2.  Historically, people concentrated in areas where they could grow food  Cities began in agricultural areas, causing a correlation between arable land and population density  Is this still true today?

4.  One-quarter of the world’s population lives here  Areas of high population concentrations are in urban areas, and along the river valleys of China  Farmers in the river valleys produce wheat and rice to feed themselves (subsistence), but also for the people in major cities

5.  In South Asia, people concentrate in major cities, on the coasts, and along rivers  Most of the people are farmers, but the agriculture density is much higher than the land can support  Ex: the rural population of Bangladesh is between 3,000-5,000 people per square mile; the rural population of Iowa is 30 people per square mile

6.  Most Europeans live in Western Europe  Most Europeans live in cities ◦ This is a result of the Industrial Revolution  Rural peoples tend to live near resources like coal, rather than agricultural areas

7.  North America has a few areas of high population concentrations  The major complex lies along the Northeastern Corridor, stretching from Washington D. C. to Boston (BosWash)  This is called a megalopolis ◦ Megalopolis: large urban agglomerations

8.  The populations of South America, Africa, and Australia combined do not equal the population of India  There are also few concentrated population clusters  Where do most people live?

10.  The US Census is funded by the Federal Government, and is conducted every ten years  In 2000, many groups opposed the Census, saying it did not make an effort to count the homeless or minorities ◦ Being underrepresented can mean a loss of federal funds and services, and even a loss of congressional seats  Estimates claim that the 2000 Census left out almost 3 million people

11.  Other countries have a census as well, but often the numbers are estimates  The United Nations records these numbers from the national governments ◦ The World Bank also looks at these numbers  However, there are many inconsistencies  Why would a country lie about their population data?

12. World, Regional, National, and Local Scales

13.  Our population formula (PG=BR-DR) does not take into account immigration or emigration  If we do not look at what is happening in neighboring areas, the statistics can be misleading  Example: The TFR is declining in many countries, yet our worldwide population is still growing. ◦ According to the Population Reference Bureau, we will be at 7.9 billion by 2025.

14.  One way to examine the world’s population growth is to compare the population’s rate of growth with the doubling time ◦ Two thousand years ago, the doubling time was 1600 years ◦ In 1820, the doubling time was at 170 years ◦ In 1930, the doubling time was at 100 years ◦ In 1975, the doubling time was at 45 years ◦ Today’s population should double in 51 years (as of 2007)

15.  Population growth is slowing down  As more LDCs move to Stage 3 in the Demographic Transition Model, there should be an overall decrease in the birthrate  However, the death rate is falling as well ◦ PG=BR-DR

16.  Countries and regions go through stages of expansion and decline at varying time

18.  Soviet Union was growing 30 years ago  Subsaharan Africa’s NIR is high, but AIDS is killing millions  Southwest Asia has high birthrates  South Asia has a high increase rate, except for Sri Lanka  East Asia is in decline, overall  South America is in decline

19.  It seems that the higher the rate of urbanization, the lower the birthrate  Economic well-being, education, later marriage, and family planning lower the birth rate ◦ They also lower the death rate  Culture plays a role in raising the birthrate ◦ Why is this?

20.  National birthrates and population growth can be misleading ◦ Southern India has a declining birthrate

21.  After becoming independent in 1947, India put into place a population planning program  Population still increased, especially in the eastern states  During the 1970’s, the government practiced forced sterilization for men with three or more children ◦ Eventually, 22.5 million men were sterilized ◦ Some states offered cash or a transistor radio with every sterilization

22.  Today, the State of Uttar Pradesh exchanges gun licenses for sterilization ◦ One shotgun license for two sterilizations, one revolver license for five…come on down! ◦ This has not been very effective  Today, most states campaign for sterilization, or just try to persuade people to get sterilized