List of Chinese Research Databases
Due to censorship, much research done in China exists within its own independent (but interconnected) environment. Tools similar to Google Scholar, Nature, Elsevier, etc. all exist within China, with the Chinese internet having created its own equivalents to all these sources.
Much of this research can be incredibly useful for OSINT Research.[Citation NOT needed] As an example, there is some degree of known research collaboration between North Korean universities and those in China, the product of which is unlikely to show up translated in western databases such as Google Scholar. As such, this page seeks to document the list of known Chinese research databases, and what information (if any) you can access externally.
A note on translation
Many of these sites are primarily in Chinese, and not intended for non-Chinese English speaking users. As such, while you can certainly use machine tools like Google Translate to use them, it's recommended to consult a Chinese speaker for assistance or verification of information/translation if possible.
CNKI
CNKI, or "China National Knowledge Infrastructure" (中国知网) is a research database led by Tsinghua University and supported by various arms of the Chinese government. Frankly, it's a massive database of research articles, books, and more that to a large degree serves a legitimate research function. However, it's aggressively China-specific and there's a lot that won't be easily available in the US, even with a user account.
What can be accessed
For the most part, you can search and view the name/abstract/authors of an article. However, similar to many journals in the US, you won't be able to view many articles without paying. There's a degree of IP-based controls enforced at a site level. It's currently unknown to what degree these IP limits will change what you can (and can't!) see as a user.
Links
- Wikipedia Article
- CNKI.net website
- CNKI "Overseas" website (has some English)
Duxiu (读秀）
Sometimes described as the "Google Scholar" of Chinese academia, Duxiu aggregates information from multiple sources and databases into one place. Additionally, unlike CNKI, it's something that American universities can sometimes get access to! There's a dozen or so university libraries which claim access to the database. (However, Wonkpedia as yet has not figured out how individuals/independent researchers can gain access - TODO).
What can be accessed
Supposedly, quite a lot if you can get your foot in the door with a University that has access. Otherwise, it's pretty hard to get access to anything really.