1.0 Popullation and Settlement

Question 1

Reasons for population explosion

Answer 1

• Improved medical care – vaccinations, hospitals,
  doctors, new drugs, and scientific inventions
• Improved sanitation and water supply
• Improvements in food production (quality & quantity)
• Improved transport – moving food, doctors etc.
• Decrease in child mortality

Question 1

Under-population (def)

Answer 1

when a country has declined too much
that it can’t support its economic system

Question 2

Overpopulation

Answer 2

too much population of an area:
overcrowding, depletion of resources

Question 3

Consequences of Overpopulation

Answer 3

• Unemployment
• Shortage of hospitals /schools
• Shortage of housage
• Congestion
• Inflation (excess demand)
• Shortage of water and electricity
• Noise, air and water pollution

Question 4

Consequences of Underpopulation

Answer 4

• Shortage of workers
• Less paying taxes
• Schools, hospitals, and transport routes close; few customers
• Less innovation/development
• Hard to defend
• Have to attract migrants

Question 5

Main causes of change in population size

Answer 5

Population size is related to the amount of resources
available e.g. water, wood and minerals

Question 6

Carrying capacity (def)

Answer 6

Number of people the environment
can support without there being negative effects to the
population

Question 7

Optimum population (def)

Answer 7

Amount of people that a
region/country can ecologically support, usually less
than carrying capacity

Question 8

Population density (def)

Answer 8

Number of people living in a given
area (km2)

Question 9

Population distribution (def)

Answer 9

how a population is spread
out around a country or an area

Question 10

Factors that contribute to population size

Answer 10

• Migration
• Birthrate
• Death rate
• Fertility rate

Question 11

Migration (def)

Answer 11

Movement of people (or animals) from one
country or region to another

Question 12

Birthrate (def)

Answer 12

Average number of live births in a year for
every 1000 people

Question 13

Death rate (def)

Answer 13

Average number of deaths for every 1000
people

Question 14

Fertility rate (def)

Answer 14

The average number of children a
female is expected to have in their lifetime

Question 15

High death rates in LEDCs:
(List at least 3)

Answer 15

• Poor health care/few hospitals/doctors/nurses/clinics
• Poor sanitation/hygiene/lack of toilets/dirty places
• Poor access to safe/clean water/water-borne diseases
• Limited food supplies/malnutrition/starvation
• HIV/AIDS
• Natural disasters/drought/flood
• Lack of vaccinations/medicines/cannot cure diseases
• Lack of education about healthy lifestyles e.g.
  smoking/diet
• Lack of provision for the elderly e.g. pensions/old people’s home

Question 16

Low birth rates in MEDCs:
(List at least 3)

Answer 16

• Availability of contraception/family planning/abortions
• Educated in contraception/family planning
• Can afford contraception/family planning/abortions
• Traditionally small families
• Expense of bringing up children
• Many women have careers/women are educated;
• Availability of pensions
• Low infant mortality rate
• Lack of religious beliefs/don’t object to contraception-

Question 17

Origin and impact of HIV/AIDS:

Answer 17

• HIV-1 – arose in Central Africa
• HIV-2 – arose in West Africa
• HIV mostly occurs in women
• When women give birth, they infect the child as well
  resulting in a low death rate for infants
• Death rate of mothers results in a higher orphan
  generation
• Due to the countries being poor, there is a lack of state
  welfare, resulting in poverty and lack of education