Question 1

Thomas Malthus would be most worried about
A) the movement of upper- and middle-class white residents out of cities and into suburbs.
B) new diseases for which antibiotics are ineffective.
C) the U.S. government refusing to fund international agencies that provide family planning services.
D) child labor laws that prohibit children from working.

Accepted Answer

Malthus was concerned about population growth outpacing agricultural production, leading to poverty and famine. He believed in limiting population growth through measures such as moral restraint, like delaying marriage and practicing abstinence. Therefore, he would be worried about the U.S. government refusing to fund international agencies that provide family planning services, which could help control population growth.

Question 2

A country has a population of 1,231,994 as of December 31, 2017. On December 31, 2018, you are tasked with calculating the growth rate over the year. The country experienced 128,240 births and 103,412 deaths. The net migration was 12,388. What was the growth rate?
A) 2.0 percent
B) 3.0 percent
C) 10.4 percent
D) 55.4 percent

Accepted Answer

B

Question 3

________ is the study of the size, composition, distribution, and change in a human population.
A) Environmental sociology
B) An ecological paradigm
C) Conservationism
D) Demography

Accepted Answer

Demography is the study of human population, including its size, composition, distribution, and changes. Environmental sociology focuses on the relationship between society and the natural environment, while an ecological paradigm examines the interconnections between living organisms and their environment. Conservationism is a political and social movement aimed at protecting natural resources and wildlife from destruction or depletion.

Question 4

In which year did the first United States Census take place?
A) 1780
B) 1790
C) 1850
D) 1890

Accepted Answer

The first United States Census took place in 1790.

Question 5

________ contributed to the rapid population growth in Europe around the time of Thomas Malthus in the eighteenth century.
A) The potato
B) Penicillin
C) The automobile
D) Better methods of contraception

Accepted Answer

The potato, which was introduced to Europe from South America in the late sixteenth century, became a staple food crop for many Europeans. With the addition of the potato to their diets, people were able to live longer and healthier lives, leading to a population boom in Europe during the eighteenth century.

Question 6

The population in the United States is growing even though fertility rates have dropped below the level needed to maintain the population level because
A) there has been a decrease in life expectancy.
B) the mortality rate is increasing.
C) there have been considerable advances in modern medicine.
D) immigration rates have risen.

Accepted Answer

Immigration rates have risen and therefore have contributed to the growth of the United States population even though fertility rates have dropped.

Question 7

The globe will have two billion more people living on it by the year 2050, according to the United Nations estimates. At that point, the population may actually shrink because, although life expectancy may continue to rise, the average number of children each person gives birth to is poised to drop below 2.1. What demographic variable might make the global population drop?
A) a return to agrarianism
B) fertility
C) race
D) immigration

Accepted Answer

The average number of children each person gives birth to, known as the fertility rate, dropping below 2.1 is the demographic variable that could cause the global population to drop.

Question 8

In the past seventy years, the Earth's population has
A) shrunk slightly.
B) peaked around twenty-five years ago and has been shrinking ever since.
C) increased by around 25 percent.
D) nearly tripled.

Accepted Answer

According to United Nations data, the world's population in 1950 was approximately 2.5 billion. As of 2020, the population has grown to over 7.8 billion, which is almost three times the 1950 population. Therefore, option D is the correct choice.

Question 9

North Dakota has experienced one of the highest population growth rates in the United States in the recent past due to an oil boom. Which demographic variable explains this?
A) fertility
B) migration
C) mortality
D) life span

Accepted Answer

Migration is the movement of people from one place to another. The population growth in North Dakota is due to the inflow of people moving into the state to work in the oil industry. Therefore, migration is the demographic variable that explains this growth.

Question 10

Which of the following is an example of a way to collect demographic data?
A) voluntary simplicity and recycling
B) organizing environmental activist groups to engage in direct actions
C) the U.S. Census Bureau sending out surveys
D) the Malthusian theorem

Accepted Answer

The U.S. Census Bureau sends out surveys to collect demographic data on population characteristics such as age, gender, race, income, education level, etc. This data is used for research, policy-making, and resource allocation. A and B are not related to demographic data collection, and D is a theory about population growth and resource scarcity, not a way to collect data.

Question 11

Which of the following would you expect to see happen in the future if the pattern of demographic transition that followed the Industrial Revolution in Europe and the United States is repeated in Africa?
A) increasing infant mortality rates
B) increasing mortality rates
C) decreasing immigration rates
D) decreasing mortality rates

Accepted Answer

The pattern of demographic transition that followed the Industrial Revolution in Europe and the United States involved a decrease in mortality rates due to improved healthcare and sanitation. Therefore, if the same pattern is repeated in Africa, we would expect to see decreasing mortality rates as well. The other answer choices are not consistent with this pattern.

Question 12

Japan has one of the world's highest life expectancies. However, it has experienced a net loss of population for many years, which is the result of declining birth and immigration rates. The population did rise in both 2008 and 2009, largely due to Japanese citizens abroad returning home. This data was likely analyzed by a
A) demographer.
B) social ecologist.
C) environmental sociologist.
D) nongovernmental organization.

