavorable development position, and the problem of unbalanced and insufficient development in the Qinghai region has become increasingly serious, with environmental problems becoming increasingly prominent. Hence, this study is dedicated to assessing the quality of habitat in Qinghai, China. The effects of the evaluation of the Habitat Index will, to a sure extent, grant a reference for the current improvement purpose of harmonious coexistence between human beings and nature. Using the 2010–2020 Provincial data of Qinghai, China, and based on the existing literature and data, we constructed the evaluation index system of Qinghai's habitat environment quality in four dimensions, namely, health and safety, social development, economic status and environmental health, respectively. Combined with the entropy-weight-TOPSIS evaluation model, the Habitat Index of Qinghai residents was measured. The changes of habitat environment in different years were determined. Finally, the distribution of the correlation of each index is analyzed through grayscale correlation and box line diagram. The study concludes that, first, in terms of the time dimension, the overall Habitat Quality Index of Qinghai shows a steady increase from 2010 to 2020. 2020 has the highest Habitat Index, followed by 2019 and 2018. The relative proximity values of Cifor these three years are 0.597, 0.547, and 0.509, respectively. Second, statistically, the per capita urban road area has the most significant impact on Qinghai's Habitat Environment Index. It indicates that we need to improve and plan the traffic environment in Qinghai to create a safe and efficient traffic order. In addition, we need to focus on environmental protection, improve the level of sewage treatment, focus on the protection of water resources, etc. Thirdly, among the dimensional indicators, the gray correlation coefficient of each secondary indicator is >0.7. The correlation between each dimensional indicator and the quality of Qinghai's habitat environment is high. The highest correlation is found for the secondary social development (0.841). It indicates that the focus of improving the quality of habitat environment is to improve a series of problems in social development and adjust the social development model. Constantly optimizing social production and distribution, rationalizing resource utilization and development, etc.

Wind speed prediction plays an essential role in wind energy utilization. However, most existing studies of wind speed forecasting used data from one location to build models and forecasts, which limited the accuracy of wind speed forecasting. Therefore, to improve the prediction accuracy at a target location, this study proposes a multiple-point model based on data from multiple locations for short-term wind speed prediction. The model, which utilizes wind speed measurements from neighboring locations and combines the extreme learning machine (ELM) with the AdaBoost algorithm, is named the multiple-point-AdaBoost-ELM model. Data from seventeen automatic meteorological stations in the Heihe River Basin are used, four stations at different positions are taken as target stations for multi-time-scale wind speed prediction, and six models and several metrics are involved for comparative analysis and comprehensive evaluation. The results show that: (1) the prediction performance of the proposed multiple-point-AdaBoost-ELM model is significantly superior to that of the compared single-point models; (2) the prediction accuracy of the multiple-point-AdaBoost-ELM model is relatively less affected by the prediction time-scale than that of the corresponding single-point model; and (3) the stations located at the center of multiple stations can obtain more accurate prediction results than those located near the edges of the region. Therefore, the proposed multiple-point-AdaBoost-ELM model is a more promising method than traditional single-point modeling methods. The proposed method fully uses historical wind speed at surrounding locations to enhance the wind speed predictions at target locations, makes up for the deficiency of the wind speed forecasting using data from one location, and expands a new way for wind speed prediction.

China’s forest ecological problems are becoming increasingly serious, especially in the Yangtze River Basin (YRB) area. The basin has rich species resources and a well-developed natural forest management and conservation policy. Taking the YRB as the object, we combine the DPSIRM model to build a forest evaluation system containing 6 criterion layers and 24 indicator layers. The entropy weight method-TOPSIS and ArcGIS were combined to assess the forest state and the distribution characteristics of the 11 regions. Furthermore, grey relational analysis (GRA) was used to study the influencing factors of forest status. The results are as follows: (1) the comprehensive index of the YRB forests increased by 192.66% during the study period. The forest status showed the stage characteristics of small climb, basic flatness, and significant improvement. (2) The forest status varied significantly among provinces (cities), with Tibet (0.483) in the best condition and Qinghai (0.103) in a worse condition. (3) Except for Tibet, the rest of the regions are more influenced by the extent of development of the economy. (4) The factor most strongly correlated with the YRB is the forest response (R) indicator.

