Literature Review

 William Ogilvie

English 102

Prof. Sonia Apgar Begert

Literature Review

            The topic that I am researching is “Global Human Overpopulation”. The basic purpose of this research project is to determine our current status, analyze contributing factors, solutions, and looking forward into the future. We will explore data, reasoning, ethics, and much more to find out why we are asking this question. Also, I shall be finding conclusive definitions for the terms that we commonly use(such as the real meaning of “Overpopulation”). It should be mentioned that this basic outline within this intro does not encompass all of my research and findings. I shall explore my topic in five sections, in which I will summarize my research as it stands now. These five sections form what I would call a rough design for how I will do my final document. Not to mention sources that I 

may drop in lieu of something stronger.

            I would first like to make a point about the main issue being discussed. The effects of “Overpopulation”, as quoted from the Institute for Population Studies, are “…shortages of all our resources, war and social conflict, limits on personal freedom, overcrowding and the health and survival of other species”. This immediately catches my attention, especially since this isn’t only an issue in a 3^rd world country, but something happening in our own nation today. I’ll specific examples, and cite statistics about the USA, and I’ll even talk about our own community(Seattle area). I will be providing data for reference from the US Census and compare those numbers with the historical data from Index Mundi to show the growth from significant points in American history. Also, I’ll use the document from the United Nations titled World Population to 2300, of which predicts future population trends. I’ll use the data from that to create a timeline that will show the reader that this issue is close to home. The journal that Jie Zong, and Jeanne Batalova wrote titled Frequently Requested Statistics on immigrants and immigration in the United States will provide me with additional information about population growth that isn’t from birth. They say that our current largest growth is from immigration. One question that will be binding all of these topics together will be a simple question: Can the earth continue to sustain us as we grow?

            Since we just covered the basis of what overpopulation is, we need to now look at how we stand currently. It will be here that I reference the World Factbook from the CIA, and talk about the current countries that are the highest in growth, population count, poverty, economy and so on. I will look at the current condition of said countries and present findings that I find peculiar and enlightening. I will also reference each country’s history with facts that flesh out the backstory of how matters came to be. The source I’ll be using for the historical backgrounds is the web resource from the Annenberg Learner Foundation called World Population growth through history. Another good complimentary source would be from Our World in Data, a web publication authored by Max Roser. The first source I listed will give me information about population solely, while the later source will allow me to look at religion, politics, war, and etc. Much of this information will also be supported by charts and graphs that are featured from Our World in Data.

            In the previous section I would have made several points about issues plaguing not only these high density nations, but also every other country as well. In this section I would focus on these issues themselves, and how they came to be. I will be referencing the World Health Organization, United Nations, and The Hunger Project. Such subjects would include hunger, where food is grown, what is hindering agriculture. How accessible is water, how clean it is, what are the leading causes of shortages. Poverty, what is the definition of true poverty, distribution of wealth, average living conditions. Areas of conflict, places previously ravaged by war, future conflict zones. Disease, what is curable and not curable, why certain diseases spread. I will also be talking about the plethora of aid services that are combatting these ailment. I would like to capitalize on recent events to write about the influx of immigrants from Syria. I think this is a fantastic example of what happens when a large group suddenly merges with another nation’s population.

            Regardless of how much people are on this planet, it would be a pointless argument if this planet were to become uninhabitable. I’m referring to climate change, and the overall outlook of the future. I will cover pollution, emissions, and  Nasa has many visuals regarding the changing climate, like shrinking ice caps, expansion of deserts, water rising and water vanishing, and that’s only naming a few. A journal that I will be referring to quite a bit will be the one written by Charles J. Vörösmarty, and other respective authors, which is about global water resources. It is a well known fact that our supply of fresh water is constantly under threat, with many different factors to blame. The recent water shortage in California will be my “close to home” example of the dangers of a water shortage. Another interesting topic I will be talking about will be the Antarctic ice sheet. In previous years we have heard the doom and gloom about it shrinking. However, Nasa reported on the 6^th of Nov. that the ice sheet is gaining much more than it is losing. It is changes like this that I hope to shed light on, so that my reader may be educated on new findings and not be misled by old statements.

