Population Chapter 2 : Key Issue 1

Where Is the World’s Population Distributed? Demography Demography is the study of population geography Key Issues of Demographics are: Food Supply Health and life expectancy Status of women Migration

Population Distribution Population Concentrations 2/3 of the world’s inhabitants are clustered in four regions. East Asia South Asia Southeast Asia Europe ~ 5% of the land Site and Situation of Population Clusters Low-lying areas with fertile soil and temperate climate Near an ocean or near a river with easy access to an ocean.

Population Clusters Population is not distributed evenly… A high percentage of population is located in 4 major clusters… Where are they? East Asia, SE Asia, S Asia, Europe

Population Clusters FIGURE 2-3 POPULATION DISTRIBUTION People are not distributed uniformly across Earth’s surface.

Remember the Cartogram? You can see the major clusters

Population Distribution Sparsely Populated Regions Humans avoid clustering in certain physical environments. Dry Lands Wet Lands Cold Lands High Lands Places considered too harsh for occupancy have diminished over time. Places of permanent human settlement are termed the ecumene. Humans tend to avoid places that are unaccommodating for activities, such as agriculture. Among these are places with too much or too little available water, places with exceedingly hot or cold temperatures, and places that have too steep of slopes to plant crops.

What is 7 Billion & How did we get there? World Population Clock

Population Density Density can be computed in up to three ways for a place. Arithmetic Density Total number of objects in an area Computation: Divide the population by the land area Physiological Density Number of people supported by a unit area of arable land Computation: Divide the population by the arable land area Agricultural Density Ratio of the number of farmers to amount of arable land Computation: Divide the population of farmers by the arable land area Physiological density provides insights into the relation between the size of a population and the availability of resources in a region. Developed countries have lower agricultural densities, because technology and finance allow a few people to farm extensive land areas and feed many people.

The Science of Population Growth Is 7 billion a problem? Are we overcrowded?

Stand if you Agree… Because our population has reached seven billion people and continues to grow, we need to expand land area available for living and growing food by cutting down the rainforest. Without reducing rapid population growth, it will be impossible to solve the world’s global challenges. With more than 7 billion people commuting from one place to another, drilling for more oil is necessary to fuel more cars. In order to feed our population, we must use pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and genetically modified crops to increase farm yields. With new technologies used to gather fish, we must have international laws to ensure seafood is harvested sustainably. The Earth can support over 7 billion people now and will be able to support any number of humans in the future. In an effort to feed a population of over 7 billion, people in developed countries should reduce the amount of meat they consume. Science and technology will ensure that food production and energy supplies keep up with the demands of a growing population. With human population over 7 billion, we must protect endangered species habitats by not developing on them for any reason.

Stand if you Agree… There is nothing I can do to help alleviate population pressures. Governments in countries with fast-growing populations should make laws to limit the number of children that couples can have. In a real crunch, jobs are more important than environmental quality. With over 7 billion people on the planet, water pollution is inevitable and we should not waste money trying to prevent it. Even though I am only one person in 7 billion, I still have a responsibility to keep the Earth healthy; what I do makes a difference. Automobile makers in this country should be required by law to make all their vehicles fuel- efficient, even though the vehicles may become more expensive. If China and India can each take care of over a billion people on relatively the same size land as the U.S., then the U.S. should accept immigrants until it reaches a billion people as well. What about “Refugees”? All high schools should be prohibited from distributing contraceptives to students under age 18. Arable land should never be used for housing, businesses, or other non-agricultural uses because we need all available farmable land to produce food.

Population ÷ Area = Arithmetic Density Population Density Using credible sites, Nationmaster, CIA Worldfact Book, etc., to complete the “Intro to Population Density” activity. Remember… Population ÷ Area = Arithmetic Density

Hans Rosling The world's population will grow to 9 billion over the next 50 years… Box by Box