Abstract Notopterygium incisum Ting ex H. T. Chang is a rare and endangered traditional Chinese medicinal plant. In this research, we built a comprehensive habitat suitability (CHS) model to analyze the potential suitable habitat distribution of this species in the present and future in China. First, using nine different algorithms, we built an ensemble model to explore the possible impacts of climate change on the habitat distribution of this species. Then, based on this model, we built a CHS model to further identify the distribution characteristics of N. incisum‐suitable habitats in three time periods (current, 2050s, and 2070s) while considering the effects of soil and vegetation conditions. The results indicated that the current suitable habitat for N. incisum covers approximately 83.76 × 103 km2, and these locations were concentrated in the Tibet Autonomous Region, Gansu Province, Qinghai Province, and Sichuan Province. In the future, the areas of suitable habitat for N. incisum would significantly decrease and would be 69.53 × 103 km2 and 60.21 × 103 km2 in the 2050s and 2070s, respectively. However, the area of marginally suitable habitat would remain relatively stable. This study provides a more reliable and comprehensive method for modelling the current and future distributions of N. incisum, and it provides valuable insights for highlighting priority areas for medicinal plant conservation and resource utilization.

Meteorological disasters have brought a great negative impact on people’s lives. With the rapid development of modern science and technology, the detection technology of meteorological disasters has been continuously improved. At present, satellite remote sensing detection technology has made gratifying achievements, and it has a good application in meteorological disaster prediction. In this paper, the application of satellite remote sensing technology in the process of meteorological disaster monitoring is discussed in depth. In traditional work, the accuracy and timeliness of meteorological disaster monitoring is the key and difficult point of meteorological disaster prevention. Using satellite telemetry to monitor meteorological disasters can effectively improve the accuracy and timeliness of meteorological disaster monitoring, provide reasonable solutions and decision-making basis for meteorological disaster prevention, and achieve the purpose of disaster prevention and mitigation. This paper introduces the basic principle, technical system, and important role of satellite remote sensing technology, expounds on the application of satellite remote sensing technology in the monitoring of agricultural meteorological disasters such as water, drought, freezing, and hail, and provides a scientific reference for farmers, agricultural sustainability, and agricultural decision-making. The continuous development of our country’s modern social economy has put forward higher requirements for agricultural production. Traditional monitoring technology can no longer meet the needs of agricultural meteorological disaster monitoring. The scientific application of remote sensing monitoring technology has important value, which can effectively improve the detection level and make it have higher accuracy and real-time performance, thereby promoting modern agricultural production in China. Based on the analysis of the application value of remote sensing monitoring technology, this paper comprehensively discusses the specific conditions of different disasters monitored by remote sensing monitoring technology in agricultural production.

Understanding the effect of future global warming on the distribution and diversity of woody species in the Loess Plateau is critical to the vegetation restoration and rebuilding of this area and yet is highly challenging. In the absence of enough experimental data, projection based on species distribution models is the best option for assessing the future shift in species distribution areas. Here, via a comprehensive habitat suitability model, we present an assessment of potential distribution area change for two plant life forms with a total of 42 key woody species, including 21 tree species and 21 shrub species, on the Loess Plateau under multiple scenarios, and based on this information, we explore the responses of regional potential woody species diversity to future global warming. The results showed that moderate warming will promote the expansion of potential distribution areas for most woody species and generally increase regional species diversity, which will result in a greener Loess Plateau. Our results also show that shrub species are more drought-tolerant and less adversely affected by climate change and thus should be considered a priority in vegetation restoration, especially in the arid area of the northern Loess Plateau. These results are helpful for identifying priority restoration areas, selecting appropriate species for artificial planting, and providing useful information for vegetation restoration and management in the future.