            In my last section I will focus on the consumer. Between the Washington State University, and World Energy Council, I have data that shows how the world uses its resources, who is consuming the most, and what is being used most. I will make comparisons of how the average American consumes goods, comparing that to what would be a sustainable lifestyle, but also with those who are impoverished. The data from the World Energy Council shows how much each country currently uses, and it is that data that I will use to do these comparisons. While change needs to start with the individual, I will also bring up the matter of how corporations and manufacturers are burning through oil and other resources. 

Ch. 13

Chapter 13 puts focus on “Developing and Organizing your Argument”. It made an interesting point in that I should consider my readers expectations. It’s easy for me to assume that my reader is “on the level” and would understand my essay pretty easily; however, I actually should be helping out the reader by highlighting main ideas, focusing on what my reader would like to find out. In short, I need to take an educational position, and explain subjects to what would seem like a very uninformed audience. It also points out that I should inspire the reader to take action for what I am presenting. This could be done by asking self-reflecting question, or even challenging the reader to try something.

Ch. 12

In reading chapter 12, I am reminded of the importance of a strong thesis statement. It tells me that I should have a position that I am ready to support, and build upon it. One statement that I liked is that a writer should run through all their main ideas and list them. Making this list, you would then look at notes, quotes, and find ways to incorporate key phrases into your thesis. My tone must also be determined, and approached like the thesis.  Like drafting your final paper, you should take the same approach with your thesis statement.

Annotated Bibliography

William Ogilvie

English 102

Prof. Sonia Apgar Begert

Annotated Bibliography

United Nations. Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs. "World Population to 2300." 2004. United Nations. RPT. 18 Oct. 2015.

This document was written by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations. It looks at information over the last century leading up to today, making educated predictions on various milestones in our future. Initially it talks about population estimates, age demographics, and growth rates, but it delves into other aspects soon after. This work will be useful in that it tells the forecast for the future population. Much of the content goes very in depth about individual countries and regions, even discussing social and political issues I will be able to compare and contrast this information with other sources that discuss the current status of the world. I have not fully reviewed the document, however looking at the table of contents shows that there is a wealth of pertinent information.

Adamson, David M., et al. How Americans View World Population Issues: A Survey of Public Opinion. Santa Monica: RAND, n.d. Web Document. 29 Oct 2015.

This report contains data about the American view on population. The point of this research is to measure the average opinion on what popular opinion is. It also explores popular civil issues such as abortion, family planning, and birth control. The authors are a part of the RAND Corporation, which specializes in world issues and data collection.

Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook. n.d. Electronic Text. 18 10 2015.

The Central Intelligence Agency hosts this database on their main website. The world factbook has data on every country on the planet, with data ranging from export, to agriculture, or even military.

Barrientos, Miguel. index mundi: Country Comparison - Population Growth - Top 100. 1 January 2014. Chart. 18 10 2015.

Index mundi sources data from the Central Intelligence Agency’s “World Factbook” and act as a focus. Their specialty is that they take date and make relevant comparisons, charts, and other various visualizations.

Beareau, U.S. Census. International Programs. n.d. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

The latest US census data comes from 2010, with the next one occurring in 2020. Its surveys contain data about the current American population and its demographics.

Charles J. Vörösmarty, Pamela Green, Joseph Salisbury, Richard B. Lammers. "Global Water Resources: Vulnerability from a Climate Change and Population Growth." 2000. Web document. 2 Nov 2015.

This report is about water and its outlook into the future. It was found on the Science AAAS website and was published in 2000. The report has consideration of population, and climate change as catalysts for changes in global water quality. It covers topics such as fresh drinking water, ocean ph levels, and the shrinking ice caps to name a few.

Cohen, Joel E. "Human Population: The Next Half Century." 2003. Web Document. 2 Nov 2015.

This document covers projected population growth throughout the world. This was written by Joel E. Cohen and is featured on the Science AAAS website. It looks at social issues, religion, the environment, and migration to predict future growth(or lack of).

Facts about Hunger and Poverty. n.d. Website. 28 Oct 2015.

