Distribution of the age of geographical contributors in China and Japan

Taking the example of Acta Geographica Sinica and Journal of Geographical Sciences from 2000 to 2008, this paper analyzes the characteristics of the Chinese geographers' creative age, including the average age, the main groups' age, and the peak age. In comparison with Geographical Review of Japan, it studies the institutional factors affecting the academic age and life cycle of the researchers. We can find that in China the main group of the researchers using Chinese is about 40 years old, while that using English is 30 years old. The average age of Chinese geographers using mother tongue is higher than that of Japanese geographers, while the average age of Chinese geographers using English is lower than that of Japan. This differentiation reflects the difference in the administration and idea of academic research between China and Japan. Based on the discussion of the difference, some suggestions are given to the academic construction of geography in China.