COMMUNICATING39.Agriculture increases the carrying capacity of
Earth for humans but, as some ecologists have
pointed out, it can also have negative effects
that lower the carrying capacity. Do you think
we should use all available forms of agricultural
technology to support a growing human
population? Or are there alternative methods
of securing sufficient food for the people of the
world? Hold a class debate to address this issue.
40.Think about or do research on the topic of
urban sprawl for a city of your choice. Doesthis city have an overall plan for growth? If so,
do you think this plan combats sprawl or
makes it worse? Explain your answer. Write a
letter to the mayor or city council commending
them on their plan or make suggestions about
how their plan might be improved.
41.Design your own city. How would you ensure
that its residents have sufficient resources to
maintain a good quality of life, while minimizing
negative environmental impacts? You might542 MHR • Unit 5 Population Dynamics
INQUIRY34.A particularly severe outbreak of bubonic
plague killed millions of humans in Europe
and Asia between 1348 and 1400. The deaths
of so many people had long-term social and
economic effects, and some historians argue
that it changed the world in many ways. Did
the plague have a significant impact on the
eventual size of the human population? The
table on the right shows estimates of world
population at the beginning of most centuries
from 1200 to 2000, as well as in 1348. How
might you determine the effect the plague has
had on the current size of the human
population? One approach might be to calculate
what the size of the current population might
have been had the plague not occurred, and
then compare it with the actual size of today’s
population. Outline a procedure to do this using
the equation Nt=N 0 ert(described in section
14.2). You may wish to perform the appropriate
calculations and then make the comparison.
(Hint: ln (Nt/N 0 )=rt) How large is the difference
between what the population of the world
might have been and what it actually is today?
35.Outline the sampling technique you might use
to determine the number of different tree species
and the density of each species in a 25-hectare
tract of forest.
36.Design an experiment that would help you
determine whether a certain level of resource
use is sustainable. You might decide to study
potential limits on the use of water, a fossil
fuel, wood, or some other resource.
37.How many people drive cars to your school?
Is this enough to have an impact on the
environment or are there too few cars to
matter? How would you determine the answer
to this question? What would you measure andhow would you weigh the advantages and
disadvantages of driving to school? Perform
some research and analysis sufficient to answer
this question.
38.Habitat restoration is a relatively new field of
study in which ecologists are attempting to
determine if it is possible to return degraded
habitats to their original state and, if so, how
this can be achieved. Consider a degraded
habitat in or near your city or town — perhaps
near your school. How would you determine
what this habitat was like originally — what
species it contained and the condition of the
various abiotic components? How might you
restore this habitat (as accurately as possible)
to its original state? How would you evaluate
your level of success? Work in teams or as a
class to design a plan for the restoration of
your chosen habitat. Then determine what
needs to be done, carry out the plan, and assess
the results.Year Population
1200
1300
1348
1400
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
2000(no reliable estimate available)