The Hunger Project is a non-profit organization that is committed to the sustainable end of world hunger. They have a vast array of employees around the globe that keeps tabs on the current status of various regions. They have a knowledge center that contains information regarding hunger, poverty, environment, and social issues.

Friends of the Earth Europe. "Overconsumption? Our use of the world's natural resources." 2009. Web document. 22 Oct 2015.

The research for this document was conducted by the “Sustainable Europe Research Institute” and was published in 2000. This document establishes the importance of our natural resources and how we must work to conserve them. Europe is the focus of this research, lots of facts about European consumption are shown. It shows statistics such as how much they extract and use versus thirty years earlier. People in rich countries use 10-times more than those in the poorest of countries. It also explores plans for reaching a sustainable future.

Jennifer B. Hughes, Gretchen C. Daily, Paul R. Ehrlich. "Population Diversity: Its Extent and Extinction." 1997. Web document. 2015 2 Nov.

Jie Zong, Jeanne Batalova. Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States. 26 Feb 2015. Web Document. 2 Nov 2015.

The “Migration Policy Institute” specializes in migration research. On their website they have a statistics page about “Immigrants and Immigration in the United States” which covers almost any topic you can imagine. It contains information on demographics, annual flows, illegal immigrants, health insurance, linguistics, and so on.

Learner, Anneberg. Human Population Dynamics - World Population growth through history. n.d. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

This web page was published by the “Annenberg Learner Foundation” which is an educational website that contains resources for mathematics, history, English, the arts, and so on. This page covers the history of human population in the world. It shows growth rates, and also total population per year. It also considers factors such as urbanization, and decreasing fertility rates.

Nasa. Global Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet. n.d. Web document. 2 Nov 2015.

This page on NASA’s website is about global climate change. It hosts a multitude of live data about various issues that contribute to climate change. Looking at the page regarding carbon dioxide, they have many visuals that show the build-up of emissions in a historical context. They cover many more aspects such as causes, effects, and how they conduct this research.

Nations, United. "Global Issues - Population." n.d. United Nations. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

Published by the “United Nations”, this page takes a hard look at the growing world population. It describes how an increasing population can worsen the current issues we currently face, especially problems like hunger. The UN even has its own division that analyzes population trends called the “UN Population Division”. This division looks at all countries and not only collects data, but makes predictions on how that country will develop.

Population Research Institute. POP101: A primer on the future of planet Earth. Population Research Institute. 2010-2015. Electronic Text/Video. 18 10 2015.

This website is hosted by the “Population Research Institute”, and its goal is to disprove myths about overpopulation. They primarily use videos to make their point. Their playlist covers what the numbers mean, poverty, food, and children.

Roser, Max. World Population Growth. 2015. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

“Our World in Data” takes a look at global population, health, food, resources, energy, education, conflicts, and many more topics. The page that I found looks at data regarding world population since 10,000 BC. It is estimated that 108 billion people have lived on this planet. It has many interactive charts and images such as the world map that shows population density if you put your mouse cursor on a specific area.

Washington State University. "Consumption by the United States." 2008. Web Document. 1 Nov 2015.

Published by Washington State University, this brief document talks about typical American consumption. It poses interesting comparisons, such as how one American consumes the same amount of energy as a certain quantity of people from another country. It goes through other facts about unintended births, food consumption, and waste generation.

World Energy Council. World Energy Resources. London, 2013. Web Document. 1 Nov 2015.

“World Energy Resources” published by the “World Energy Council” is a report on the current status of the various sources of energy. They draw comparisons of our current and past usage of our main resources, and explore why we use less or more. This research is published every three years and is presented at the World Energy Congress, with the next meeting being held in 2016.

World Health Organization. The top 10 causes of death. May 2014. Web Document. 29 Oct 2015.

This document is published by the “World Health Organization” and it is about the top ten causes of death in the world. It shows that heart disease and stroke are the top two greatest causes, with the others sitting far below. Besides some very detailed charts and graphs, they have a large Q&A section that hits a lot points about the circumstances of death.

York, Suzanne. Overpopulation: Environmental and Social problems. 2009-2014. Electronic Text. 19 10 2015.

