Population Geography

Question 1

what is a population

Answer 1

a group of individuals, from the same species, that inhabit a particular area.

Question 2

what are the factors influencing population growth and describe them

Answer 2

a) Natality - the number of individuals added to a population over a period of time due to reproduction. —>
This is often referred to as birth rate. A birth rate is the number of people born per 1000 people in a year. birth rates are often recorded as a percentage of the population.

b) Immigration - the migration of an individual into a place

Question 3

what are the factors that influence a reduction in the size of a population

Answer 3

a) Mortality - the number of deaths in a population over a period of time. this is often referred to the death rate. a death rate is the number of individuals that die per 1000 people in a year. death rates are often recorded to as a percentage of the population.
b) Emigration - the migration of an individual from a place

Question 4

do emigration and immigration influence the world population sizes

Answer 4

no

Question 5

what is a Population Growth Rate and what is the formula

Answer 5

a Population Growth Rate is the rate at which the population changes in size.

Growth rate = Births in a country (including immigration) - Deaths in a country (including emigration). the answer will be either positive or negative.

Question 6

what is biotic potential

Answer 6

the rate at which a species reproduce with unlimited conditions. that is when they have unlimited food and water, safe habitat and any other conditions promoting successful reproduction.

Question 7

what is Environmental Resistance and give examples

Answer 7

it is the factors which can limit the increase of a population.

these factors can include:

a) lack of food and water
b) lack of suitable habitat
c) competition
d) diseases
e) unnatural deaths

Question 8

why don’t all members of a population reach adulthood or the stage when they can reproduce

Answer 8

due to environmental resistance

Question 9

Describe a carrying capacity

Answer 9

each population will have a carrying capacity.

this can be defined as the maximum population size of a species that an ecosystem can support indefinitely.

Question 10

look at P 4, what is that graph saying

Answer 10

when a population size is below its carrying capacity size, conditions are ideal for a population size to increase. once the size of a population exceeds its carrying capacity, there are insufficient resources to sustain everybody so birth rates will drop and members of the population will die off until its size is once again below its carrying capacity. when resources once again increase the population can once again begin to grow.

Question 11

why don’t all areas have the same carrying capacity

Answer 11

due to differences in availability of resources. desert areas have lowest carrying capacity

Question 12

meaning: demography and what does demography take into account.

Answer 12

• demography = the study of size, density and distribution of human population.
• demography takes into account birth rates, death rates, age distribution and any other factors that influence size + growth of a population.

Question 13

What are the 3 distinct periods of population growth and describe them.

Answer 13

1 - Pre-agricultural period

• up to 10 000 years ago.
• characterised by development of tools. new tools + skills enabled people adapted new environments.
• slow growth until development of tools.
• human population estimated to be from 5-10 million people

2 - Agricultural period

• from 10 000 - 1000 years ago.
• characterised by advances in agriculture. plants and animals used for domestic use. advances in irrigation made food more abundant. more healthy food caused populations increase more rapidly to around 500 million people.

3 - Industrial period

• characterised by advancement in technology.
• this period saw technical advances in medicines, food production and sanitation helping to support rapid increase in population.

the Industrial Revolution from 1760 to +/- 1840, further enhanced production and the population increased to the nearly 7 billion people who now inhabit the earth.

due to rapid increase population there is great concern about future carrying capacity. despite advances in food production + technology there must be a final limit to the earth’s carrying capacity.

Question 14

describe the theory of human population growth

Answer 14

during 1700s philosophers believed human population be maintained because human knowledge and moral constraints would make it possible to establish a world where resources are abundant. humans would control the earth and would make sure they have all the supplies in order to survive.

was believed that if population was to grow too rapidly people would stop creating offspring to limit population sizes.

british philosopher, Thomas Malthus in 1798 had different ideas. he became first person to predict the limit of the size of human population. in doing this he linked population and well-being together.

he believed that human population exhibits exponential growth.

in other words the increase is proportionate to the population already present.

