Population

Question 1

Natural Change

Answer 1

The difference between the number of births and deaths in a country or region.
This can be natural increase or natural decrease

Question 2

Natural Increase

Answer 2

birth rate - death rate

Question 3

Natural Decrease

Answer 3

death rate - birth rate

Question 4

Birth rate

Answer 4

The number of live births per 1000 of the population

Question 5

Death rate

Answer 5

the number of deaths per 1000 of the population

Question 6

Fertility rate

Answer 6

the average number of children a woman had during her lifetime.
if the fertility rate is >2.1, there will be population growth.

• in 2010, 87 countries were either at or below this level, showing fundamental and dramatic social change which allowed more children to be educated and more women to work

Question 7

Infant mortality rate

Answer 7

the number of children under the age of 1 who die, per 1000 live births, per year

Question 8

Life Expectancy

Answer 8

the average number of years from birth that a person is expected to live

Question 9

Factors affecting fertility - demographic , social ,ecomomics, poltical

Answer 9

Factors affecting fertility can be grouped into 4 main categories:

1. demographic - this includes population factors such as mortality rates. In societies where infant mortality is high, parents tend to have more children to compensate for unexpected deaths.
   Example: in Somalia, infant mortality is high at 65 deaths/1000 live births so fertility rates are also high at 5.98 births per woman. however in Japan, infant mortality is low at 1.8 deaths/1000 live births so fertility rates are also low at 1.36 births per woman.
2. social/cultural - in some societies, tradition demands higher rates of reproduction. women’s opinion here matter little compared to intense cultural expectation.
   Female literacy reduces fertility rates. education on birth control/ greater social awareness provides a wider choice of action. Formal education gives greater opportunity for employment usually leaving little/no interest/time for babies
   Example: literacy rates in Somalia is 38%, fertility rate is 5.98 births per woman. Literacy rates in Japan is 99% , fertility rate is 1.36 births per woman.
   Religion is also an important factor
   Example: Islamic and Roman Catholic religions oppose artificial birth control
3. Economic - in LICs, children are seen as an economic asset due to labor they provide as well as the expectation for them to support their parents in their old age. In HICs, cost of child-dependency years is a major factor in the decision to extend the family. HICs provide workplace childcare and flexible working time to avoid loosing valuable female workers
4. Political - in the last century, many governments have attempted to change the rate of population growth for economic and strategic reasons.
   Example: during the late 1930’s, Germany, Italy and Japan all offered inducements and concessions to those with large families.

Question 10

Factors affecting mortality

Answer 10

1. injury related death - murder, road-traffic accidents, war industrial injury
2. medical infrastructure - areas with a shortage of medical facilities/trained medical staff
3. disease (communicable/non-communicable) - lifestyle illness, cancer, alcoholism, pandemics, epidemics
4. famine and drought
5. population structure - more old people -> more deaths
6. poverty - no facilities, no proper food/nutrition, poor healthcare
7. infant mortality
8. economic development - mortality decreases as country gets richer
9. HIV/AIDS
   Example: sub-Saharan Africa (Botswana)

Question 11

Categories of age groups on the age/sex diagram

Answer 11

young(0-14)
active(15-64)
old(65-85+)

Question 12

population structure

Answer 12

refers to the number of males and females within different age groups in the population

Question 13

dependency

Answer 13

reliance for survival on the support provided by another/ others

Question 14

dependency ratio

Answer 14

the relationship between the economically active and non-economically active population, where the economically active population is usually taken as being between ages 15-65, regardless of employment status or not.

Question 14

dependency ratio

Answer 14

the relationship between the economically active and non-economically active population, where the economically active population is usually taken as being between ages 15-65, regardless of employment status or not.

Question 15

dependency ratio formula

Answer 15

(non-economically active population/economically active population)*100

Question 16

DTM

Answer 16

the DTM is a theoretical model showing possible changes in birth and death rates that may take place in a country over time

Question 17

what happens in stage one of the DTM

Answer 17

stage one of the DTM the birth rate is high but the death rate is also high so there is no natural increase as there healthcare is low and sanitation is low while there is no use of contraception.

Question 18

stage 2 of the DTM

Answer 18

at stage 2 the birth rate remains high but the death rate decreases due to better healthcare and access to that health care. so there is high natural increase

Question 19

stage 3 of the DTM

Answer 19

the birth rate fall rapidly as there is better education and access to contraception and better wages so people do not need extra children for work while the death rate also remains low so the rate of natural increase decreases.

Question 20

stage 4 of the DTM

Answer 20

the birth rate is low while the death rate is also low so there is no natural increase

Question 21

stage 5 of the DTM

Answer 21

death rate starts to rise above the birth rate as the baby boom of before starts to die off so now there is a natural decrease

Question 22

Advantages of the DTM (4)

Answer 22

Easy to understand.

Universal concept cam be applied to all countries.

Flexible timescales.

Allows comparisons to be made.

Question 23

criticisms of the DTM

Answer 23

Original model did not contain a 5th stage, and can’t predict when changes will occur for a country.

Eurocentric, so assumes all countries will follow the way that Europe developed.

Ignores regional differences within a country.

Does not consider migration, government policies or war/disaster events impacting a population.

Diseases such as HIV/AIDS can put the model in reverse.