“Overpopulation: Environmental and Social problems” from the “Institute for Population studies” is a one of many pages that explores the dangers of a growing population. It looks at air quality, water shortages, oil, food, and other various issues. It also looks at the ramifications of a larger populace as far as personal freedoms and restrictions, animal extinction, and overcrowding.

Ch. 18

Chapter 18 was about how you can make a presentation. While the advice given in this chapter is very good for making presentations, it actually gave me some ideas about the writing process. They say a speaker should figure out the “language” that they would use in which to more effectively speak to their audience. I thought that this was interesting since you are verbalizing your work in a different set words, but all within the same meaning. This leads me to the conclusion that if my writing style is boring, perhaps I should try verbalizing what I’m writing to give it more life.

Ch. 17

Chapter 17 was a very important chapter in that it shows the importance of revision. One piece that I really connected with was the bit about your document achieving its purpose. Like a film with editing, you have to look at your message, make sure you have a clear progression, and perhaps trim off the fat that doesn’t add anything to the big picture. I think one thing many of us fail to do is to look for feedback from peers. The text made a good point that revising by using only our own perspective can only go so far. You need a new mind and set of eyes to really see where work needs to be done. The writers mind is already familiar with the context of the document, and is far more likely to bridge gaps that might make somebody else stumble.

Topic

Overpopulation

• Where is a prime example of overpopulation?
• What is the ratio of Middle-class to poverty in this city?
• Total area of city square-mileage to rest of country/state/province?
• Distribution of wealth/food/education?
•  

Note: Not sure why I didn't post this earlier. This is from early in the quarter.

Research Proposal

William Ogilvie

Prof. Sonia Apgar Begert

English 102

Research Proposal

Introduction

Overpopulation is a hot topic that has been tossed back and forth, and it’s often discussed by uninformed individuals who don’t actually know the true meaning. The common belief is that this term refers to the density of people within a certain area, and to a larger extent, the world. While true to an extent, there is much more to it than just how many people occupy a space. I believe that one must consider the economic, societal, and ecological impact of a large mass of people.

Review of Literature

I first wanted to find a resource that would give me good general information and statistics about various nations. I found what was called “The World Factbook”, which is a database published by the Central Intelligence Agency. Looking through I found maps of every region with both political and physical versions. Further, I found that there was a wealth of information about each country with regards to population, industry, export, infrastructure, etc. and much more.

To bring the focus down further, I wanted to find a major source that talked specifically about population. I found that the United Nations has population as a topic under its “Global Issues” section on their main website. It starts out talking about the population of the time when the UN was first established. It then goes further to talk about the impact of a larger population on this planet. To me this is a good place for generating research points, and topics to discuss.

Another good source on current population was the United States Census. The page I found was a table that listed the year with the corresponding population. It also shows the annual growth rate percentage, and the population change number. Numbers like this show strong trends in our own nation which will be very interesting to line up with historical events. Plus, it even goes further in showing estimated population numbers for the next 35 years.

Index mundi is a good complimentary source for the US Census. This website has a graph that shows how each country ranks with their population growth. Clicking on the name of the country brings me to a page that gives relevant data in regard to growth and historical trends. The data it shows will help me see what the effect of a rapidly increasing population does.

“World Population to 2300” is a document published by the United Nations that discusses the change in population between now and the year 2300. This includes population growth in each major nation, along with in depth predicting future dilemmas regarding sustaining a larger population. This will be invaluable to me in that it paints a likely forecast for our future. For all the research I’ll do about the modern era, this will be a fascinating document to compare with.

The Annenberg Learner website discusses the history of humankind. It goes from the origins of homo-sapiens, growing life expectancies, and the industrial age, to the living conditions of modern man. While other sources have a history of just numbers, this source is very literate in how it chronicles man’s growth.

The Population Research Institute is a source that I will draw a lot from. This website is dedicated to current world issues that plague humanity, and they have a very in depth database about population control. In my opinion, this source takes the approach of preservation and proliferation. I would like to have a few more sources like this that can take a side in this debate.

The website “howmany.org” takes a contrasting point of view on the growing population. It points out a few negative effect we have on the planet, such as pollution, resource depletion, and deforestation. Also, it points out some of the negative effects on humanity such as hunger, wars, and overcrowding. This source has use in that it will be able to support the idea that overpopulation is happening and growing. It’s also good for finding argument points.

