Where is the worlds population distributed

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Where is the worlds population distributed?

• Chapter 2, Key Issue 1

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Major unit questions

• Where are people distributed?
• Where is population growing?
• Why is population growing at different rates in
  different places?
• Why is local diversity in growth rates important?

3
demography

• Study of population characteristics
• Global, national, and local demographics are
  studied
• Demographics are used for public policy issues,
  economic and business reasons, etc.

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Population concentrationsWhere is everyone?
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Population centers

• 4 regions 2/3rds of World Population
• South Asia, East Asia, Western Europe, SE Asia
• 2/3rds live within 300 mi. of ocean, 80 within
  500 mi
• Between 10 and 55 degrees N latitude
• Concentrated in urban areas and along rivers

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Other population centers

• Northeast coast of North America
• West African coast
• Mexico City
• Andean coastal South America
• Small clusters compared to SE Asia, etc.
• Part of ecumene

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Why are some areas unpopulated?

• Dry lands (Sahara, Gobi, Mojave)
• Wet Lands (Amazon, C. Africa)
• Cold Lands (Siberia, NWT, Iceland)
• High Lands (Tibet, Himalayas, Andes)

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Reasons for sparse population (clockwise from
top) NWT, the Amazon, Tibetan highlands, the
Sahara
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Population Density

• Density number of people occupying area of land
• Arithmetic density people/land area
• Physiological Density people occupying arable
  land
• Agricultural Density ratio of farmers to arable
  land

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Examples of density
Hong Kong High Population density
Agricultural density
Cairo physiological density