Landforms

Gobi Desert
One of the major landforms of China is the Gobi desert. It is expanding and they are losing valuable grassland, due to violent dust storms which kill off agriculture. Another major factor of the desert is the Himalayas, which blocks off rain from entering the area.

Mount Everest
http://www.ganeshbhandari.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Mount-Everest-1.jpg

Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the tallest mountain in the world. It is located on the southwest border of China with Nepal. Mount Everest was the result of the Indian Subcontinent moving toward Eurasia about 60 million years ago.

North China Plain
 The north China plain was formed by alluvial deposits from the Huang He, Huai He, and Hai He rivers. It is also the floodplains of the Huang He, and Huai He rivers.

Climates

China Landscape
http://static.flickr.com/122/304079670_303f27f7c3.jpg

There is a highlands climate in the plateau of Tibet and the surrounding areas. The high elevations of the Himalayas, Altun Shan, Kunlun Shan, Tien Shan are the medium for this climate. The dominant climate of the southeast is a humid subtropical climate. This region is not far from the ocean; as a result ocean currents have a great effect on this area. Southeast China is also near the equator, so it typically has a mild climate. A humid continental climate is present in certain parts of northeast China. This region is more distant from the equator, resulting in greater seasonal variation and cooler temperatures. The nearby oceans warm the climate. There are semiarid and arid climate regions dispersed throughout north China. The plateau of Tibet and other ranges prevent much of the moisture from reaching these regions, causing a rain shadow. This area is also further inland, and in turn does not get the mild climate from the oceans. Subarctic climate regions are farther north and farther from the equator. The climate is much cooler and has greater seasonal variation.

Ecosystems

The Himalayas
http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2008/07/01/himalayas2.jpg

There is a temperate grassland ecosystem found in west and northeast China. The climates in these regions are semiarid and highland. Grasses in this ecosystem vary with the amount of rainfall. These grasses can survive in the two climate regions because of their ability to grow in both cool and dry climates. The ecosystems present in the northwest are desert and desert scrub. The climates are semiarid and arid, which receive very little rainfall. Vegetation is also scarce. The mild climate and abundant rainfall of the south support the tropical rainforest ecosystem. In parts of the east, there are mid-latitude deciduous and mixed forest ecosystems. The humid subtropical and continental climates sustain these ecosystems. The climate is temperate and receives adequate rainfall. The summers are warm, while winters are cool/cold. In the cold subarctic climates far inland, is where coniferous forests thrive.

Natural Resources

Steel Pipes
http://www.nysun.com/pics/6141.jpg

In east China, the use of hydroelectric power will provide electricity, but can cause pollution and harm downstream economic activities. Fossil fuels found in the east and dispersed throughout the west will also provide power for China. But the fossil fuels are more abundant in the east and sparse in the west. Minerals are  also distributed similarly.

Human Environment Interaction

Three Gorges Dam
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Three_Gorges_Dam,_Yangtze_River,_China.jpg

The rapid economic growth of China has caused pollution around the world. China is the largest emitter of CO2 and caused 20% of greenhouse emissions. The industrial expansion was fueled by fossil fuels, coal, and oil. This contributed to the emissions and other pollution. Hydroelectric power causes pollution when the dams are built.

Political Borders

Changes in China's boundaries over the last 4000 years.
http://www.mraggett.co.uk/gardens/chinese/china.gif

Boundary Disputes
Even after China's long history of conflicts, they continue to have boundary disputes to this day. During most of these disputes, China has sent troops to the borders to protect their opinion of the border. In recent years, China and India have had conflicts over their boundaries. This is often because one country has people living there, while the other country had claimed the area in the past.

Meanwhile, Taiwan and China have had disagreements. Their dispute is linked back to the problems when they were both trying to rule China. Some of the leaders of Taiwan where originally in charge of China, but they were kicked out when the others took control. Both countries have developed their military's due to fears of future conflicts.

Ethnic Groups
China's political boundaries can also create conflicts with ethnic groups. This is often caused by rules set by the central government, or by newcomers from other areas. For example: in Tibet, citizens often lead protests for independence because they are unhappy with China's interference. This is often followed by the central government coming and arresting protestors.

