Notes

Outline

China Vs Japan! James, Rob and Andy’s presentation of China and Japan!

Natural Disasters China and Japan have some of the worst cases of flooding anywhere in the world. These floods ruin lives and kill. Heavy rain and de-forestation are the causes of the floods. Giant forest fires are caused by people starting fires. The trees burn down and floods become more likely. China and Japan both have       earthquakes in their countries. The Earthquakes are caused by tectonic plates moving.

History China and Japan were never allies in the past. During the second world war China was occupied by By the Japanese. Before the second world war China and Japan were at war with each other, in the 1930’s. Japan is well known for its attack on Pearl Harbour.

Size and location! Japan is located in far east Asia and has a total land area of 145, 883 square miles (377, 835 sq km) China is located in central and east Asia and occupies the most land area in Asia. Japan is tiny compared as China’s land area is 3,696,100 sq miles (9,572,900 sq km) which is one fourteenth of the world.

Weather And Climate The climatic conditions in Japan vary widely due to the country’s length. This causes short summers and severe long winters in the north. However, in the south the summers are almost sub-tropical and the winters mild. June to October is the cyclone/Typhoon season. Due to China’s massive size it has 6 different climates. In the west there is mostly temperate with desert and semi-arid regions. In the far south east there is a small area of tropical climate. In winter cold monsoon winds from Siberia bring low temps to the north and droughts every where else. In the summer warm moist air from the Pacific ocean bring storms. In  summer temperatures are mainly the same but in winter there are extreme differences in the north and south. The costal areas get on average of 8 cyclones a year during the months of July to November.

Wealth!! Japan’s economy is based on manufacturing and services. Its Gross National Product (GNP) per head is amongst the highest in the world. Due to this economy unemployment isn’t a problem. China’s communist economy in-turn led to rising inflation during the 1980’s and 90’s. The working class don’t have as high standard of living as in the west. China’s 12 top trading partners are Japan, Hong Kong, USA, South Korea, Taiwan, Germany, Singapore, Russia, UK, France, Holland and Australia. Its trade over-seas has grown faster than its GNP so its people are poorer.

CULTURE!! MOST CULTURES AND TRADITIONS FIRST ORIGINATED IN CHINA AND GOT PASSED ONTO JAPAN. THEREFORE THEY ARE VERY SIMILAR. TRADITIONS~ One of the many traditions was the Tea Ceremony and was first originated in China. It was 1st practised in Japan in the 12th century by Zen monks who had to keep awake during long meditation. It then moved to an active ritual and in the 15th century it became a gathering of people where they could discuss culture or any thing else on their minds and contemplate. ARTS- Calligraphy has been in China  and Japan for a long time. We don’t know when calligraphy and words from China were first used in Japan.In the 7th century scholars went from China to Japan and vice versa and the Chinese arts e.g calligraphy were slowly introduced into Japan. RELIGION-  In about 4th century B.C Buddhism spread to China and through Buddhist monks and scholars  passed it on to Japan. Japan and China's traditions and culture was first influenced by Buddhism.They both don’t have an official religion but it is a mixture of many religions including Zen Buddhism and Taoism. MARTIAL ARTS- Both armed and unarmed combat in this style originated in China. The origin of martial arts was the spiritual and mental influence of Taoism and Buddhism. It is considered more than just combat but as an art. Japan traditionally emphasised archery, swords man ship and unarmed combat.They used ninjutsu which  was very versatile and covered many different forms of combat.

Population. Chinas population is 1 273 111 300 which is 332 people per km squared a lot bigger than Japans 127 214 499 which is 126 people per km squared.

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Landscape! Japans landscape in very mountainous as they contain 43% of Japan another 25% is for plateaux basins cover approximately 19% and only 12% can be classes as flat land which is terrible compared to China as it does have more flat land than it does hilly .

Thank you! Thanks for listening to our presentation!