In the global context of sustainable urban development, urban regeneration is an activity to improve the form and function of urban space in built-up areas. Commercial streets are one of the most active factors in urban space and an important factor in promoting urban prosperity and reflecting urban vitality, yet these streets have not kept pace with the public’s quest for quality through theoretical change, and this can even affect public comfort and well-being. In order to effectively undertake urban regeneration and improve the quality of urban streets and residents’ satisfaction, design factors for the quality enhancement of commercial streets are explored in order to rationalise residents’ demand preferences and their priorities, enhance residents’ sense of belonging, and provide suggestions for the optimisation of the design of subsequent urban street regeneration in China. By summarising the literature and the content requirements of the quality enhancement scheme for Shuanggang Old Street in Hefei, this study applied a questionnaire survey and scientifically developed an index system containing five evaluation indicators, including spatial carrying capacity, street attractiveness, travel safety, environmental comfort, and social interaction. A combination of hierarchical analysis and entropy weighting was used to identify the most influential factors on the implementation of the quality improvement of the commercial street and design optimisation suggestions. The evaluation results show that travel safety and social interaction significantly affect the evaluation of the quality improvement of commercial streets, as well as highlighting the needs of residents for street environments and services and the role of local governments.

Based on the Web of Science (WoS) core collection database, this article compares the research results in this subject area since 2000 with the literature data on the theme of sustainable architectural design and conducts an in-depth investigation into the research themes, basic literature, development trends, and research frontiers. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted through the CiteSpace scientific visualization software, and the degree of collaboration between authors, institutions, and countries was analysed through research power. The topical research hotspots and their evolution were explored through a word frequency analysis, cluster analysis, and timeline analysis; the origins and development of a particular issue in sustainable building design were explored in conjunction with mutation analysis; and the frontier hotspots were explored. The analysis of co-citations was used to identify important knowledge bases in the field; the flow of knowledge between disciplines was explored through biplot overlay analysis. By interpreting the scientific visualization knowledge map, it was concluded that the research trends in sustainable building design are mainly in the areas of resource control, energy consumption, renewable building materials, evaluation systems, and computer-aided tools, and so on. The major topics of future research related to sustainable building design are discussed and summarized.

Reliable and accurate temperature data acquisition is not only important for hydroclimate research but also crucial for the management of water resources and agriculture. Gridded data products (GDPs) offer an opportunity to estimate and monitor temperature indices at a range of spatiotemporal resolutions; however, their reliability must be quantified by spatiotemporal comparison against in situ records. Here, we present spatial and temporal assessments of temperature indices (Tmax, Tmin, Tmean, and DTR) products against the reference data during the period of 1979–2015 over Punjab Province, Pakistan. This region is considered as a center for agriculture and irrigated farming. Our study is the first spatiotemporal statistical evaluation of the performance and selection of potential GDPs over the study region and is based on statistical indicators, trend detection, and abrupt change analysis. Results revealed that the CRU temperature indices (Tmax, Tmin, Tmean, and DTR) outperformed the other GDPs as indicated by their higher CC and R2 but lower bias and RMSE. Furthermore, trend and abrupt change analysis indicated the superior performances of the CRU Tmin and Tmean products. However, the Tmax and DTR products were less accurate for detecting trends and abrupt transitions in temperature. The tested GDPs as well as the reference data series indicate significant warming during the period of 1997–2001 over the study region. Differences between GDPs revealed discrepancies of 1-2°C when compared with different products within the same category and with reference data. The accuracy of all GDPs was particularly poor in the northern Punjab, where underestimates were greatest. This preliminary evaluation of the different GDPs will be useful for assessing inconsistencies and the capabilities of the products prior to their reliable utilization in hydrological and meteorological applications particularly over arid and semiarid regions.