Accepted Answer

A demographer is a social scientist who studies the characteristics of human populations, such as size, growth, and distribution. In this scenario, analyzing the trend of population growth and decline, and identifying the reasons behind it, is the job of a demographer. The other options, such as social ecologist, environmental sociologist, and nongovernmental organization, are not as relevant to this scenario.

Question 13

What is the net migration rate?
A) the number of deaths that can be expected per one thousand people in a given year
B) the average number of births per one thousand people in the total population
C) the average age to which a person can expect to live
D) the number of emigrants subtracted from the number of immigrants

Accepted Answer

The net migration rate is the difference between the number of immigrants (people moving into a country) and the number of emigrants (people moving out of a country). Therefore, choice D is the correct answer.

Question 14

Garrett Hardin believes that "a 'just' sharing of the world's wealth among all the inhabitants, without coercive control of individual reproduction, would result in a continual, exponential growth of the human population" and much more suffering. This means Hardin is a
A) grassroots organizer.
B) believer in sustainable development.
C) neo-Malthusian.
D) mainstream environmentalist.

Accepted Answer

Hardin's belief in the negative consequences of uncontrolled population growth aligns with the neo-Malthusian perspective, which advocates for population control measures to avoid overconsumption of resources and environmental degradation.

Question 15

Before the United States invaded Iraq, about 5.5 people out of every thousand would die each year, according to a controversial study published in the British medical journal The Lancet. After the invasion, that number rose to over 13. This study was attempting to measure
A) immigration.
B) suicide.
C) morbidity.
D) mortality.

Accepted Answer

The study was attempting to measure the change in the number of deaths (mortality) in Iraq before and after the United States invasion.

Question 16

Huge numbers of dispossessed U.S. farmers left places like Oklahoma and moved to California during the Great Depression of the 1930s. This is an example of
A) mortality.
B) internal colonization.
C) internal migration.
D) emigration.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of internal migration, as the movement was within the same country (U.S.) but to a different region (Oklahoma to California).

Question 17

According to demographers, Milwaukee is a ________ because it has over 500,000 inhabitants.
A) megacity
B) global city
C) metropolis
D) metropolitan statistical area (MSA)

Accepted Answer

Demographers classify Milwaukee as a metropolis because it has a population of over 500,000 people, which is typically the minimum threshold for a city to be considered a metropolis. A megacity typically has over 10 million inhabitants, and a global city is one that is considered a hub for international business and culture. A metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographic region that includes an urban center and its surrounding suburbs, and while Milwaukee is part of a larger MSA, the question specifically asks about its classification as a city.

Question 18

Which of the following net migration rates would indicate that an equal number of people entered and left a country in the same year?
A) 0
B) -1
C) 1
D) None of the above-a net migration rate cannot measure this.

Accepted Answer

A net migration rate of 0 indicates that the number of people entering the country is equal to the number of people leaving the country.

Question 19

________ is a basic demographic variable.
A) Agglomeration
B) Dystopia
C) Pluralism
D) Migration

Accepted Answer

Migration is a basic demographic variable that refers to the movement of people from one place to another. Agglomeration, dystopia, and pluralism are not demographic variables but concepts related to urbanization, social structure, and political ideology, respectively.

Question 20

Will the world population continue to grow, or will it eventually stabilize?
A) It will continue to grow until a disaster strikes that reduces the population.
B) It will continue to grow indefinitely, but new solutions for overpopulation will be found.
C) It will eventually stabilize, but not for many years.
D) We may not know the answer for many years.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Will the world population continue to grow,...

Quiz 15: Populations, Cities, and the Environment

Thomas Malthus would be most worried about

A country has a population of 1,231,994 as of December 31, 2017. On December 31, 2018, you are tasked with calculating the growth rate over the year. The country experienced 128,240 births and 103,412 deaths. The net migration was 12,388. What was the growth rate?

________ is the study of the size, composition, distribution, and change in a human population.

In which year did the first United States Census take place?

________ contributed to the rapid population growth in Europe around the time of Thomas Malthus in the eighteenth century.

The population in the United States is growing even though fertility rates have dropped below the level needed to maintain the population level because

In the past seventy years, the Earth's population has

North Dakota has experienced one of the highest population growth rates in the United States in the recent past due to an oil boom. Which demographic variable explains this?

Which of the following is an example of a way to collect demographic data?

Which of the following would you expect to see happen in the future if the pattern of demographic transition that followed the Industrial Revolution in Europe and the United States is repeated in Africa?

What is the net migration rate?

Garrett Hardin believes that "a 'just' sharing of the world's wealth among all the inhabitants, without coercive control of individual reproduction, would result in a continual, exponential growth of the human population" and much more suffering. This means Hardin is a

Before the United States invaded Iraq, about 5.5 people out of every thousand would die each year, according to a controversial study published in the British medical journal The Lancet. After the invasion, that number rose to over 13. This study was attempting to measure

Huge numbers of dispossessed U.S. farmers left places like Oklahoma and moved to California during the Great Depression of the 1930s. This is an example of

According to demographers, Milwaukee is a ________ because it has over 500,000 inhabitants.

Which of the following net migration rates would indicate that an equal number of people entered and left a country in the same year?

________ is a basic demographic variable.

Will the world population continue to grow, or will it eventually stabilize?