Advanced Placement Environmental Science Population Unit

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the number and proportion of people at each age in a population

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age structure

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a graphic representation that shows the distribution by ages of females and males within a certain population

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age structure diagram

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the large wave of births that followed World War II, from 1945 to 1962

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Baby Boom

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the maximum rate at which a population could increase under ideal conditions

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biotic potential

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the number of births per 1,000 people per year

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birth rate

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the maximum number of individuals of a given species that a particular environment can sustainably (long term), assuming there are no changes in that environment

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carrying capacity

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the number of deaths per 1,000 people per year

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death rate

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the process whereby a country moves from relatively high birth and death rates to relatively low birth and death rates

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demographic transition

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the applied branch of sociology that deals with population statistics; provides information on the populations of various countries or groups of people

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demographics

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the science of population

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demography

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an environmental factor whose effects on a population change as population density changes; density-dependent factors tend to retard population growth as population density increases and enhance population growth as population density decreases

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density-dependent factor

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an environmental factor that affects the size of a population but is not influenced by changes in population density

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density-independent factor

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an industrialized country that is characterized by a low fertility rate, low infant mortality rate, and high per-capita income

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developed country

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a country not highly industrialized and characterized by a high fertility rate, high infant mortality rate, and low per-capita income

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developing country

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the movement of individuals among populations, from one region or country to another

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dispersal

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the amount of time it takes for a population to double in size, assuming that its current rate of increase doesn’t change

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doubling time

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a type of dispersal in which individuals leave a population and thus decrease its size

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emigration

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limits set by the environment that prevent organisms from reproducing indefinitely at their biotic potential; includes the limited availability of food, water, shelter, and other essential resources, as well as limits imposed by disease and predation

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environmental resistance

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the accelerating population growth that occurs when optimal conditions allow a constant rate of increase over a period of time

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exponential population growth

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widespread starvation caused by drastic shortage of food

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famine

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the rate of change of a population’s size, expressed in percent per year

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growth rate

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a type of dispersal in which individuals enter a population and thus increase its size

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immigration

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the federal statue in the United States that, in conjunction with treaties and other federal laws, governs immigration issues in the United States

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Immigration and Nationality Act

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the basic immigration law in effect in the United States that gives three groups of people priority when migrating to the United States: those with family members living in the United States, those who can fill vacant jobs, and those who are refugees seeking asylum

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Immigration Reform and Control Act

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the third stage of demographic transition; in the third industrial stage, birth rates are lowered, death rates are low, and population growth slows

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industrial stage

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the number of infant deaths per 1,000 live births

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infant mortality rate

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a reproductive strategy in which a species typically has a large body size, slow development, long life span, and does not devote a large proportion of its metabolic energy to the production of offspring

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K selection

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the process by which dissolved materials (nutrients or contaminants) are washed away or filtered down through the various layers of the soil

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leaching

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a developing country with a low level of industrialization, a very high fertility rate, a very high infant mortality rate, and a very low per-capita income (relative to highly developed countries)

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less developed country

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a condition caused when a person does not receive enough specific essential nutrients in the diet

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malnutrition