Human Populations

Question 1

What is the biggest factor in declining birth rates? Why?

Answer 1

• Increasing education & economic independence is the largest factor in a decline in birth rates
• Educated women find that they do not need to bear as many children to ensure that some will survive. They may also learn family planning techniques.

Question 2

Why are there lower birth rates in both developed & developing countries?

Answer 2

• Women are able to contribute to their family’s increasing prosperity while spending less energy bearing & caring for children.
  As countries modernize, parents are more likely to work away from home. If parents must pay for child care, children may become a financial burden rather than an asset.

Question 3

Population Change Equation

Answer 3

(Births + Immigration) - (Death + Emigration)

Question 4

Child mortality

Answer 4

number of deaths of children under age 5 per 1,000 live births

Question 5

Infant mortality

Answer 5

number of deaths of children under 1 year of age per 1,000 live births

Question 6

Life expectancy

Answer 6

average number of years that an infant born in a particular year in a particular country can be expected to live, given the current average life span & death rate in that country

Question 7

What factors are associated with infant mortality rates?

Answer 7

Factors associated with infant mortality rates include:
Whether mothers have access to good healthcare & nutrition, education (including family planning resources, knowledge of contraception, how to take care of children, etc.), access to clean water and fuel

Question 8

What is the average replacement level worldwide? What does it mean if the fertility rate is at replacement levels? How does the replacement level of developing countries differ, and why?

Answer 8

• If fertility rate is at replacement levels, a population is considered relatively stable.
• Total fertility rate required to offset the average number of deaths in a population in order to maintain the current population size.
• Replacement level: average number of children each parent must have in order to “replace” themselves. This number is slightly more than 2 (2.1 to be exact) because not all children born will survive & reproduce.
• Replacement level fertility tends to be higher in developing countries because mortality among young people tends to be higher.

Question 9

Total fertility rate (TFR) is affected by:

Answer 9

Age at which females have their first child, Educational opportunities for females, Access to family planning, & Government acts & policies

Question 10

Total fertility rate (TFR)

Answer 10

Estimate of average number of children that each woman in a population will bear throughout her childbearing years

Question 11

How do the age structures of rapidly growing populations generally look?

Answer 11

A rapidly growing population will, as a rule, have a higher proportion of younger people compared to stable or declining populations.

Question 12

What happens when the resource base of a population is stable? What happens when the resource base of a population is disturbed?

Answer 12

• When the resources needed by a population for growth are abundant, population growth usually accelerates.
• When the resource base of a population shrinks, the increased potential for unequal distributions of resources will ultimately result in: increased mortality (death),
  decreased fecundity (ability to produce offspring),
  or both, resulting in population growth declining to, or below, carrying capacity.

Question 13

How does the age of marriage affect population growth?

Answer 13

If the age of marriage is late, population growth is slowed. If the age of marriage is earlier, population growth is sped up.

Question 14

What affects whether a human population is growing or declining?

Answer 14

Birth rates/ infant mortality rates
overall death rates / access to family planning / access to good nutrition / access to education / postponement of marriage

Question 15

Factors limiting global human population include:

Answer 15

• Earth’s carrying capacity &

- Basic factors that limit human population growth as set forth by Malthusian theory.

Question 16

What is the Malthusian theory? Has it been proven true or false? Why?

Answer 16

Hypothesis: world population grew exponentially (1, 2, 4, 8, 32, 64…) but agricultural production grew arithmetically (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7…) making it inevitable that Earth, at some time, would not be able to produce enough food for all its inhabitants.
- The theory was proven false because research variables were included (such as wars & famines) but he could not conceive important emerging variables in future decades (such as birth control techniques & technical advances applied to agriculture & food production).

Question 17

What is the Rule of 70? What unit is used for the growth rate of a population?

Answer 17

Dividing the number 70 by the % population growth rate approximates population’s doubling time.
70/r = Population doubling time
(r = growth rate of a population in % NOT decimal)

Question 18

What are symptoms of overwhelming populations in a country?

Answer 18

• suburban sprawl
• polluted rivers
• barren land
• inadequate housing
• overcrowded schools.

Question 19

What conflicts over land availability arise when populations grow rapidly? How does population growth affect the availability of arable land?

Answer 19

• Growing populations may have a shortage of arable land.
• Growing populations also make trade-offs between competing uses for land such as agriculture, housing, or natural habitats

Question 20

What is arable land?

Answer 20

Arable land - farmland that can be used to grow crops.

Question 21

Food security

Answer 21

condition in which people have access to sufficient, safe, & nutritious food that meets their dietary needs for an active & healthy life

Question 22

What causes starvation on a global scale?

