population cie geography a level

mortality

The rate at which people die. It is related to infant mortality, life expectancy and longevity as well as to the crude death rate.

population structure

The number of males and females within different age groups in the population. It divides a population into groups depending on gender and on age.

demographic transition model (DTM)

A simplified theory of how population has changed because of changing birth and death rates as a country develops over time.

food security

Food security means that food is available for the population and at a price that they can afford. It should provide for their dietary needs and for their food preferences.

carrying capacity

The maximum number of people that can be supported in a given region without damaging the area to an unsustainable extent. For services, it is the number of people exceeding the number that the local area can cope with.

pandemic

An epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread through the human population across a very large region or even worldwide.

population momentum

The fact that there are so many young people in the population who still have to produce their own children. Even if fertility rates fall below replacement level, the population will still grow because so much of the population is moving into the child bearing age group.

vital rates

The factors that affect population change such as birth rate and death rate. They are usually expressed as the rate of change per thousand people, per year.

birth rate

The number of live births per thousand people per year.

death rate

The number of deaths per thousand people per year.

natural increase

the change in size of a population caused by the indifference between the birth rate and the death rate. if death rate exceeds birth rate the population will decline and then we should refer to natural change

natural change

The change in the size of a population caused by the difference between the birth rate and the death rate. If birth rate exceeds death rate, the population will grow. If death rate exceeds birth rate the population will decline.

net migration

The balance between people moving into a region or country and the people moving out of that region or country.

immigration

People moving into a country as part of an international migration; see also international migration.

emigration

People moving out of a country as part of an international migration.

in-migration

movement into an area within a country

out-migration

movement out of an area within a country

population change

The annual population change of an area is the cumulative change in the size of its population after both natural change and migration have been taken into account.

fertility rate

The average number of children each woman in a population will have in her lifetime. It is also defined as the number of live births per 1 000 women aged 15-49 in one year.

infant mortality rate

The number of children who die, under the age of one, expressed per thousand live births per year.

life expectancy

The average number of years, from birth, that a person can expect to live. This means the age at which 50% of the children, born in a particular year, have died.

population density

The number of people in a given area, usually measured as the number of people per square kilometre.

population distribution

Usually shown on a map, it uses variations in population density to show how people are spread out across an area.

census

A survey of the size and nature of a country's population where every household has to be counted and questioned.

resources

Any part of the environment that can be used to meet human needs.

quality of life

Quality of life is related to wealth but is also determined by social and environmental factors, it sums up everything that affect a person's well-being and happiness.

sanitation

Promoting good health by the treatment and proper disposal of sewage.

birth control

Where population growth is limited by a fall in the death rate. This is the situation typical of Stages 3 and 4 of the DTM.

NIC

Newly Industrialised Countries.

longevity

Longevity is best thought of as meaning 'typical length of life' but it is also used to mean 'long lifespan' or 'living until you are very old'.

GDP/person

A country's gross domestic product (GDP) divided by its population. GDP is the total value of the goods and services produced by a country in one year.

disposable income

The money that people have left over after paying their taxes and paying for their necessities, money left over for luxuries and non-essentials.

baby boomers

Those members of the UK population born in the fifteen years after the end of the Second World War (1945-1960), a period of time when the UK birth rate was higher than before or since.

dependency ratio

The relationship between the working and the dependent population. The dependent population can be split into young dependents and old dependents.

working population

People in a population (roughly) between the ages of 16 and 64. These are the people who could be 'economically active' even though some of them may not actually be workers.

dependent population

The non-economically active groups in a population. The dependent population can be split into young dependents and old dependents.

objective

Impartial and unbiased, not influenced by personal feelings or opinions. A statement of fact.

subjective

An opinion based on a personal perspective.

juvenility index

Shows the proportion of younger people in a population.

old-age index

Shows the proportion of old people in a population.

support ratio

The inverse of the dependency ratio. It shows the proportion of the population which is dependent on the working population.

quantitative

Something that can be measured or counted and expressed as a numerical quantity.

qualitative

Something that has to be estimated or described because it is difficult to measure. Based on a person's opinion or judgement.

demographic dividend

Something a country experiences in Stage 3 of the DTM when it has a large and productive working population, a small number of old people and a falling percentage of young dependents. This is the situation in many NICs where the proportion of the population that is in the working age-group is higher.

informal economy

When people work for themselves without the authorities knowing about them. This means they do not have to pay tax.

pro-natalist poilicies

A policy refers to those actions of a government that try to control, manage or influence something. Pro-natalist policies encourage people to have children and are designed to stimulate the birth rate.

virtuous spiral

A situation where a positive change leads to further positive changes which in turn reinforce the original change. For example, land reform exempts a farmer from paying rent so the farmer can use the money to improve the farm, increasing crop yields, producing more money to improve the farm and so on.

eurocentric

Looking at things from a European point of view, highlighting European history and assuming other parts of the world will follow the same course; biased towards European countries.

colony

A country controlled and governed by another country.

Asian Tiger

The high-growth economies of Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.

anti-natalist

Policies which discourage people from having children. A policy which is designed to reduce the birth rate.

overpopulation

Occurs in an area where the available resources are unable to sustain the population at a good standard of living.

standard of living

The way people are able to live their lives based on the wealth that they have.

consumption triangle

The relationship between population growth, resources and economic development.

sustainable development

Development which meets the needs of today's population without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.

monoculture

Where the same crop is grown on the same land, year after year.

vicious circle

A situation where someone's current circumstances are such that they lead to factors which reinforce the current situation. An example is poverty - a poor farmer cannot purchase materials to improve their farm so their crop yields stay low, there is no surplus to sell, so the farmer has no money and remains in poverty.

natural disaster

A natural occurrence which produces death, damage to property, and disruption to people's lives.

Green Revolution

The huge increase in global food supply between 1960 and the present day. It is the main reason why food supply has kept up with population growth.

HYV crops

High Yielding Varieties of crops. Crops such as Rockefeller Rice which have been selectively bred to produce more food per hectare.

genetically modified (GM) crop/varieties

Plants used in agriculture where the DNA has been modified using genetic engineering techniques. The aim is to produce a variety of the crop which has an improved trait, e.g. resistance to pests and diseases.

death control

Occasional increases in the death rate limiting population growth. This is the situation typical of Stage 1 of the DTM.

primary products

The products of primary industry. Primary industries produce goods directly from the earth, e.g. farming, fishing, forestry and mining.

protectionism

Economic policies which restrict trade between countries through methods such as taxes on imported goods. It is designed to protect the industries in the importing country.

trade trap

When a poor country produces goods for sale abroad but where the price of those goods is determined by the rich countries. When the price of the poor country's exports drops, they have to keep producing the goods in order to make money to pay the interest on the debts they incurred when developing the ability to produce the goods for export.

underpopulation

Occurs in areas with not enough people to use all the resources efficiently for the current level of technology.

optimum population

Occurs when the population is in balance with the available resources of an area, given the current level of technology.

population policies

Those actions of a government that try to control, manage or influence the size, nature or distribution of the population.

unstable equilibrium

A state of balance that is unlikely to last. A pencil can be balanced on its point but any small change in its environment, e.g. a movement in the air, will make it fall over. A country can achieve optimum population, but any change in the size of the population or the availability of resources will move it away from the optimum point.

population projections

Predicting the nature of future populations. These predictions are based on theories such as the DTM and are usually shown using age/sex structure diagrams.

sterilisation

An operation which restricts an individual's ability to reproduce. A person who has been sterilised can no longer have children.

infanticide

The intentional killing of children in their first year of life.