World Population

World population to reach 9.2 billion by 2050

2007-03-15T03:16:00.000-07:00

World population will likely reach 9.2 billion in 2050, with virtually all new growth occurring in the developing world. A UN report said the population will likely increase by 2.5 billion people over the next 43 years from the current 6.7 billion - a rise equivalent to the number of people in the world in 1950. According to the director of UN Population Division Hania Zlotnik, an important change in the new population estimate is a decrease in expected deaths from AIDS because of the rising use of anti-retroviral drugs and a downward revision of the prevalence of the disease in some countries. The new report estimates 32 million fewer deaths from AIDS during the 2005-2020 period in the 62 most affected countries, compared with the previous UN estimate in 2004.

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World Population Day special

2007-02-04T10:25:00.000-08:00

Every year on July 11, we celebrate World Population Day by organizing special events. The world has been observing World Population Day since July 11, 1987. On the occasion of the World Population day, executive director of UNFPA (United Nations Population Fund) Thoraya Ahmed Obaid said last year, "Equality is a goal that demands sustained political commitment and leadership. They include a higher quality of life for individual woman and girls, and stronger families, communities and countries." Today, poor and reproductive health is a leading cause of death and illness for women in the developing world. No other area of health reflects the large inequities between rich and poor, both among and within countries. Poverty and inequality also fuel the acceleration of HIV infection, because women lack power to negotiate their personal safety.

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FOCUS ON POPULATION CONTROL Upsetting tradition

2007-01-28T10:27:00.000-08:00

KAMPALA, UGANDA -- Uganda, like most of Africa, has been a target of population controllers for many years. Boxes of condoms are stacked in chiefs' offices for use in government dispensaries. Marie Stopes clinics offering vasectomies and abortions dot every sizeable township. But as the response has been disappointing, the UN Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) and the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) are trying another tack. .

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South Korea Leads World in Population Decline

2007-01-21T10:31:00.000-08:00

In the race to the birthrate bottom, it's always neck-and-neck. The anti-child behaviors of Western and Westernized societies have been worsening so quickly that new lows get set all the time. In their quest for self-destruction, Italy, Spain, and Japan have often competed for first place. But there could be a new winner in town. According to her government, South Korea's total fertility rate has reached an unprecedentedly dismal 1.08. Replacement rate is 2.1. Yes, South Koreans are halving their numbers with each generation, for now. What's to prevent that 1.08 turning into 0.9 in a few years, especially as the population's rapid aging continues and a greater and greater proportion of South Korea's women are past child-bearing age? So after decades of trying to coerce women into having fewer children, the government is doing an about-face.

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Hunters decide the doe population must decrease

2007-01-14T10:32:00.000-08:00

When it comes to discussing changes in our hunting and fishing regulations, a crowd is sure to gather. So it was last Tuesday night at the Enid Central Fire Station with more than 50 in attendance. The topic that drew the most discussion was managing our deer herds.It took years, but hunters finally are realizing that doe harvest is what is needed to manage our deer population. Twenty to 30 years ago, hunters were told to bypass the does and take a buck. That was well and good when we needed to increase our deer population, but in this day and age we need to harvest our doe population to maintain a healthy deer herd and reduce the growing population. Several good ideas were brought up in the meeting.One of these ideas was to require a doe be harvested and checked in before a buck tag could be issued.

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World's future population: stabilized, older

2007-01-07T10:29:00.000-08:00

DB: This is Earth & Sky. Experts predict that in the next half century, Earth's population overall will become more stable and older. JB: But first, world population is expected to grow from 6.5 billion people on Earth today to about 9.1 billion by 2050. That's according to Joel Cohen, Professor of Populations at the Rockefeller University and Columbia University in New York City. Cohen told Earth & Sky that, over the last 45 years, fertility rates have been dropping worldwide. DB: On average, women in developing countries now bear about three children in a lifetime. That's twice the number of children as in the developed countries. JB: Fertility rates are dropping as women gain access to education. Combined with a near-doubling of average life expectancy, these trends indicate that the population of tomorrow will be, in general, older.

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One-third of world’s population suffers from celebrity worship ...