Answer 22

Starvation on a global scale - result of unequal distribution of food rather than absolute scarcity of food
- Political and economical factors also play a role

Question 23

How does net migration rate affect the global population?

Answer 23

• Net migration rate - difference between immigration & emigration in a given year per 1,000 people in a country.
• Regardless of birth & death rates, a country may experience population growth, stability, or decline as a result of net migration.

Question 24

How has population growth on Earth changed dramatically over the last two centuries?

Answer 24

• Dramatic increase in Earth’s human population in last 200 years occurred because death rates have declined more rapidly than birth rates.
• Exponential growth due to increases in food production & improvements in hygiene during industrial & scientific revolution.
• Declining death rates are due to access to adequate food, clean water & safe sewage disposal along with medicines & vaccines - for individuals with access

Question 25

How does the scarcity of fuelwood affect populations? How does rapidly growing populations affect human usage of fuelwood?

Answer 25

• When populations are stable, people use fallen tree limbs for fuel. When populations grow rapidly, deadwood does not accumulate fast enough to provide enough fuel, so people cut down live trees, reducing the number of available wood in each year (and contributing to habitat damage).
• Water can be sterilized, & food can be cooked, but fuel is needed to do so. Without enough fuelwood, many people suffer from disease & malnutrition.

Question 26

What is urbanization? What are the impacts of urbanization?

Answer 26

• Urbanization: increase in ratio or density of people living in urban areas rather than in rural areas.
• People often find work in cities but move into suburban areas around cities.
• Suburban sprawl leads to:
  1. traffic jams
  2. inadequate infrastructure
  3. reduction of land for farms, ranches, & wildlife habitat.
• Meanwhile, housing within cities becomes
  1. more costly
  2. more dense
  3. in shorter supply

Question 27

How is population growth hindering underdeveloped countries? How are developing nations and developed nations trying to restrict population growth?

Answer 27

• Today, less developed countries face likelihood that continued population growth will prevent them from imitating development of world’s economic leaders.
• Countries such as China (remember 1 child policy), Thailand, & India have created campaigns to reduce fertility rates of their citizens.
• These campaigns include public advertising, family planning programs, economic incentives, or legal punishment.

Question 28

How does unsafe water play a role in population growth?

Answer 28

• In places that lack infrastructure, local water supply may be used not only for drinking & washing but also for sewage disposal.
• As a result, water supply becomes breeding ground for organisms that can cause diseases such as dysentery, typhoid, & cholera.
• Many cities have populations that are doubling every 15 years, & water systems cannot be expanded fast enough to keep up with this growth.

Question 29

Demography

Answer 29

study of human populations & population trends

Question 30

Theory of demographic transition

Answer 30

The theory that as a country moves from a subsistence economy to industrialization and increased affluence it undergoes a predictable shift in population growth.

Question 31

Developed Country

Answer 31

A country with relatively high levels of industrialization and income.

Question 32

Developing country

Answer 32

A country with relatively low levels of industrialization and income

Question 33

Affluence

Answer 33

The state of having plentiful wealth including the possession of money, goods, or property

Question 34

Characteristics of a Developed Country: 
Average Income
Population Growth
Economy
Other Benefits

Answer 34

• Higher average incomes
• Slower population growth
• Diverse industrial economies
• Stronger social support systems

Question 35

Characteristics of a Developing Country:
Average Income
Population Growth
Economics

Answer 35

Lower average incomes
Rapid population growth
Simple & agriculture-based economies

Question 36

Demographic transition

Answer 36

General pattern of demographic change from high birth & death rates to low birth & death rates, & observed in the history of more-developed countries

Question 37

Phase 1 of DTM

What regions around the world are currently in this stage?

Answer 37

Phase 1 is a preindustrial period characterized by high birth rates and high death rates.

• Slow population growth because high birth rates and high death rates offset each other.
• Very few countries are in this stage, perhaps only aborigine communities

Question 38

Phase 2 of DTM

What factors contribute to the change in population growth rate?

Answer 38

In phase 2, as the society begins to industrialize, death rates drop rapidly, but birth rates do not change. Population growth is greatest at this point.
- Rapid population growth because birth rates remain high but death rates decline because of better sanitation, clean drinking water, availability of food and health care.

Question 39

Phase 3 of DTM

What factors contribute to the change in population growth rate?

Answer 39

In phase 3, birth rates decline for a variety of reasons.

• Stable population growth as the economy and educational system improve and people have fewer children.
• Birth rates are still higher than death rates.

Question 40

Phase 4 of DTM

What factors contribute to the change in population growth rate?

Answer 40

In phase 4, the population stops growing and sometimes begins to decline as birth rates drop below death rates.

• Declining population growth because the relatively high level of affluence and economic development encourage women to delay having children.
• Birth and death rates are equal.