The response of lake-terminating glaciers to climate change is complex, and their rapid changes are often closely linked to glacial-lake outburst floods. However, the eastern Tanggula Mountains, which are the only area where lake-terminating glaciers are found within the Tibetan Plateau, have received little attention to date. In this study, to address this gap, we generated updated glacier boundaries and estimated the interdecadal area changes for 2000–2020 based on the interpretation of Landsat-5/8 and Sentinel-2 images. In addition, based on the method of digital elevation model (DEM) differencing, we quantified the changes in glacier thickness and mass balance using TanDEM-X radar data and SRTM DEM over almost the same periods. The final results show that the glaciers in the eastern Tanggula Mountains, as a whole, have experienced accelerated area shrinkage (with a rate of area loss increasing from −0.34 ± 0.83 km2 a−1 to −0.93 ± 0.81 km2 a−1 for 2000–2013 and 2013–2020, respectively) and accelerated ice thinning (changing from −0.19 ± 0.05 m a−1 and −0.53 ± 0.08 m a−1 for 2000−2012 and 2012–2020, respectively). Furthermore, the region-wide glacier mass balance was −0.16 ± 0.04 m w.e. a−1 and −0.45 ± 0.07 m w.e. a−1 for these two sub-periods, corresponding to a 1.8 times acceleration of mass loss rate. The average mass balance during 2000–2020 was −0.23 ± 0.04 m w.e. a−1, which is equivalent to a rate of mass loss of −0.04 Gt a−1. More specifically, within the region, the lake-terminating glaciers have exhibited more significant acceleration of area loss and mass loss, compared to the land-terminating glaciers. However, interestingly, the average thinning rate of the lake-terminating glaciers is always lower than that of the land-terminating glaciers over all study periods, which is in contrast with previous findings in other high mountain areas (e.g., the Himalaya Mountains). Field study and proglacial lakes monitoring suggest that the local topography plays a vital role in the evolution of the glacial lakes in this region, which further affects the glacier changes. Furthermore, the present status of the glacier changes in this region can be attributed to the long-term increase in air temperature. Our findings provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of glacier changes across the eastern Tanggula Mountains and will help to improve the understanding of the heterogeneous response of glaciers to climate change.

Identifying the changes in precipitation and temperature at a regional scale is of great importance for the quantification of climate change. This research investigates the changes in precipitation and surface air temperature indices in the seven irrigation zones of Punjab Province during the last 50 years; this province is a very important region in Pakistan in terms of agriculture and irrigated farming. The reliability of the data was examined using double mass curve and autocorrelation analysis. The magnitude and significance of the precipitation and temperature were visualized by various statistical methods. The stations’ trends were spatially distributed to better understand climatic variability across the elevation gradient of the study region. The results showed a significant warming trend in annual Tmin (minimum temperature) and Tmean (mean temperature) in different irrigation zones. However, Tmax (maximum temperature) had insignificant variations except in the high elevation Thal zone. Moreover, the rate of Tmin increased faster than that of Tmax, resulting in a reduction in the diurnal temperature range (DTR). On a seasonal scale, warming was more pronounced during spring, followed by that in winter and autumn. However, the summer season exhibited insignificant negative trends in most of the zones and gauges, except in the higher-altitude Thal zone. Overall, Bahawalpur and Faisalabad are the zones most vulnerable to warming annually and in the spring, respectively. Furthermore, the elevation-dependent trend (EDT) indicated larger increments in Tmax for higher-elevation (above 500 m a.s.l.) stations, compared to the lower-elevation ones, on both annual and seasonal scales. In contrast, the Tmin showed opposite trends at higher- and lower-elevation stations, while a moderate increase was witnessed in Tmean trends from lower to higher altitude over the study region. An increasing trend in DTR was observed at higher elevation, while a decreasing trend was noticed at the lower-elevation stations. The analysis of precipitation data indicated wide variability over the entire region during the study period. Most previous studies reported no change or a decreasing trend in precipitation in this region. Conversely, our findings indicated the cumulative increase in annual and autumn precipitation amounts at zonal and regional level. However, EDT analysis identified the decrease in precipitation amounts at higher elevation (above 1000 m a.s.l.) and increase at the lower-elevation stations. Overall, our findings revealed unprecedented evidence of regional climate change from the perspectives of seasonal warming and variations in precipitation and temperature extremes (Tmax and Tmin) particularly at higher-elevation sites, resulting in a variability of the DTR, which could have a significant influence on water resources and on the phenology of vegetation and crops at zonal and station level in Punjab.