2006-12-31T10:35:00.000-08:00

Celebrity worship has been identified as one of the most common ways of idolatry these days. Researchers report that about one third of people (thanks to daily gossip columns in the tabloids and ubiquitous celebrity news in the media) suffer from Celebrity Worship Syndrome, an actual syndrome that can become obsessional, replacing conventional relations. There are three stages of the disease. A fan shows a lively interest in a celebrity at the first stage. Perhaps a fan's interest gets far too lively since the person becomes addicted to information on his idol's private life. He begins to avidly pay attention to all kinds of news relating to his idol e.g. wardrobe items or details of the latest fall-out between the star and his producer etc. Fans feel anxiety and tension and may develop depression if the flow of information on a star's life runs dry temporarily.

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Two percent of world affluent population lives in South Korea: UN ...

2006-12-24T10:27:00.000-08:00

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 (Yonhap) -- Two percent of the world's wealthiest 10 percent of adults are in South Korea, a country at the high end among rich countries of the Asia-Pacific region, a U.N. report released Tuesday said. South Koreans, like those in other Asian nations, preferred to amass their wealth in savings accounts, unlike people in the West, who mostly held shares and equities and other types of financial assets, said the report titled "The World Distribution of Household Wealth." South Korea has 0.77 percent of the world population, and its per capita mean wealth, in terms of purchasing power, is US$45,849, according to the report published by the Helsinki-based World Institute for Development Economics Research of the U.N. University. The country's household wealth as of the year 2000 is comprised of 61 percent in liquid assets, 18 percent in shares and equities, and 21 percent in other financial assets such as insurance, pension reserves and other accounts receivable. By comparison, U.S.

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Stewart Island yellow eyed penguin population decimated

2006-12-12T10:27:00.000-08:00

Stewart Island's yellow-eyed penguin chick population has been decimated after the worst breeding season on record saw just one chick out of 32 survive. Brent Beaven from the Department says the shocking death rate is a blow to everyone on the Island. He says it is not yet known why the chicks have died, but samples have been sent to Massey Univeristy for testing. Mr Beaven says chick numbers have been declining for several years, but they have never lost almost the entire chick population. Yellow Eyed Penguin Trust spokesperson Sue Murray says the disastrous season highlights the need for more research, but with funding set to stop next year, the programme's future and that of the island's penguin population hangs in the balance. .

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Population growth, not trees, threatens our quality of life

2006-11-28T10:29:00.000-08:00

Your coverage on urban tree-cutting is timely. It has to do with how we live and how we would like to live. While aware of urban growth boundaries surges, it is suggested that one of the culprits might be trees (Ken Nolan's comments in your Nov. 23 article). It would seem that expanding populations are the real threat. And that's a threat we must plan for, reckon with and not blame trees any more than we are inclined to blame sea lions for diminishing salmon runs. The writer Tom Robbins had a passage in one of his Northwest books which said of men who manipulate the environment, "perhaps they suffered that secret shame; like those men who break horses and dam rivers." We might, to that, add another category. Though Mr. Nolan states that "it's an inefficient use of land to save trees," efficiency usually does not consider comfort, aesthetics and the well-being of the citizenry.

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World Cup 2010 flights threat to bird population

2006-11-21T10:28:00.000-08:00

Travellers flying to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa could be a threat to millions of swallows, an international bird conservation group has said. Proposals for a new flight-path and airport extension in the roosting area of millions of Barn Swallows, could leave as much as one per cent of the world's population of the species with no where to roost. This represents as much as eight per cent of the European breeding population of the birds. The site, 20 kilometres north of Durban is also a tourist attraction in itself, with bird-watchers gathering to see the swallows' seasonal arrival. "This is one of South Africa's great wildlife spectacles," said Di Dold, environmental coordinator for the wildlife and environment society of South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal Region. "The swallow's arrival to these grounds is an emblem of the seasons.

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Iraq immigration swells Swedish population

2006-11-14T10:28:00.000-08:00

Sweden's population has grown considerably so far this year. Immigration is the main source of the growth, with Iraq one of the main sources of immigrants. So far, the population has increased by 55,799 people, the largest rise since 1994, taking Sweden comfortably clear of the nine million mark at 9,103,551. .

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Second Life, a virtual world, has a booming population, economy

2006-11-07T10:29:00.000-08:00

Second Life is a place where people and companies pay millions for exclusive real estate, designer clothes and luxury vehicles. Nothing is real, though, except for the money. In this online world, residents can create new, improved, digital versions of their lives. After selecting and customizing an on-screen persona, called an avatar, users can choose to become a tall, buff young man or a shapely woman. Some will select furry animals or feathery creatures to represent them "in-world." Ultimately, many learn to socialize with other avatars, build houses and fly around the digital landscape. Launched in 2003, Second Life appears to be the Internet's next big thing. Recently, it logged its millionth resident. The online service has features similar to "The Sims," the all-time best-selling computer game series.

