‭1.‬ I‭n 10,000 BCE, fewer than a Billion people lived on earth.

Around 1800 CE, the human population had‬

‭grown to under a billion.‬

‭2.‬ ‭What forces did Thomas Malthus theorize would check the population of humans?‬

‭Predators, Starvation, Climate, epidemics‬

‭a.‬ ‭How have humans traditionally dealt with some of these forces?‬
‭Adapting‬
‭b.‬ ‭For Malthus, uncontrolled Reproduction was the central problem‬
‭c.‬ ‭What did Malthus call his theory of history?‬
‭The cycle of misery‬
‭d.‬ ‭How did Malthusian theory play a role in the Irish Potato Famine of 1846-1851?‬
‭Aid was prevented from reaching Ireland‬

‭3.‬ F‭ rom 1750 to 1850, the number of humans on Earth grew from about 800 million to 1.3 billion. By‬
‭1960, the population reached 3 billion. And since then, the world has added a billion humans roughly‬
‭every 15 years. Sometime in 2009 or 2010, the United Nations estimates that the Earth’s 7 billionth‬
‭person was born.‬

‭4.‬ ‭What two major revolutions in food production were occurring during Malthus’ lifetime?‬

‭ hinese farmers optimized the production of crops‬

C
‭Selective breeding‬

‭5.‬ T‭ he most important innovation of Europe’s agricultural revolution was largely invisible—it was the‬
‭decision to treat land as private property.‬

‭a.‬ O
‭ nly through historical hindsight do we know that private property Accelerated incentives to‬
‭experiment with new methods of food production, which dramatically increased the amount of‬
‭food produced.‬

‭6.‬ ‭ hy was Malthus wrong about his theory/prediction?‬

W
‭ e did not take into account how successful we would be at adapting to environmental constraints.‬
H

‭Malthusian Theory‬

‭Malthus’ Claim: Population growth will always tend to outrun the food supply‬
 ‭▪‬ ‭ opulation grows exponentially while food output only grow arithmetically. This would result in a food shortage‬
P
‭and famine due to overpopulation.‬

‭▫‬ ‭Exponentially: 2, 4, 8, 16‬

‭▫‬ ‭Arithmetically: 1, 2, 3, 4‬

‭Criticisms of Malthusian Theory‬

‭1.‬ ‭Factors that have slowed population growth:‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Greater health care‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Right of women‬
‭2.‬ ‭Factors that have increased the efficiency of farming:‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Crop Rotation‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Hybrid Seeds‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Technology‬
‭3.‬ ‭New Technologies and Inventions:‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭More efficient travel to deliver food to a wider range of consumers without spoiling.‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Fridges as well as homes to preserve food.‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Preserve food for longer time periods.‬

‭ eo-Malthusians‬
N
‭Neo = new‬
▪‭ ‬ ‭Concerns about a large population size - the earth’s resources cannot only sustain a finite (limited) population.‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Decreasing birth rates in developed countries‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭________________________________________‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Global Warming, Desertification, pollution of air and water, etc.‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Overconsumption‬
▫‭ ‬ ‭Famine & Starvation‬