Fuzzy Urban Sets: Theory and Application to Desakota Regions in China

This paper outlines a method for using the mathematics of fuzzy sets that is well suited tomeasure and characterize peri-urbanizing ("desakota") systems typical of China, Southeast Asia,and other areas experiencing rapid urbanization. Drawing on Kosko's "fuzzy hypercube", threedistinct but interdependent measures are derived: (i) extent of urbanization, (ii) level of fuzziness,and (iii) degree of entropy. The feasibility of the proposed method is demonstrated using remotesensing data for Ningbo, China.