World Populations and Development
1.) The Neolithic and Industrial Revolutions
The two changes in the use of the earth's resources that had the greatest effect on the world population were the neolithic and the industrial revolutions.
The neolithic revolution (a.k.a. agricultural revolution) was a change in the way of life of our ancestors. It took place about 8000 years ago among various tribes in Asia and the Middle East. It included a transition from foraging and hunting to the domestication of animals (most probably starting with the dog) and to farming. Tribes settled in fertile areas and formed agricultural communities many of which grew into villages and cities. This relatively stable way of life and the more reliable food supply (and surplus) led to the development of new professions, to labor specialization and ultimately to the stratification of these societies. Improved conditions of life led to somewhat longer life spans. Nevertheless population growth remained low due to high infant mortality rates. The impact of the neolithic revolution was not as much on immediate population growth (even though it did have a long term impact on population growth) as on the material and spiritual development of the human race. It is widely regarded as the beginning of civilization. Industrial revolution was another process of change. It was the process of substituting muscle power with machine power. It took place in the 18th century in Europe and is still happening in many parts of the world. In many characteristics it has been similar to the neolithic revolution: it increased production, it led to the use of resources that had been mostly unused until then and it improved the overall quality of life. It also led to changes in the structure of society.
What was different, was its impact on population growth. It was quick and easily noticeable. Advanced sanitation, hygiene and medicine led to longer life spans and declining death rates, with the birth rates remaining high. This resulted in a high rate of population growth that still continues in many countries. The information revolution is the process of change that began in the second half of the 20th century in the developed countries of the world. It is the process of substituting "brain power" with "machine power". It leads to increased production and has the potential to create a more even distribution of the world's population on the surface of the earth. It also has the potential to decrease the differences between the less developed and the highly developed nations of the world. Then again it also has the potential to increase those differences. It causes changes in the structure of society.
twentieth centuries. At the turn of the century, the U.S. had faced countless problems as the
3. Point of view: The novel is written in third person. The novel is written in the past tense. The narrator is omniscient and mainly sticks to who the chapter is focused on in the novel. There are no shifts of view. The author achieves a voice that knows what each of the characters are feeling, sensing, hearing that it gives the novel a better experience in reading it. Hi...
...ced back to the changes in society, economy, and politics during the two decades of 1900 and 1920.
During the last 40 years of the nineteenth century the United States became the worlds greatest economic power. The rapid rate of economic growth happened for a
...more money to spend on luxuries. This demand of luxuries resulted in the formulation and development of new industries to meet the demand. “English manufacturers created a new, and more profitable cloth-manufacturing industry based on the power of water mills, rather than cheap labor that was no longer available.”
...children to have the smallpox vaccination. Towns began building pure water systems and sewer systems, creating a much cleaner environment.
during this time brought about huge gains in productivity. Wether it was the power loom, steam
The new settlements helped the population to grow quickly. Farmers were able to have and maintain larger families. The changes in technology helped move modern man into the Bronze Age.
During the Twentieth-Century, there were several dramatic economic changes and events. Going from being a complete agricultural nation to being an industrial super, enduring a great depression, having a civil rights movement and so many more, the 20th Century carries the names of some of the world’s most important events. Although history has flourished with all of its game changers, the solute most important event of the 1900’s was World War 2. The second world war, just decades after the first, “was the most widespread and deadliest war in history, involving more than 300 countries and resulting in more than 50 million military and civilian dead,” according to History.com. After World War I had ended, the peace settlement known as the Treaty of Versailles, created in 1919, had a purpose of obligating Germany to relinquish territories to Belgium, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. However these new territories were very susceptible to aggression from its neighboring countries, Germany and the Soviet Union. During this time there was still a great deal of tension between the countries/ territories. Italy and Japan viewed the treaty as a failure to acknowledge the status of the two’s world powers. Also Germans saw that rather than being defeated at the close of World War I, they were betrayed. With the economy being exceptionally deprived and a great deal of political instability, this set the stage for dictatorships that according to Twentieth-Century America “offered territorial expansion by military conquest as a way to redress old rivalries, dominate trade and gain access to raw materials”. Countries such as Japan began making use of propaganda’s stressing that Japans “greatness” must be reassured. Italy’s Fascist dictator, Benito Mus...
It created new opportunities to improve the diet and expand the markets which shape every day life in Europe and this was the backdrop to a phenomena which later will be called INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION from 1760 to 1820-40.
...e brought declining death rates. Diseases that would wipe out hundreds of thousands of people are now non-existent. We now give more care to the elderly causing longer and fuller life spans. While in the early nineteenth century farming was all done by hand and pull plows, mechanized farmers are now getting more food out of an acre of land than Malthus ever could have imagined. These changes and more have really altered the way population growth occurs naturally.
14. Southwick pp. 130-131. He lists "deforestation, overgrazing, intensive burning, over-cropping, land scarring, and extravagant use of irrigation" which had consequences such as "increased erosion, soil loss, declining water tables, salination…reduced atmospheric humidity and cloud cover, increased heat reflectivity, and lower amounts of rainfall."
With assembly being divided among a surplus of unskilled, untrained laborers, products were churned out to the masses faster than ever, albeit of mediocre quality. More available product meant less cost for the product, which meant that many more people could now afford these new products and goods. Machinery was of great help to the flow of the work as well, though the incessant consumption of coal by said machinery meant that the environment took a large hit from the resulting pollution.
About fifty thousand years ago, the human cultures started to be more and more similar to modern culture. The hominids killed animals not only to feed themselves but also for the production of clothing (Pickrell, 2006). The hominids had the sense of shame. They used hides to cover their body. Besides, the hominids have the thought to bury their companions (Pickrell, 2006). It is an idea of group or family. With the final formation of human society, people developed and valued quickly. The oldest cave painting had more than thirty-three thousand years’ history (Pickrell, 2006). It is the proof of original humans’ pursuit of art. Almost ten thousand years ago, the systematic agriculture appeared, developed and spread with an amazing speed (Pickrell, 2006). Humans started to plant cereal and raise and train livestock. After that, the Bronze Age carried on the Stone Age (Pickrell, 2006). The change of tool materials helped people have higher efficiency when they were working. At the same time, the first recorded human culture appeared in Mesopotamia (Pickrell, 2006). Until this time point, human beings finished their evolution from ancient apes to modern humans. The process, which had experienced more than hundreds million years, was the most wonderful evolution on the
Overpopulation is a growing problem all over the world. This is a very important environmental issue and needs to be dealt with. This environmental problem is affecting many countries in the world, but mostly the poor and impoverished countries that don’t have the resources to help deal with these issues. It also affects the environment like plants animal life and air quality. When the population of people expands we need more natural resources from the environment, so we consume more then we can produce. This leads to the lack of resources in many areas. When expanding we create a lot of pollution in the air, water, and land. The pollution affects many humans health. Overpopulation is doing more harm than any other environmental issue. Overpopulation also causes many of the other issues we are dealing with. This is very dangerous to not only us humans but the planet. Even though many wealthy countries are not affected by this overpopulation, I feel like they should help the cause. There is always two sides to an issue like this. Some people don’t think that overpopulation is a big problem and the ones who say it is an issue that needs to be dealt with.