This page is the brochure for your selected program. You can view the provided information for this program on this page and click on the available buttons for additional options.
Contact a Program Ambassador to find out more information about this program
Program Dates May 18 - June 8, 2010
Program Description
Through lectures and field trips to famous mountains and a wetland park and lakes in eastern China, students will gain skills in field botany and knowledge of wetland and lake ecology, plant biodiversity and its uses in China. The course enhances cross-cultural exchange during this 3 week program by having students from Zhejiang University join the class and visit famous Chinese gardens, markets, and museums in Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Suzhou cities, as well as visits to villages and the Buddhist and Taoist temples in the mountains.
Program Location
China is one of the countries in the world having the greatest
diversity of plants and people. Of the world's approximately 250,000 species of
vascular plants, 30,000 (12%) occur in China. This species diversity is about
twice that of the continental United States, although the two are comparable in
area (9.6 million square km2 vs. 9.4 million km2), and about
one third more than all of North America north of Mexico. The rich Chinese
flora contains numerous old and unique lineages and these are associated with a
complex topography highly dissected by mountains. China has long been
considered to be a great center of plant preservation and an active engine of
species formation. Numerous plant species in China have close relatives
occurring in the eastern United States, a phenomenon termed the "Eastern
Asian-Eastern North American Floristic Disjunction" in plant biogeography,
which is a striking intercontinental disjunct distributional pattern that has
attracted systematic and ecological study of botanists for more than a
century. The high mountains in China harbor a major proportion of the
plant diversity of China with vertical transitions from tropical/subtropical
forests at the foot to arctic plant communities at the summits. Large mountains
in China are often associated with temples and are rich in culture ranging from
religion, ethnobotany, art, and poetry, among other things.
About Zhejiang University
Zhejiang University, one of the top five
universities in China located in the beautiful eastern coastal city Hangzhou,
will be the Chinese host of the course. Hangzhou is often referred to as
the "heaven of China", and has been one of the leading cities in the
long history of China in both economy and history. Its beautiful West Lake
(Xi Hu), Xixi National Wetland Park, Linying Temple, and the Putuo Shan (one of
the top four sacred mountains in Buddhism in China) attracts millions of
visitors each year. It is only a couple of hours from Shanghai by bus and close
to several other famous cities in the east, including Suzhou, which is known
for its best Chinese gardens, embroidery, and the Mysterious Taoist Temple.
Numerous cultural and historical sites are located within Hangzhou and adjacent
cities. Most importantly, Zhejiang University is close to several famous and
sacred mountains that are rich in plant resources, vegetation, and culture
withintwo
hours by bus, such as Tianmu Shan (Buddhism), Qiyun Shan (Taoism), 35 km to
the famous Huangshan (the most spectacular mountain in China) and Jiuhua Shan
(Buddhism). Hangzhou is also about 2 hours by bus to Qiandaohu (the One
Thousand Island Lake) in southern Zhejiang. These natural resources provide
excellent field sites for exploring the diversity of plants, religion and
cultures, as well as studying wetland and lake ecology.
Course Course title: Plant Resources
& Ecology in Eastern China
Course No.: PB 495/595
Faculty:
Dr. Jenny Xiang, Associate Professor
Department of Plant Biology, NCSU; A native Chinese, Research
focusing on molecular systematics & biogeography of plants, with emphasis
on the dogwood group and eastern Asian-eastern North American discontinuous
distribution of plants; having research collaboration with faculty at Zhejiang
University and experiences of field botany in many areas of China including
mountains in eastern China.
Dr. David Boufford, Senior Botanist, Harvard
University Herbaria and Arnold Arboretum. A world famous botanist in floristic
studies, with extensive field experiences in China, Japan, and other Asian
countries in addition to North America. Dr. Boufford is among the best people
from the US most knowledgeable in floras of eastern Asia and eastern North
America, and is familiar with both the Chinese and American cultures.
Time and credit: 3 weeks, summer, and 3 credits.
Description (preliminary):
This course will examines
natural plant resources of Eastern Asia and explore Chinese culture and religions
in eastern China. It combines classroom and field exercises. Lectures on plant
systematics (e.g., plant classification, identification, phylogenetic
relationships), plant biogeography (e.g., origin of the eastern
Asian-eastern North American floristic disjunction pattern), ethnobotany in
China, and wetland and lake ecology will be given in classrooms at NCSU and Zhejiang
University before the field trips to nearby Xixi National Wetland Park, One
Thousand Island Lake, Tianmu Shan, Qiuyun Shan, and Huang Shan. Field
trips to each of the mountains and adjacent field sites will include visits to
temples and villages. Equal or double number of students from Zhejiang
University will join the class for nearly the entire period to interact with
NCSU students except the last two days visiting to Suzhou and Shanghai.
Students from the class are expected to gain skills in field botany, including
plant identification, collecting and preparing specimens, knowledge in wetland
and lake ecology, plant diversity, and uses in eastern China, as well as experience and knowledge in Chinese culture
and religion.
Payment & Financial Aid
Payment
for this program should be made directly to the Department of Plant Biology,
not to the Study Abroad Office. Any questions about payment should be
directed to Program Director Dr. Jenny Xiang.
Contact
Faculty Director
Dr. Qiuyun (Jenny) Xiang
Department of Plant Biology
jenny_xiang@ncsu.edu
(919) 515-2728, http://www4.ncsu.edu/~qyxiang
Brochure
This page is the brochure for your selected program. You can view the provided information for this program on this page and click on the available buttons for additional options.
Contact a 
