¡Descarga Global and Spanish Population Trends: Distribution and Increase y más Resúmenes en PDF de Geografía solo en Docsity! UNIT 3. THE POPULATION INDEX: 1. POPULATION DISTRIBUTION 2. NATURAL POPULATION MOVEMENTS 3. NATURAL INCREASE 4. DEMOGRAPHIC STRUCTURE 5. MIGRATORY MOVEMENTS 6. SPAIN'S POPULATION 1. POPULATION DISTRIBUTION Population is the term used to describe all the people living in a particular area. The distribution of the population in a given space is measured via population density, specifically, people per square kilometre. The territories in the world with the highest population densities are Southeast Asia, Western and Central Europe, and the east coast of the US. Other areas are located along some river valleys, such as the river Nile, the coast of Brazil, Mexico and Maghreb, and also areas rich in mineral or energy resources. Areas with low population densities include the cold polar regions, high, mountainous areas, deserts, and large equatorial forests. The planet's human population is influenced by environmental and human factors. • The environmental factors include relief, the climate and the soil. People prefer to live in places with flat reliefs, fertile soils and temperate climates, which are better for agriculture, and areas near the sea. • The principle human factor is the average age of the inhabitants, The economy is also an important factor. In developed countries population densities are highest around industrial areas because they offer better employment opportunities and services. The variations seen in birth and mortality rates worldwide are due to b i o l o g i c a l , d e m o g r a p h i c a n d socioeconomic factors. The VEGETATIVE or NATURAL INCREASE of a population is the difference between the number of people born (the population increases) and the number of deaths (the population decreases) ACTIVITIES 5. True or false? a) The birth rate is the number of births in a year. b) The fertility rate is the average number of women per child. c) The death rate is the number of deaths in one year. d) Life expectancy is the average life span of a person. e) The difference between the birth rate and death rate is the vegetative or natural increase rate. 6. Explain the differences between the terms "natural increase" and "migratory movement”. 3. NATURAL INCREASE The NATURAL INCREASE of the world's population is the difference between the birth rate and the mortality rate. According to the theory of demographic transition, there are three stages to this population growth: A) THE DEMOGRAPHIC REGIME. At this stage, birth rates are high due to ineffective contraceptive methods, but death rates are also high, as a result of malnutrition, disease, and poor hygiene. Consequently, the natural increase occurs at a slow pace. B) DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION. At this stage, improvements in nutrition, medicine and hygiene cause death rates to fall. As an urban lifestyle develop's, voluntary birth control become's more widely used, leading to a drop in the birth rate. Nevertheless, the overall result is an increase in natural growth. C) THE MODERN DEMOGRAPHIC REGIME. The birth rate falls sharply and although death rates continue to decline, natural increase is low. 4. DEMOGRAPHIC STRUCTURE The gender structure of the population is the relationship between the number of men and the number of women, or males and females. In 2010, there were 101,6 males to every 100 females in the world. There are more males in the younger age groups, because they are born in greater numbers, but the ratio of women increases as the population ages, as the life expectancy for women is higher. The age structure refers to the percentage of young people (0-14 years), adults (15-64 years), and elderly people (65 years and older) in a population. Developing countries tend to have a higher ratio of young people and developed nations typically have ageing populations. In 2010, almost two thirds of the world's population was adult. The economic structure is the distribution of the population by economic sector. Most of the population in developing countries work in the primary sector (more than 50%) and very low in developed countries (less than 10%). In developed countries more than 60% of the workforce is employed in the tertiary sector. ACTIVITIES 1. Are there more boys or more girls in your classroom? Calculate the ratio and discuss what the consequences would if this disparity (if there is one) existed in the population of the country. 2. What typical social problems arise when a population has an excessively high percentage of young people, or conversely, too many old people? 6. SPAIN'S POPULATION In Spain, the population distribution is uneven as the population density varies greatly from region to region: • Areas with HIGH POPULATION DENSITIES are: Madrid, the coastal areas, the Balearic Islands, and the Canary Islands. These areas have attracted people for many years because of their industrial and tertiary sectors. • Areas that are UNDERPOPULATED include Spain's interior, which is heavily involved in agriculture and emigration; and mountainous regions, due to their harsh living conditions. The natural increase of Spain's population is small (2,91% in 2008). The highest figures for growth are: Madrid, the Mediterranean coast, the Balearic islands, and Ceuta and Melilla. This is due to high levels of past and present immigration. The lowest increase figures occur along the Cantabrian coast and in Spain's interior, due to a high proportion of elderly people. MIGRATION IN SPAIN Spain, until recently (1975), was an emigratory country. • INTERNAL MIGRATION in Spain consisted principally of a rural exodus, where the population moved from rural regions to industrialised areas such as Catalonia, Madrid, the Basque Country, Valencia, Sevilla, Malaga and the Balearic Islands. • EXTERNAL MIGRATION in Spain was focused on Latin America and Europe. Several million Spaniards recolocated to these places. Since 1995, this dynamic has changed and the whole of Spain has become a host country due to the ageing Spanish population and the need for a larger workforce. VOCABULARY UNIT 3. POPULATION 1. 2. • Population • Birth rate • Mortality rate • Infant mortality rate • Life expectancy • Migration • Natural population growth • Emigration • Immigration • Rural exodus • Gender gap
