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II. Density, Distribution, and Scale
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Web Sites
Narration
This is an edited version of an essay by Martha Sharma, Cathedral School, Washington, D.C. For the complete article see the Journal of Geography, May-August 2000, Vol. 99, No. 3/4.
The most superficial glance and a world map of human population reveals the fundamental fact that the human population is not uniformly distributed over the surface of the Earth. The factors affecting the distribution are quintessentially geographic. Some factors are place-based, while others have more to do with connections among places. All settlements are in some way connected to the availability of resources or access to ways of making a living.
It is important not to oversimplify explanations for the distribution of population. One cannot say this place is too hot, too cold, too wet, or too dry, because it seems that it is always possible to find a place to prove the counter point. However, we do see broad patterns; for example, the poles are devoid of human population, although small groups do make their homes on the arctic fringe. Other places seem to be too dry, but where humans practice irrigation it is possible to find large numbers of people. Some places have large numbers of people but low per capita GNPs. Others have small populations and are equally poor. Some populations live at high densities while others live in uncrowded conditions. Some of the world's largest concentrations of people are rural with residents who are farmers. Other population concentrations are urban and industrial. One can easily see that global generalizations about population have limited value. Our scale of inquiry has great impact on the discussion of concentrations. At one scale a population may appear to be uniformly spread over an area, but at closer examinations we see concentrations and empty areas.
The key questions in population geography are: Why is population concentrated in some places and not in others? What will be the pattern in the years to come? How does this pattern of population distribution reflect a place's economy? How has it been influenced by changes in the economy? Encouraging students to exercise critical thinking skills such as questioning, evaluating, and analyzing patterns seen in maps or in the landscape, enables the development of a geographic perspective.
Web Sites
To view the following Web sites, please go to "See also" below.
The Teachers' Corner contains links to suggested Web sites. The College Board neither endorses, controls the content of, nor reviews the external Web sites included here. Please note that following links to external Web sites will open a new browser window. If you discover a link that does not work, please let us know by sending an e-mail to apctechsupport@collegeboard.org.
Country Reports
"Eradicate Conflict by Increasing Cultural Awareness." This site profiles each nation and province in the world. It has hundreds of pages including information on world geography and other topics, with maps, flags, and national anthems.
GeoNet -- GeoTopics @ GeoNet: Population
Population, population density, population growth, life expectancy, structure and migration are all hyperlinked topics here.
U.S. Census IDB
The U.S. Census Bureau's international database.
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