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DNR releases deer population forecast

2006-10-24T11:30:00.000-07:00

Minnesota's Firearm deer hunting season is less than two weeks away and the DNR is releasing its forecast that should tell you where the deer will be this November. Chad Butler has hunted all over the state of Minnesota, but he has his own idea of where in the state the bucks will be this year. "I'd say southeast for trophy bucks," Butler told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS. "But, I think it's going to be good all over." DNR wildlife managers say Butler is exactly right."We're going to be able to issue extra permits in many areas of the state this year," said Dennis Simon, who studies deer population numbers for the Minnesota DNR. He said the recent mild winters, increased availability of food, and fewer hunters means there will be more deer this year than ever. Simon said that populations are so extreme in the far southeastern, northwestern and northeastern parts of the state, that some hunters may be allowed to bring home five deer each.

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Candidates trade ideas on how to pay for population

2006-10-19T01:17:00.000-07:00

YUCCA VALLEY - The Republican Women Federated staged the first of this election cycle's Town Council candidate forums Monday night. Eight of nine candidates running are registered Republican and were, therefore, present. Only the Independent candidate, Reggie McAtee, had not been invited and was absent.President of the club Laurine Silver said the forum's goal was to &#8220give audience members the answers they need to make decisions at the polls," and went on to observe that in her club's estimation, &#8220this is an extremely important race."Several candidates, in fact, repeated this estimate in their own comments.All candidates were given two minutes for opening remarks. Following this, event chairperson Anne Sholtz asked a series of questions, giving candidates two minutes for response to each.

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300 million and counting

2006-10-19T01:16:00.000-07:00

Future. Its 1972 report was prescient. It said immigration would impact U.S. population growth significantly by 2000 -- and it has. It warned that unless we made wiser choices about where people lived, population growth's consequences would multiply -- they have. It predicted that 85 percent of Americans would live in urban areas by 2000 -- 79 percent did. But with Vietnam, Watergate, and the presidential campaign, the 1972 report was largely ignored, and today, we still struggle with the same issues. Population growth affects air, water, food, economy, living standards, social services, political rights. Some aspects of growth are positive, such as a larger workforce and consumer market helping us compete with Asia. Some are negative, such as environmental damage, sprawl, resource scarcity and higher risks of conflict.

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Historically Black Colleges Recruit Growing Hispanic Population

2006-10-19T01:15:00.001-07:00

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Recruiters from historically black colleges and institutions in North Carolina are now targeting Hispanics for their classes. The recruiters say a demographic shift that's resulted in more Hispanics than blacks in the United States means they must try to enroll Hispanics in order not to deplete enrollments. Bennett College director of admissions Ulisa Bowles said the school won't have enough students if there's only one population. Bowles said the next population to draw the school's attention is Hispanics. .

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New Milestone in America's Population

2006-10-19T01:15:00.000-07:00

The milestone is fueled by a growing number of births and immigrants, and is causing many people to take a closer look at who we are, and where the country is headed. At Wesley Medical Center, a child is born almost every hour. Nationwide, there is a birth every seven seconds, somebody dies every 13 seconds, and two new immigrants arrive every minute. Xavier and Anthony are two of Wichita's newest additions; between the time each were born, at approximately 6:45 a.m. central time, the population reached 300 million. The number and time are U.S. Census Bureau estimates. There are thousands of children born in recent days who could be the true 300-millionth. Even if we never know who the true 300-millionth person is, Census takers predict he is probably a Latino boy, born in California.

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China Introduces New Population Control Measures

2006-10-19T01:14:00.002-07:00

Troubled by rapid population growth, China will offer financial incentives in an effort to control its population rise. With its strict one-child policy already in place for nearly three decades, the Beijing government has managed to decrease its population rise by 400 million. Beijing introduced the one-child policy in late 1970's to control population rise in urban areas. Starting from next year, the government will now pay parents in rural areas 600 yuan ($75) to encourage them to have fewer children. The government has fined those violating the rule, although some exceptions have been allowed in rural areas owing to the lack of employment in agriculture. However, the government had to take new measures as the birth rate has recently started to rise again.

