In this paper, we investigated the characteristics of the scale distribution of the Bohai port system and analyzed its mechanism using the rank-size law and the kernel density method. The port cargo throughput and the container throughput over the recent 30 years were used as an indicator. Some results were obtained as follows: (1) The port system in the Bohai Rim has some characteristics of rank-size distribution, but there are significant differences in the rank-size distribution of ports in different stages and on different scales, and the port regionalization is becoming more and more clear. (2) The number of non-scale areas of the rank-size distribution of the port cargo throughput increases first and then decreases, and the single fractal is transformed into a two-fractal structure. Regional port system has experienced four stages: (a) balanced development of ports with high rank order, (b) breakthrough of small and medium ports, (c) differential development of large, medium and small ports, and (d) port integration under the competition and cooperation of hub ports. The change track of the rank-size distribution of the port container throughput has also experienced four stages: (a) external segmentation development, (b) formation of the hub port and the integration of emerging ports, (c) large scale of feeder port, and (d) integration of the container network. They are consistent on the development node. The concentration and decentralization of ports are interwoven. The total goods throughput is decentralized earlier than the container transport, and the dispersion trend of the total throughput is relatively obvious. (3) There are three characteristics of the port rank-size evolution in the Bohai Rim: (a) The dominant role of large ports is obvious under physical and economic geography. (b) The regionalization and competitive pressures force port cooperation and promote port to achieve self-organizing coordination. (c) The output characteristics and the transformation of the energy promote the rapid growth of emerging ports.

The Pearl River Delta (PRD), a typical area of rapid urbanization with Dongguan as its most representative case of the 'exo-urbanization' model, has thus long been attracting scholarly attention. However, after the financial crisis in 2008, a new spatial phenomenon has emerged in Dongguan, with overall growth and partial shrinkage taking place in the same city area. As the Chinese economy steps into a state of New Normal, partial shrinkage during a process of rapid urbanization has kindled heated debate. Starting from the vacancy phenomenon caused by the outflow of development factors, this paper has integrated three analytical dimensions, i.e., economy, population, and land, to put forward a framework for understanding urban growth and shrinkage. Four types of towns have been identified in Dongguan, featuring, respectively, continuous growth, resurgent growth, moderate shrinkage, and continuous shrinkage. Moreover, time trajectory and spatial pattern of growing and shrinking have been investigated to account for the distribution characteristic of urban growth and shrinkage. Then, through probing the shocks of economic crisis, Lewisian turning point, path dependence existence and institutional arrangement, we have analyzed the mechanisms of urban growth and shrinkage amid rapid urbanization in Dongguan. Conclusions and avenues for future research are discussed in the last section.

Current land appraisal techniques rarely consider the value of underground space and lack robust methods of evaluating underground space. This paper integrates the cost method, income reduction method and floor utility ratio method to establish a value assessment model of underground space use. Then, the major factors that influence the value of underground space use are analysed. We find that location, traffic and business type have significant influences on the utility of underground commercial space. Thus, to improve the accuracy of such valuations, the utility of underground commercial space should be graded and classified into different levels. The land price distribution of underground space use in Shanghai is analysed based on the assessment model and the Kriging interpolation method. Finally, the values of different features of the underground commercial space in Shanghai are discussed in three contexts: typical shopping centres, municipal commercial centres and commercial land transaction plots. The results show that (1) the price distribution of underground space use is consistent with that of the aboveground, and the price decreases from the city centre to the suburbs; (2) the price of the underground commercial space is highly dependent on underground rail traffic; and (3) the price distribution of underground commercial space use exhibits distinctly concentrated areas of high and low prices.

How low-income residents suffer from spatial inequality has attracted significant attention in urban geography and urban planning. Although most research related to this question has addressed spatial segregation and spatial dilemmas in the context of residential neighborhoods, an increasing number of studies have focused on inequality in daily activity and travel behaviors. Particularly in a modern society with high mobility, behavior space is believed to be a good index for measuring spatial inequality among different social groups. In this paper, we use a behavior space approach to study spatial inequality among income groups. The study area is Shangdi-Qinghe, which is an inner suburban region with mixed social groups and neighborhoods. Using a GPS-facilitated activity diary completed in Beijing in 2012, we calculate individuals' daily potential path areas and activity spaces by using network analysis tools and minimum polygon tools in ArcGIS 10.2. We compare the sizes of daily potential path areas and activity spaces among income groups and find that compared with other social groups, low-income residents have smaller daily potential path areas and smaller activity spaces. This result indicates that such residents suffer from both an accessibility dilemma and disadvantages in mobility. By constructing a regression model, we find that socio-economy, urban form and activity factors have significant impact on behavior spaces. Middle- and low-income single residents have relatively small daily potential path areas and activity spaces. Women, older residents, and those who do not live in danwei neighborhoods and residents who work in local areas have relatively small activity spaces. Activity space and daily potential path area are both positively related to facility density around one's home, while activity space is negatively related to facility density around one's workplace. Residents who live far from railway stations and work near railway stations have relatively small activity spaces. Working hours have a significant negative impact on both daily potential path area and activity space. Space-time constraints significantly affect daily potential path area. Certain planning applications of these findings are discussed.

