Transcript Lesson 2: Population Density and Concentration

Population Distribution and
Density
Population Concentrations
Two-thirds of the world in the following
regions:
East Asia (one-fifth of world)
China most populous nation
South Asia (one-fifth of world)
India second most populous
Southeast Asia (4th largest concentration)
Europe (3rd largest concentration)
Northeastern U.S. and West Africa
How did these regions get this
way?
Ecumene – portion of Earth’s surface
occupied by permanent human settlement
Examine the spread of the ecumene.
What might be its physical characteristics?
What might be the physical characteristics
of the areas outside the ecumene?
Amend your original hypothesis.
Sparsely Populated Regions
Dry Lands
Wet Lands
Cold Lands
High Lands
Arithmetic Density
Also called- population density
Population divided by total land area
High arithmetic density can mean two
things:
1. Many people
2. little land
Example: Malawi and Ecuador
Population very close (both 13.9 million)
Total area different (Malawi 118,480 sq.
mi., Ecuador 283,560 sq. mi.)
Malawi: 13,900,000 /118,480= 117
Ecuador: 13,900,000/ 283,560= 49
Malawi’s density: 117 people per sq. mi.
VS. Ecuador’s density: 49 people per sq.
mi.)
What does arithmetic density tell us that
crude population cannot?
Practice with Arithmetic Density
1. Country A: crude population:
800,000Total land area: 200,000 sq. mi.;
Density? Is Country A relatively
“crowded”?
4 per sq. mile
2. Country B: Crude population: 6,000
Density: 150 per sq. mi.; Land area?
40 sq. miles
3. Country C: Density: 50 per sq. mi.; Land
area: 200 sq. mi. Population?
10,000 crude population
Physiological Density
What doesn’t arithmetic density tell us about the
land a population occupies?
Population divided by total arable land
Example: United States vs. Egypt
172 persons per sq. km vs. 2,580 persons per sq.
km
What does this mean?
Demonstrates that crops grown on a hectare of land in
Egypt must feed far more people than a hectare in the
U.S.
Bigger the physiological density, bigger the pressure
people place on the land to produce food.
Agricultural Density
If two countries have similar physiological
densities, but produce different amounts of
food, what could account for this?
Ratio of farmers to arable land
Example: U.S. has 1 farmer per sq. km, Egypt
has 826 farmers per sq. km
What can we conclude about technology
and/or economic conditions if agricultural
density is low? If it’s high?
Practice Quiz
Arithmetic Density
U.S. (31 per sq. km) vs. Canada (3 per sq. km)
Which has either more people or less land?
Physiological Density
India (699 per sq. km) vs. Japan (2,907 per sq.
km)
Which puts more pressure on the land to
produce enough food?
Practice Quiz cont.
Agricultural Density
Netherlands (72 per sq. km) vs. Bangladesh
(1,158 per sq. km)
Which country has a more efficient agricultural
system? How can you tell?
Essential Questions
Where is the world’s population
distributed?
Why is the world’s population distributed
where it is?
What are the consequences of this uneven
distribution?
Further Discussion…
Which of the essential questions does
arithmetic density help us to answer?
Which measure of density can help us to
understand why people live where they do?
What can physiological and agricultural
density together tell us about a country’s
capacity to feed its people?
Application Task
Consider what possible correlations could
exist between these measures of density and
other population statistics.
In groups of 2-3, use the population
statistics packets and the maps on my
teacher page and on the board to formulate
at least two new hypotheses regarding the
possible correlation between a measure of
density and another population statistic.
Application Task cont.
For example, is there a correlation between
a country’s physiological density and its
infant mortality rate?
Record your hypotheses, along with your
explanation as to why these might be
correlated on your hypothesis worksheet.
Determine your strongest hypothesis and be
ready to share with the class.
Begin your culminating
assessment…
Conduct research to test your hypotheses
and consider how all three connect.
Use the provided map outlines to create two
maps of an imaginary country or region:
either environmental and measure of
density, or density and another population
statistic.
Compose a one-page response explaining
what correlations, if any, did you discover
between the three factors.
Resources
www.prb.org (Population Reference
Bureau)
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the
-world-factbook/index.html (CIA World
Factbook)
http://www.census.gov/ (Census Bureau)