Final Exam - 6, population Flashcards
(35 cards)
Population Bomb:
The idea that the population was going to grow to a certain extent we wouldn’t have enough resources to supply for everyone
- We don’t know how climate change, drought and such will affect us
Whats going to happen as the population continues to grow?
We will emit more greenhouse gasses
What does Thomas Robert Malthus argue/predict?
“Overpopulation directly corresponds to human suffering due to the notion that human population increases geometrically while food production can only increase arithmetically”
- If this trend continues then society will frequently experience war, poverty and famine as food becomes less available
Ester Boserup
- We have enough food but how do we get the food to a specific area of the world?
- Famine is more likely to be the result of a natural disaster, war or the country selling to many cash crops to sell overseas
Demography:
Is the science of populations.
- Demographers seek to understand population dynamics by investigating thee main demographic processes: birth, migration and aging
- These 3 processes contribute to changes in populations
Key concerns of demography:
- How many people, where, and why
- The structure of a population
- The differences between regions
- The consequences of population patterns
- Changes in populations and population structure over time
Populations are not…
Evenly distributed
Why are there more people in some areas than others?
Population:
A group of individuals of the same species who inhabit an area
- Defined by 5 factors, crude birth rate, crude death rate, sex ratio , age distribution, spatial distribution
Crude Birth Rate
The number of individuals added to a population through reproduction per year. # of births per 1000 people per year
Why are birthrates so high in developing countries?
- lack of education
- lack of birth control methods
Crude Death Rate
Number of deaths per unit time # of deaths per 1000 people per year
Factors affecting crude death rates in a population:
- Demographic structure (more men/and or elderly = higher DR
- Levels of economic development (higher levels = lower DR)
- Access to health care (higher = lower)
- Social class (higher income = longer life?)
Mortality indicators:
- CDR
- Expectation of life
- Age specific DR
- Infant mortality rate
- Child mortality rate
Why have more people begun to live longer and fewer deaths among infants?
- Increase of food supplies
- Better nutrition
- Improvements in medical and public health technology
- Improved sanitation and personal hygiene
- Safer water supplies
Infant Mortality Rates
The ratio of deaths of children under 1 year of age in a given year to the total number of live births in the same year
Sex Ratio
Ratio of males to females
Population Pyramids
Are graphic models that illustrate relationships between birth rates, death rates and the resulting age structure of the population
- Designed by gender and age group known as cohorts
Explain the demographic structure of a population using a population pyramid
- Wide base means a large proportion is children, or a population that is expanding
- A narrow base means similar proportions in all age groups, slower growth populations, perhaps some stability
- A smaller base than the middle/top means proportionally smaller numbers of children, population is likely to decline in the long run
Why are population pyramids important?
- they help us to know more than just the total number of people
- Help manage policies like the number of schools that will be needed in an area, how to manage pension funds, health services, economic policy
Spatial Distribution:
- The density of organism (the number of individuals per unit area)
- Overcrowding results in dispersal (reflected as emigration which is seen as immigration to the receiving area)
What are some factors that influence population distributions and densities?
- Climate
- Soil fertility
- Availability of water
- Quantity of other natural resources
- Historical factors
- Population dynamics
- Political boundaries
Net Migration Rate
= # of immigrants - # of emigrants / 1000 inhabitants
- if it is positive it means there are more people entering than leaving, if negative then more people are leaving than staying
Zero populaiton growth:
The condition when a population is no longer increasing because the birth rate equals the death rate
Replacement level fertility:
The number of children a couple must have to replace themselves