China has stepped into a rapid aging society. The study on the spatial pattern and generating mechanism of the aging population is not only the theoretical foundation for the spatial research on aging population, but also the guiding principle of the upgrading of aging society. This study selected administrative units above the prefecture level as subjects and quantitatively analyzed the spatial pattern and association of the aging population distribution in cities in 2000 and 2010, based on data of the fifth and sixth censuses and the methods like aging population rate, aggregation degree and spatial autocorrelation. The results showed that, cities above prefecture level all over the county are generally in the middle stage of aging, aging spatial differentiation is greater among cities, cities in densely aging-populated areas are mainly located to the east of Hu Line, and cities in sparsely aging-populated areas are all found to the west of Hu Line, which coincide with the national population distribution. Most of the cities with high density are distributed in the eastern coastal areas, and cities with medium density are mostly in the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta, Central Plains, Shandong Peninsula, Chengdu-Chongqing Region and Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, which dominate the aging population areas. There is an obvious positive spatial association in aging population among cities, the spatial aggregation is further enhanced, and the spatial pattern of population aging shows a "Core-Periphery" structure with the hot-spots as the center and gradually spreading to the outskirts; natural environment, economic condition, urbanization construction, and population environment and the like are the key factors influencing the spatial pattern of the aging population.

Due to China's rapid urbanization and industrialization, the demand for resource factors is surging. Competition for such factors between cities and regions has given us a severe challenge to increase our ability to aggregate resource factors. This paper conducted an in-depth analysis of 20 years (1995-2014) of spatial-temporal evolution of the factor aggregating ability in the urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River (UAMRYR). Analytical results highlighted that: (1) From 1995-2014, the comprehensive factor aggregating ability in this region had been on an increase despite fluctuation, ranking fourth nationwide. The differential factor aggregating ability between cities within this region had been basically balanced while fluctuating. At the same time, the distribution of such resource factors as science and technology innovation, finance, and the opening strategy, had tended to be concentrated along the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. (2) During this period, the factor agglomeration pattern of UAMRYR formed a multi-center "core-periphery" structure, with core cities such as Wuhan, Changsha and Nanchang, and there is no significant change on the spatial pattern. In general, the factor agglomeration pattern was still in the primary stage of the urban polarization for central cities, the integrated factor agglomeration has not yet formed. (3) The factor aggregating patterns in UAMRYR tended to be decentralized. As the primate city, Wuhan had a low factor aggregating primacy. The factor agglomeration placed emphasis on moving the pathway of "northwest-southeast" in UAMRYR. There were significant disparities on agglomeration patterns for various factors, while most factors presented agglomeration to central cities.

The border region is of great significance for national security and external economic development. In the context of complex geopolitical environment, it is urgent to conduct a deep analysis of the geo-economic cooperation and its impact mechanism for accelerating development in China's border areas. On the basis of the comprehensive analysis of the frontier geo-economic theory, the framework of geo-economic analysis is built up in this paper, including three major categories of indicators: local economy, export-oriented economy, and local economic development. This paper systematically depicts the geo-economic development and its evolution in China's border areas. By using the GeogDetector, the mechanism of spatial disparity is also analyzed. It is found that the level of geo-economic development in border areas is generally stable, with obvious spatial differentiation. The absolute advantage position of geo-economy in Northeast China has gradually in a decline, while the advanced areas are highly dispersed geographically. The growth poles for geo-economic development include the Mudanjiang in Northeast China, Baotou in Inner Mongolia of North China, Bortala Mongolia Autonomous Prefecture in Xinjiang of Northwest China, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture in Yunnan of Southwest China, as well as Chongzuo in Guangxi of South China. The geo-economy of the border areas are mainly influenced by the national policies, the development level of its neighbors, as well as the willingness on bilateral trade. National policies, traffic accessibility, and cultural proximity have significantly affected the geo-economic performance. Among them, the geo-economic performances of Inner Mongolia and Tibet are mainly affected by the development of neighboring countries, the northeast region and Xinjiang are mainly affected by policy supports, while Guangxi and Yunnan are affected by comprehensive factors. Finally, this paper puts forward policy suggestions and implications for geo-economic development in China's border areas in the complex geographical environment.