Question 15

what will uncontrolled population growth lead to (4) and what would these problems lead to and then what would these problems lead to and what would happen in the end

Answer 15

a) a depletion of resources
b) increased pollution
c) overcrowding
d) increased unemployment

these 4 problems lead to larger problems such as:

a) starvation
b) increased diseases
c) higher crime rates
d) high poverty rates
e) wars

these problems would lead to:

a) increased death rates
b) lower birth rates

this in turn lead to more manageable population with enough resources to support it.

Question 16

where was Thomas Malthus’ theory found to be true and what did his theory not take into account

Answer 16

true in developing countries

his theory didn’t take into account the advancements in technology and food production in developed countries.

Question 17

learn chart on P 9

Answer 17

how well do you know it

Question 18

what is economic inequality and where can it be found

Answer 18

the difference between individuals / populations in terms of their wealth, assets / income.

it can be found within your town / city while it can also be applied to the differences in wealth between countries.

Question 19

what can countries be categorised and what is this and how is it calculated.

Answer 19

countries can be categorised according to per capita income which is the average income per person.

it is calculated by dividing the total income of a country by its total population.

Question 20

describe developed nations

Answer 20

they are more industrialised and have high per capita incomes levels. to be classed as a high per capita level average earning above 12 000 $ or +/- above R160 000. developed nations consume more than 88% of world’s natural resources.

developed nations have more stable birth rates and have an expected average population growth of about 7% over next 40 years.

Question 21

describe developing nations

Answer 21

they are nations that are less industrialised and have low per capita income levels.

a) Moderately developed
these countries have and average per capita income of between 1 000 - 12 000 $ / from R13 000 to R160 000.

b) Less developed
these countries have an average per capita income of less than 1 000 $ / less than R13 000

developing nations have high birth rates. it’s predicted that developing countries will increase their population sizes by 44% over next 40 years and by 2050, 86% of world’s population will live in developing nations.

(Learn graph on P 11)

Question 22

who are people who are wealthy and who are people who are poor.

Answer 22

wealthy - people who spend large sums of money regularly

poor - only spend small amounts of money daily are considered poor.

Question 23

meaning: poverty

Answer 23

poverty - when a person is unable to meet their basic needs due, basically, to economic constraints.

(learn poverty stats in books on P 12)

Question 24

what are the basic needs for a person and describe people who don’t have these things

Answer 24

a) water
b) food
c) shelter
d) health
e) education

people who don’t have these basic needs are considered to be living in poverty.

Question 25

what other 2 factors also point towards a nation in poverty and describe them

Answer 25

a) Birth rates: these are high in poverty stricken nations.
- on average women in wealthy countries produce only 2 babies in their lifetime, while in poor countries women produce 6 or more babies throughout their lives.
- poor countries have less access to contraception and they traditionally have more children to help them earn more money for their families.

b) Death rates: poor countries have high death rates especially infant death rates.
infant death rates are:
the percentage of infants who die before the age of 1 year.

• wealth countries often have infant death rate of 1%.
  while poor nations have average infant mortality rate of around 10%.

Question 26

why do poor nations often have high death rates

Answer 26

i) limited madical care
ii) poor sanitation
iii) increased prevalence of disease

Question 27

describe the age structure of wealth and poor countries

Answer 27

wealthy countries have their population distributed evenly over most age bands

poor countries due to high birth rates coupled to high death rate have more people in the lower age bands while very few of them survive to old age.

Question 28

how does poverty relate to population growth

Answer 28

• poverty stricken countries have high population growth rates.
• although death rates are high the birth rates even higher resulting in a constant increase in the human population.
  (look at diagram on P16 at top)

Poor countries have a higher percentage of their population in lower age groups resulting in most of their population being of reproductive age, enabling an increased birth rate.

• due to high population growth rates carrying capacity these countries is of great concern. (look a diagram P 16)
  the population will be too large and there will not be enough resources supply their needs.

Question 29

menaing: global sustainability

Answer 29

the act of meeting needs of current human population without compromising ecosystem service and natural resources to the detriment of the future populations.

Question 30

what will increased populations make us require / do

Answer 30

Because of increased populations:

a) More land will be needed for farming.
b) More land will be required for housing.
c) More water will be consumed.
d) More fossil fuels will be burnt.
e) Industry will use more natural resources and generated more pollution.

