Assignment 2

For a variety of reasons, populations sometimes undergo periods when there are large changes in reproduction or mortality. For example, desert plant populations may produce a large cohort of seedlings following heavy rains, or a fish population may experience a peak in reproduction due to a La Ni–a weather year. Human populations exhibit similar demographic changes. For example, the history of human civilization includes many well-documented events, such as plague (Black Death of medieval Europe) and famine (Irish Famine of 1845–1847), that produced pronounced demographic changes in human populations. Working with DemographyLab, the following questions illustrate some examples.


1 .		Select the Population Structure view on the input screen of Demography Lab. Using the Country popup menu, examine the estimated 1998 population structure. Select the Fertility Rate view on the input screen of DemographyLab. Using the Country popup menu, examine the estimated 1998 fertility rates of each nation. (Try changing the scale to magnify these differences.) Do you see any trends for the fertility rates compared to the population structures? What are they?

2 .		Select the Population Structure view on the input screen of DemographyLab. Using the Country popup menu, examine the estimated 1998 population structure of the USA. Can you find the baby boomers?

3 .		Click the Run button and choose the Population Structure view. (You may wish to use the Scale button to make the differences in age structure more obvious.) Use the arrow buttons at the top of the view to advance the population structure forward in time. Follow the baby boom generation as they age. Compare the population in 1998 with the projected population for 2028. What do you think the social consequences will be for these changes? Provide at least three examples of social consequences that will result from these changes.

4 .		In 1980, China's government adopted a policy advocating one child per couple. Select the Population Structure view on the input screen of DemographyLab. Using the country popup menu, examine the estimated 1998 population structure of China. Can you see evidence of China's population policy?

5 .		Click the Run button and choose the Population Structure view. (Hint: You may wish to use the Scale button to make the differences in age structure more obvious.) Use the arrow buttons at the top of the view to advance the population structure forward in time by 5-year increments. What changes will occur in China's population structure as a result of its policy?

6 .		At the same time the baby boom was occurring in the United States, there was a "baby bust" in post-World War II Japan, when fertility rates decreased. Select the Population Structure view on the input screen of DemographyLab. Using the Country popup menu, examine the estimated 1998 population structure of Japan. Can you see evidence of the postwar baby bust? What has happened to fertility rates in Japan in recent years?

7 .		Click the Run button and choose the Population Structure view. (You may wish to use the Scale button to make the differences in age structure more obvious.) Use the arrow buttons at the top of the view to project the population structure forward in time. If you were a demographer, what advice or concerns would you have for Japan's government in planning for the future?