The Study of Human Populations “Demography” Part 1: The Superlatives Series

Overview of Population “How many of us are out there?” There are currently over 6 billion humans on the planet Earth. We have grown dramatically just over the past 200 years. 1804 : 1 Billion 1927: 2 Billion 1974: 4 Billion 2000: 6 Billion 2013: 7 Billion (projected) The rate it will take for a population to double it’s population is called doubling time.

Overview of Population “Where do we live?” 80% of the world’s population lives in the less-developed countries (Africa, Asia (not including Japan), Latin America, and islands of the Carribbean and Pacific. China and India currently have each over a billion people (1/3 of total population) Less developed countries are the fastest growing populations. Of 80 million people added to world population each year during the 1990s, 95% lived in the less-developed world.

Models of Growth J-curve or exponential growth shows extreme amount of population growth. S-curve or logistic growth states that as population reaches a point where the environment can support a certain amount of individuals (the carrying capacity) population slows down. Technology has increased the carrying capacity Better crops, medicine What is the carrying capacity of the earth?

Overview of Population “How long do we live?” People are living longer. In the past 50 years, the global average life expectancy has increased by 20 years, from 45 to 65. The equation is simple in less developed countries, more babies and people living longer.

Population reference Bureau (prb.org) http://www.prb.org/pdf07/07WPDS_Eng.pdf Discussion questions: Which countries are have largest population? Which countries have the highest or lowest life expectancy? How many people are obese in the world? How does education affect female fertility? What are the major global health maladies? What are problems associated with population aging?