Question 24

issues of a youthful population

Answer 24

Abundance of future workers may result in unemployment.
Cost of childcare and child benefit is high.
Short term worker shortage.
High healthcare costs.
Spending diverted from other uses.

Question 25

issues of an aging population

Answer 25

Elderly workers do not have IT skills, get sick easier, could retire at any time, unable to work manual jobs.
Shortage of economically active workers.
Reduced tax revenue for government; so reduced spending on education, healthcare, transport, policing…
High pension cost, and high cost of providing healthcare/care homes.
Service reduction (sports facilities, schools) not used by older population.

Question 26

what is food security

Answer 26

when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious and affordable food to maintain an active lifestyle.

Question 27

causes of food shortage (say at least 5)

Answer 27

Soil Exhaustion: desertification occurs with the overuse of a patch of soil – soil erosion occurs.

Drought: dry period that lasts longer than usual, plants struggle to grow, or as big as normal.

Floods: severe flooding can kill an entire crop yield.

Tropical Cyclones: flatten crops, limit export ability.

Pests: insects destroy 25% global crops. Can also destroy stored grain.

Disease: fungal diseases damage stored cereals, and foot-and-mouth disease reduces milk/meat yields.

Low capital investment: poor productivity as a result of poor investment into new technologies.

Poor distribution: rising transport costs, poor infrastructure limits a farmer’s ability to export.

Conflict: people stop producing food to flee/fight.

Biofuels: farmers can earn more to produce rapeseed and elephant grass to be used for fuels.

Rising population: grain demand outstrips supply, high BR and falling DR causes population growth.

Question 28

consequences of food shortage

Answer 28

Malnutrition: people unable to work/resist disease. 800 million suffer from chronic malnutrition.

Starvation: ultimately leads to death. 30 million die from starvation each year.

Death: 1 million died in Ethiopia. Animals will die too when there is a food shortage.

Aid dependency: farmers can’t sell their food, so stop producing, whole country relies on aid.

Migration: people may move to access food aid, reducing food production capacity.

Question 29

how to use technology increase food production (at least 5)

Answer 29

The Green Revolution: India- A high yielding variety programme was introduced, with hybrid varieties of Rice, Wheat, Maize, Sorghum and Millet, the latter 4 were drought resistant. All were fertiliser responsive and had a shorter growing season.

Genetic Modification: taking DNA from one species and adding it to another - such as pest-resistant genes from soya beans.
+ helps solve food shortages, reduces chemical inputs, improves development.

Integrated Pest Management: pest control strategy causing least hazard to people, property, environment.

Use of mechanical traps, natural predators, insect growth regulators, pheromone distribution.

Irrigation: controlled watering..
Drip irrigation: drips at the roots, evaporation and runoff are minimised, therefore very efficient.

Micro-Propagation: use of tissue culture to rapidly produce disease free, ready to grow, robust plants. Expensive and infections will spread quickly.

Growth Hormones: improve weight gain, feed conversion efficiency, carcass quality.

Appropriate/Intermediate Technology: small scale, sustainable, low-tech ideas, that are relevant to local climate and environment.

Land Colonisation: exploitation of land not previously used for agriculture. Used to grow commercial crops or provide new land for subsistence farmers.

Commercialization: TNCs source food from less developed countries. Small farmers are drawn into contracts - increasing output by intensification, but this results in a decline in staple foods for the locals.

Indoor Farming: Farms without soil in warehouses and shipping containers. UV lights used, controlled climates created, heavily managed growth, but high in nutrients and little environmental impact

Question 30

Constraints in Sustaining Populations (at least 5)

Answer 30

Poverty: lack of money means an individual cannot sustain themselves, and the country cannot afford infrastructure for economic development.

Famine: soils get overused, and droughts kill crops. Soil exhaustion increases with the food demand that an increasing population applies.

Plague: controlling disease affects the most vulnerable (poorest, youngest and oldest) first.

War: kills people in the conflict over shortage of resources, such as oil and foods.

Natural Disasters: earthquakes, floods, droughts, volcano eruptions and storms all have huge potential to cause large scale catastrophe and deaths.

Political Instability: discourages foreign investment that would help to sustain a population and develop. Any money that is received/made will be misused if the government is corrupt.

Trade Barriers: many LICs subject to tariffs, quotas and regulations that limit their exporting ability. In some countries one product makes up a huge proportion of their income, if the price drops on that one product, then the whole economy suffers.

Question 31

what is carrying capacity

Answer 31

The largest number of people an environment can supported sustainably the number of resources available

Question 32

overpopulation

Answer 32

Overpopulation: available resources are unable to support population

Question 33

what is underpopulation?

Answer 33

Underpopulation: occurs when there are too few people in an area to use all the available resources efficiently for the current level of technology.

Question 34

what is optimum population

Answer 34

Optimum Population: an economic concept for where population is in balance with the available resources, given a level of technology. Overpopulation occurs when the optimum population has been exceeded. High average living standards show optimum population. Hard to achieve as populations and technology/resources are constantly changing.

Question 35

what doe Thomas Malthus and Esther Boserup believe about population growth

Answer 35

Thomas Malthus: stated that food supply increases arithmetically, while population increases geometrically (if unchecked). Population increase causes increased food demand, so less food per person. Increased mortality and decreased fertility, so population decreases.

Esther Boserup: state that population increase causes an increased food demand and then a technology improvement in response, allowing population growth to remain unchecked.