Climate change will significantly affect plant distribution as well as the quality of medicinal plants. Although numerous studies have analyzed the effect of climate change on future habitats of plants through species distribution models (SDMs), few of them have incorporated the change of effective content of medicinal plants. Schisandra sphenanthera Rehd. et Wils. is an endangered traditional Chinese medical plant which is mainly located in the Qinling Mountains. Combining fuzzy theory and a maximum entropy model, we obtained current spatial distribution of quality assessment for S. spenanthera. Moreover, the future quality and distribution of S. spenanthera were also projected for the periods 2020s, 2050s and 2080s under three different climate change scenarios (SRES-A1B, SRES-A2 and SRES-B1 emission scenarios) described in the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES) of IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change). The results showed that the moderately suitable habitat of S. sphenanthera under all climate change scenarios remained relatively stable in the study area. The highly suitable habitat of S. sphenanthera would gradually decrease in the future and a higher decline rate of the highly suitable habitat area would occur under climate change scenarios SRES-A1B and SRES-A2. The result suggested that in the study area, there would be no more highly suitable habitat areas for S. sphenanthera when the annual mean temperature exceeds 20 °C or its annual precipitation exceeds 1,200 mm. Our results will be influential in the future ecological conservation and management of S. sphenanthera and can be taken as a reference for habitat suitability assessment research for other medicinal plants.

