Answer the following questions.
(i) Why are people considered a resource?
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Answer: People are the greatest resource of a nation. All other resources of nature become significant only when people extract their usefulness. It is people with their demands and abilities that turn them into resources. Hence, human resource is the ultimate resource.
(ii) What are the causes for the uneven distribution of population in the world?
Answer: Population distribution in the world is uneven because of two factors, Geographical and Social.
Geographical factors include
- Topography: People prefer living on plains rather than mountains and plateaus because these areas are suitable for farming, manufacturing and service activities. The Ganga Plains are the most densely populated area in the world, while mountains like the Andes, Alps and Himalayas are sparsely populated.
- Water: People prefer living in areas where fresh water is easily available. The river valleys of the world are the densely populated regions, while deserts have a less population.
Social factors include
- Social: Areas of better housing, education and health facilities are more densely populated. (For example, Pune)
- Economic: Industrial areas provide employment opportunities. A large number of people are attracted to these areas. Osaka in Japan and Mumbai in India are two densely populated areas.
(iii) The world population has grown very rapidly. Why?
Answer: The world population has not been stable and has increased manifold due to advancements in science and technology. Science and technology have increased food production, and development in healthcare facilities has helped in reducing the death rate.
(iv) Discuss the role of any two factors influencing population change.
Answer: Two factors influencing the change in population are the birth rate and death rate. The birth rate is the number of births per 1,000 people, and the death rate is the number of deaths per 1,000 people. Birth and death are the natural causes of population change. When the birth rate is more than the death rate, it means that the population is increasing and vice-versa. The difference between the birth rate and the death rate of a country is called the natural growth rate.
(v) What is meant by population composition?
Answer: Population composition refers to the structure of the population. The composition of the population helps us know how many are males or females, which age group they belong to, how educated they are, what type of occupations they are employed in and what their income levels and health conditions are. An interesting way of studying the population composition of a country is by looking at the population pyramid, also called an age-sex pyramid.
(vi) What are population pyramids? How do they help in understanding the population of a country?
Answer: The graphical representation used to study the composition of a country’s population is called the population pyramid. It shows the total population divided into various age groups, the percentage of the total population subdivided into males and females and the number of dependents in a country. When the population of a country has high birth and death rates, the population pyramid is broad at the base and narrow towards the top.