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As US Population Increases, So Does Life Expectancy

2006-10-19T01:14:00.001-07:00

Break out the balloons and confetti. The nation's population reached a new milestone Tuesday -- 300 million -- according to the U.S. Census Bureau. If the idea of living in an increasingly crowded country doesn't put you in a celebratory mood, consider this: The dramatic rise in population over the last century has been accompanied by an even more phenomenal rise in life expectancy. When the U.S. population reached 100 million in 1915, the average lifespan was 54 years. When we hit 200 million in 1967, it was around 70. Today, the average lifespan of someone living in the U.S. is just months shy of 78, and there is little reason to think that we won't continue to push the life expectancy envelope. "Life expectancy worldwide has been rising pretty steadily since 1840, at a rate of about two years per decade," Daniel Perry, who is executive director of the Alliance for Aging Research, tells WebMD.

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Graying gays find helping hands As population ages, service ...

2006-10-19T01:14:00.000-07:00

Once a week, Luis Oropeza and Jimmy Ho get together and discuss theater, art, social work -- their mutual careers -- and a host of other topics. Each brings his own experience to the conversation: Oropeza has introduced Ho to Bay Area theater, and Ho shows him aspects of Chinese and Asian culture. Both men also are gay and enjoy analyzing and sharing their impressions of gay culture. The ease of their lunchtime conversations, often in the Fillmore district near Oropeza's Cathedral Hill apartment, belies their vast difference in age: Oropeza is 63 years old; Ho is 26. Their weekly meetings are part of one program among several cropping up across the country to address the needs of aging lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people among the first generation to meet wide acceptance when they declared their sexual orientation.

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US Population Passes 300-Million Milestone

2006-10-19T01:13:00.001-07:00

The population of the United States officially passed the 300 million mark on Tuesday (October 17). While it took almost two centuries for the U.S. population to reach 200 million, it took just 40 years to add the last 100 million. The number of people living in America almost tripled in the 20th century, with most of that growth coming just since the 1960s. The United States is now the third most populous nation in the world, behind China and India. A baby is born in the U.S. every 14 seconds. The current U.S. population growth rate -- about one percent annually or three million new mouths to feed every year-- is moderate compared to many countries in the developing world. Still, the growth is fueling public debate about the pressures a larger population will put on America's environment, energy resources and social fabric.

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President Bush welcomes expanding US population

2006-10-19T01:13:00.000-07:00

President George W. Bush welcomed the expanding US population yesterday, which hit the 300 million mark on Tuesday, as fresh evidence the "American Dream" remains a beacon of hope. "Our continued growth is a testament to our country's dynamism and a reminder that America's greatest asset is our people," Bush said in a statement. The population landmark caps four decades of growth fueled mainly by Hispanics and other immigrants, the Census Bureau said. The 300 millionth American clocked in at 7:45am on Tuesday, the bureau said, and could have been a newborn, an immigrant coming across the border or someone flying into the US. When the official population clock hit the big figure, bureau employees cheered, clapped and joked about whether the actual resident was male or female.

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Population pains: Slow-growth activists warn that Portland will ...

2006-10-19T01:12:00.001-07:00

Andy Kerr, who's fought population growth for years, posed a question to his like-minded audience: "Does anyone here want to become another California?" A chorus of "no" erupted from the 50 people at Portland's Ecotrust building Monday, on the eve of the population in the United States hitting the 300 million mark. "Then the question should be on the table," continued Kerr, an Ashland environmentalist, "when do we stop growing to prevent that?" "About 10 years ago!" one man called. Advocates of slowing or stopping population gains happened to host a town hall in Portland this week, while the rest of the country is paying attention. But for groups such as Washington, D.C.-based Population Connection, the sponsor, stabilizing the number of world residents is a full-time job.

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Study: BPL population up in Delhi, Maha and Haryana

2006-10-19T01:12:00.000-07:00

NEW DELHI: A National Sample Survey Organisation's study suggests that while economic growth is trickling down very slowly, poverty has declined the sharpest in the poorer states. Leading them were Assam and the north-eastern states, where people below the poverty line decreased by nearly 4% annually, followed by Jharkhand (2.51% a year during the five-year period), Chhattisgarh (2.15% a year) and Bihar (1.69%). Apart from the slow reduction of poverty, government also seems worried about a lower decrease in poverty ratios in urban areas, compared to rural areas. BPL population in rural areas decreased 4.68% between 1999-2000 and 2004-05, which was over twice the pace of the decrease in urban centres, estimated at 2.12%. The trend of slower poverty reduction in urban areas, say economists, could be due to migration of the poor from rural areas.

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