Culture

Religion:
The three most prominent religions in China are Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. Confucianism is popular because it was founded in China by an Emperor, but it is considered more of a philosophy than a religion. Buddhism is also popular, but most feel that friends and family are more reliable than invisible gods. The Chinese government officially supports atheism. This is because they don’t want religion to have any control which could possibly endanger the government’s current state.

Language:
The majority of people in China speak Mandarin Chinese, which has existed for a very long time. Few other languages are widely used because most of the population came from common ancestors.

Chinese Food
http://whatthehealthmag.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/chinese_food3.jpg

Food:
In the past, China has had trouble feeding it's population. This was due to a large population, which was encouraged by Mao Zedong. The lack of food led the Chinese to eat small amounts of meat and large quantities of rice and noodles. Stir-frying food was also common because it saved fuel.

Demographics

Population Pyramid of China
http://www.prb.org/images11/china_population_pyramid_2011.gif

Population
China has a high population of 1,343,239,923, which was the result of Mao Zedong, who encouraged having many kids to prevent foreign takeover. Their life expectancy has improved tremendously, which is due to urbanization and improvement of food availability. Urbanization has led to a 98% improvement in clean water in urban areas. There have also been few outbreaks of STD's and obesity numbers are low.

Chinese school children in East China
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/images/stories/large/2010/12/22/85815927.jpg

Education 
China has a high literacy rate and school "life expectancy" rate of 12 years. This is caused by a good education system and a strong motive to stay in school to get a good job. Many Chinese are moving out of the country to go to college because of their dislike of the national exam all students take to enter college.

Government System

China is ruled by the communist party, which consists of a president, premier, national people's congress and many other government officials. This is the result of their constitution, which was put in place in 1982. China consists of 22 provinces and 5 autonomous regions, with the central government having little power over autonomous regions.

Chinese Police
http://www.spxdaily.com/images-lg/china-police-tiananmen-square-afp-lg.jpg

China built a legal system in the 1970's because they wanted to open themselves to the outside world. The legal system is somewhat associated with the government, which means the government can intervene at any time. Corruption is a large problem in China on a local level, because officials want to protect themselves from the central government and limit the rights of people.

While China is considered a communist country, they act more socialist because they have a more open economic system. Over time, what was originally the People's Republic of China morphed into a more socialist environment.

Economic Activities

Intensive Farming
http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/images/2008/China-Rice-Farming-Agriculture.jpg

Nomadic herding is the main economic activity in west and north China. For the most part, these areas’ climates aren't suitable for other economic activities like farming or fishing. This region also doesn't have access to ports or big cities, so manufacturing and trade aren't big in this area. The north and west are sparsely populated, so there isn’t a large workforce. On the other hand, in the east, farming is the dominant economic activity because of the abundant rainfall and mild climate. Off the eastern coasts, commercial fishing is big. Manufacturing and trade is prevalent in the densely populated urban centers and ports of the east. Ports have a lot of access to trade. Also there is a large work force in the east because most of china’s population is concentrated here. China’s level of development is developing. It has a large workforce, the GDP is growing very fast, and the literacy rate is 92%. But the GDP is only $8,400, and the urban population is small, at 47%.

Current/ Future Issues

Chen Guangcheng
bit.ly/Cheng-G  

Chen Guangcheng Activist

Chen was an activist who recently escaped China. He was trying to expose government corruption, but was put on house arrest by the central government. In the middle of the night, Chen managed to escape his house while under house arrest and enter the U.S. embassy in China. The Chinese government is attempting to stop activists in China to make sure they hold their power and to prevent others from acting out.




Working Conditions
Hazardous working conditions are a big problem in China because of the competition to produce goods quickly and cheaply. The manufacturer Foxconn was recently accused of having dangerous working conditions and very low pay. This problem has been addressed and many big manufacturers that export products to America are trying to improve working conditions.

Overpopulation
In the future, overpopulation could lead to a decrease in living conditions and major pollution. The large population, which was the result of Mao Zedong, has been addressed with the one-child policy. The one-child policy has been somewhat successful, and has taken a some of the social burden off of society.