Whee Do Most People Live?

1. Locate the world's 3 largest populations concentrations. On the map and circle the 3 areas that you believe are most populated.

2. Study the map above carefully and describe the physical features which tend to coincide with where people live. Use the maps below to help you. What are the physical features that best describe where population is most concentrated AND the physical features where few people live? Eventually, you should be able to do this with each realm that we will study.

Location of the world's major rivers

Location of the World's Major Mountains (H Climates)

World Climates

(See answers below.)

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Answers:

The world's three largest population clusters include:
(total world population: almost 6 billion)

• East Asia (approx. 1.7 billion people or 28% of the world's population)
• South Asia (approx. 1.4 billion, 23 % )
• Europe (approx. 700 million 12%)

  

These three areas contain about 63%, or almost two thirds, of the world's population.

As was discussed in an online lecture, a useful set of physical criteria which describe where people live would include the following:

1. near coasts
2. along rivers / near fresh water
3. flat terrain
4. temperate (C) climates (55% of pop.)
5. fertile soil (river valleys, volcanic soils, other)

You may want to review each map and compare each with the map of where people live. I repeat, with each realm that we will study this semester you should see if these five criteria help explain where most people live or if there are exceptions to these criteria and why.

For the Online lecture see: 5 reasons why.

Finally, many students say that most people tend to live in cities. Even if this were true, we would still have to then explain the physical features of WHERE the cities are located. I think you will find that the five criteria listed above are quite useful, especially for the less developed areas of the world.