Question 31

what is demographic transition and describe the 4 stages

Answer 31

demographic transition is a series of changes that a country goes through when transitioning from a non-industrial to an industrial country.

1 - The pre-industrial stage
the population is stable with both high birth rates and high death rates. (Look at diagram on P18)

a) Death rates are high because of:

i) Minimal medical care.
ii) Increased disease.
iii) Poor sanitation.
iv) Limited food supply.

b) as a result of high death rates, people tend to produce more offspring.
c) Death rates compared to birth rates fluctuate, but overall they remain equal which results in 0 population growth.

2 - The transitional stage
the population tends to increase due to high birth rates coupled to declining death rates. (Look at diagram on P19)

a) death rates decrease due to improvement in economy and social conditions leading to:

i) Better control of diseases.
ii) Increased food production.
iii) Better jobs.
iv) Improved health care.
v) Improved sanitation.

This leads to rapid increase in population sizes.

3 - The industrial stage
here we have declining death rates coupled to declining birth rates, but yet population growth. (Look at diagram P20)

a) declining birth rates occur because:

i) People produce less offspring because their offspring have higher chance of surviving until adulthood.
ii) More resources can be focused on less people leading to a better standard of living for their offspring.

b) Declining birth rates occur because:

i) An increased chance of employment for women.
ii) Better methods of birth control.

c) Despite both low birth and death rates, populations continue to increase due to momentum built up in the pre-industrial stage.

4 - The post-industrial stage
characterised by both low birth rates and low death rates.
(Look at diagram on P21 at bottom)

a) As birth rates and death rates decline the population will stabilise.

Question 32

where are there more people

Answer 32

more people in cities than in rural towns.

Question 33

meaning: population density

Answer 33

the number of people per unit of land area.

Question 34

Describe / distinguish between rural and urban areas (describe)

Answer 34

1 - A rural area:

a) Has population less than 2500 inhabitants.
b) They have low population densities.
c) Most of residents survive on agriculturally based occupations.
d) or resourced based occupations, such as timber plantations / fishing.

2 - An urban area:

a) Has population more than 2500 inhabitants.
b) They have high population densities.
c) Residents don’t depend on resource based occupations.

Question 35

what happened after the industrial revolution and what is urbanisation

Answer 35

after industrial revolution from 1760 to +/- 1840 people began to flock to cities in search of work created by this revolution.

The process of:
the shift from rural to urban living and the increased concentration of people into densely populated cities is referred to as urbanisation.

Question 36

go through stats on P24

Answer 36

how well do you know them

Question 37

meaning: natural resources

Answer 37

substances and energy sources that we take from environment and use

Question 38

what 2 categories can natural resources be divided into

Answer 38

renewable and non-renewable resources

Question 39

what are renewable resources and give examples

Answer 39

renewable natural resources are resources that can be replenished over a period of time, such as:

a) Sunlight
b) Wind
c) Soil
d) Timber

Although renewable resources can be replaced they being used up at a more rapid rate than in past and it’s becoming increasingly difficult for them be replenished fast enough to cope with ever increasing human demands.

Question 40

what are non-renewable resources and give examples

Answer 40

Non-renewable resources are resources that are in finite supply and will run out, such as:

a) Minerals
b) Crude oil
c) Gas
d) Coal
e) Metals such as:

i) iron
ii) aluminium
iii) gold
iv) manganese
v) copper
vi) chromium
vii) nickel
viii) and many others.

Question 41

who are most of the world’s metals used by

Answer 41

i) United State of America
ii) Japan
iii) Europe

Question 42

what are these resources (metal, etc.) in danger of and why

Answer 42

due to increased demand these resources are in danger of disappearing forever.

Question 43

what is an ecological footprint and what does it include

Answer 43

an estimate of the amount of land that is needed to supply a person with the resources that they need to survive.
this includes:

a) housing
b) food
c) energy
d) and land to dispose of waste.

Question 44

why do ecological footprints vary from country to country and even within a country.

Answer 44

due to variations in cultures and lifestyles

Question 45

describe ecological footprints in developed and developing countries.

Answer 45

developed countries normally have larger footprints than developing countries.