Due to the increasingly serious problems of China’s human habitat ecosystem, on the basis of PESTEL paradigm, this study develops a human habitat ecological environment evaluation system with 6 criteria levels and 33 indicator layers, with Anhui Province as a representative. It also combines entropy weight method-TOPSIS, grey correlation analysis method and ArcGIS to assess the quality and spatial-temporal distribution features of the habitat ecological environment in the province of Anhui from 2012 to 2021. The results are presented below (1) Analysed from a temporal perspective, in Anhui Province, the overall quality of human habitat ecological environment improved significantly between 2012 and 2021, and the comprehensive index increased by 178.95%. (2) From the spatial dimension, Huangshan City and Maanshan City in the south of Anhui Province have the highest level of habitat ecological environment, while Huaibei City and Bozhou City perform the worst. (3) In terms of different indicators, the indicator with the strongest interlink with the humankind habitat ecosystem is the completed investment in the project of treating wastewater (PO5), and the indicator with the weakest correlation is the Total amount of wastewater discharged (TE1). The variations in time and space in the evolution and development of the quality of the humankind habitat in the province of Anhui are obvious, and differentiated and targeted measures to improve the human habitat ecological environment should be implemented to effectively promote the excellent creation of Anhui Province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Habitat is the basic condition for human beings to survive and live. Taking Huizhou Cultural and Ecological Reserve as the research direction, the evaluation system is constructed by selecting three indicators of social layer, economic layer, and natural ecological layer. The research team used the entropy weights-TOPSIS assessment methodology to analyze the Habitat Environment Indices (HEIs) in different regions and at different times of the year. Gray correlation methodology was used to identify key drivers of Habitat quality. Findings: First, rural human settlements show a trend of recovery after a decline in 2013. Second, Jixi County (0.550) was ranked first in the overall evaluation. It is also consistently in first place in year-to-year changes. Third, the spatial pattern shows that the southeastern region is of higher quality, while the northern region is relatively backward. Fourth, the social (S) and natural ecological (NCE) layers are the dominant influences on the quality of village settlements. The secondary factors are mainly the proportion of good days in a year (0.977), the number of rural households (0.974) and the area of green space in gardens (0.974). The study achieves the purpose of enhancing the adaptability of the rural environment in the Huizhou Cultural and Ecological Reserve and provides a reference for enhancing the adaptability of related protected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the health attributes of urban green spaces in the Yangtze River Delta. This study analyses the mechanisms at play between ecological preferences, place attachment and place identity in urban green spaces in the Yangtze River Delta based on SEM. AHP and entropy-weighted and TOPSIS were used to analyse the influence relationships and spatial differentiation structure of the health benefits of green spaces in the study area. The study shows that, firstly, environmental preferences have a significant positive impact on place attachment, place identity and health benefit evaluation. Place attachment mediates the positive influence of environmental preferences on health outcomes. Second, the focus should be on improving the activity spaces and services in urban green spaces. Attention should also be paid to increasing the density of interactive spaces and the richness of interactive space types. Third, the health indices in the Yangtze River Delta region are roughly proportional to the urbanization rate and the degree of urban development. Emphasis should be placed on the development of urban green spaces in Anhui, strengthening exchanges between cities in the Yangtze River Delta, and standardizing and improving the construction of green belts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective • This study aims to evaluate the outcomes of senile femoral intertrochanteric fractures treated with proximal femoral nail anti-rotation (PFNA) internal fixation to those treated with prosthetic femoral head replacement. Methods • A total of 100 elderly patients suffering from femoral intertrochanteric fracture were selected for the study. They were divided into two groups (n = 50 in each group) based on fracture condition and preferred treatment. We compared perioperative indexes, complications, Soluble cell adhesion molecules-1 (sICAM-1), and TGF-1 levels, and assessed hip function using the Harris hip score (Harris) at 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery in two groups of patients. Results • Although the study group had shorter operating times and less intraoperative bleeding than the control group (P<.05), they had longer hospital stays and required more time before returning to full weight-bearing after surgery (P<.05). Neither group had a higher or lower rate of problems than the other (P > .05). Patients’ sICAM-1 and TGF-1 levels were not significantly different from one another before surgery (P > .05), but after surgery, the sICAM-1 level in the control group was lower than that in the study group, and the TGF-1 level was higher than that in the study group (P<.05). Conclusion • PFNA internal fixation treatment offers the advantages of short operation time and low intraoperative bleeding, ensuring surgical safety. However, it requires a longer bed rest time post-operation and extended full weight-bearing time, although long-term hip recovery is preferable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Western China is an inland region facing the problem of water scarcity due to its distance from the sea and mountainous topography. Studying the sustainability, spatial and temporal variation and drivers of water resources in western China is an important way to identify and solve water resources problems in the region. This study constructed a water resources sustainability evaluation index system, including four subsystems and 26 indicators, to examine the spatial, regional variation and temporal evolution of water resources sustainability in 12 provinces from 2012 to 2022. The results show that: (1) interannual trends show fluctuations and differences in resources, environment and socioeconomics; (2) the scores of the water resources and socio-economic subsystems are relatively average, while the water environment subsystem shows significant differences and the water ecology subsystem scores lower; (3) the global spatial agglomeration effect shows a fluctuating and expanding trend, with a significant positive spatial autocorrelation, mainly attributed to density excesses, followed by interand intra-regional differences, leading to an uneven distribution of spatial development, concentrated in two types of spatial agglomerations. Conclusions: Studies have shown that the level of water sustainability in western China is gradually improving and that spatial and temporal differences in water indices are gradually decreasing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Yangtze River Basin (YRB) is an essential location for the development of eco-civilization in China, and the state of water environment in the watershed is still unsatisfactory at this stage. Therefore, 11 provinces (cities) of YRB were selected for the present study. The Water Resources Carrying Capacity (WRCC) indicator scheme is founded on the conceptual structure of Social-Economic-Natural Complex Ecosystem (SENCE), and 21 indicators in 3 aspects are con-structed. The entropy-weightedTOPSIS method and grey relational analysis (GRA) were used to measure the WRCC of YRB from 2012 to 2021 and determine the driving factors. The results show that, first, there are large differences in WRCC levels in different regions, with an overall up-stream>midstream>downstream. The top three provinces (cities) in order are Szechwan (0.4721), Qinghai (0.4682) and Tibet (0.4655). Second, the trend of WRCC change is divided into three phases, fluctuating decline (2012-2015), recovery (2016-2018), and growth (2019-2021). Third, the subsystems of WRCC show stability, equilibrium, and variance, respectively. (4) The main drivers of WRCC are total fish production (0.8780), per capita daily domestic water consumption (0.8640), and total agricultural water consumption (0.8630) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]