With the other sources being written, this is one that is a series of videos. The website is called “overpopulationisamyth.com”, which obviously puts it in the category of a biased source. All the same, these biased sources are invaluable in making points to argue about. This website covers urbanization, poverty, food, children, and feeling at ease with our growing population.

I wanted to move away from the primary population topic, and research the idea that we are overconsuming. I found a document from the Friends of the Earth foundation, and it is quite an interesting read so far. It talks about how our use of resources has risen exponentially in comparison to late last century. Also it compares us to third world nations in that we use 10 times the amount of resources per person. Regardless of population, I think this is a point that needs to be made.

Plan to Collect Information

So far my sources have been from web sites, and internet documents. I will continue to look further for more, however, I would like to go to the Poulsbo library to further search. I found that many online sources are only available with a subscription or some form of payment, and I think the library should prove to be quite convenient in that aspect. I’ll also talk to the librarian to see if I can find someone who could help point me towards more materials. My mother is an alumni of the San Francisco Academy of Art University, and she has access library and resources. Even though it is an art university, I have seen that they have a massive amount of materials that pertain to my topic.

Timeline

This week I will start visiting the Poulsbo library to begin searching for more sources. Also, I’ll start delving into the archive of the Academy of Art University. Soon I shall turn in my annotated bibliography, and continue the readings in the Bedford reader. After that, I’ll be working on my literature review, which will include more sources from the library. The following week, I will work on the final draft of outline, rationale, and abstract. From there, I will be working on the rough, and final draft.

Bibliography

Affairs, Department of Economic and Social. "World Population to 2300." 2004. United Nations. Computer Document. 18 10 2015.

Agency, Central Intelligence. The World Factbook. n.d. Electronic Text. 18 10 2015.

Barrientos, Miguel. index mundi: Country Comparison - Population Growth - Top 100. 1 January 2014. Chart. 18 10 2015.

Beareau, U.S. Census. International Programs. n.d. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

Facts about Hunger and Poverty. n.d. Website. 28 Oct 2015.

Friends of the Earth Europe. "Overconsumption? Our use of the world's natural resources." 2009. Web document. 22 Oct 2015.

Learner, Anneberg. Human Population Dynamics - World Population growth through history. n.d. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

Nations, United. "Global Issues - Population." n.d. United Nations. Electronic Text. 20 Oct 2015.

Population Research Institute. POP101: A primer on the future of planet Earth. Population Research Institute. 2010-2015. Electronic Text/Video. 18 10 2015.

York, Suzanne. Overpopulation: Environmental and Social problems. 2009-2014. Electronic Text. 19 10 2015.

Chapter 1 Research Blog Entry

In chapter 1 of the Bedford Reader, we are introduced to the various ideas involved in research, and formal writing. The early pages likened writing to that of having a conversation. As said in the book, when one wishes to join a group that is having a conversation, one must listen. After listening and becoming informed, you may then submit your views, and you are building on each others ideas. As with most conversations, we need to be aware of who we are talking to, and the context in which we are talking. In writing we are setting up a genre, in which we have to determine what style we are writing. It may be informative, argumentative, or perhaps persuasive. I believe that having a strong purpose is critical for a formal paper to work.

Selecting a Topic

Research Topics

Real reasons we elect government officials

 

-Do we vote based on politics or morals? Elections in recent years(and especially the one next year) seem to have a heavy emphasis in morals. Foreign policy and other subjects seem like a side show.

Underground Power

-I have an interest in the workings of electricity. Having dealt with Puget Sound Energy on many different occasions(tree's falling on power lines, etc...), I'd be interested in seeing the in's and out's of an underground power system.

Overpopulation

-Having commuted to Seattle, traveled to high density cities, and heard the mention of "Overpopulation", I'd be curious to see real information on this subject.

A prior paper

I had to write a paper about how merchants in Poulsbo used advertising effectively. It wasn't a hard subject, but it was frustrating to write about since it was seemingly stating obvious and basic facts. I wrote the paper and it turned out just fine, with a satisfactory grade. In the future, I probably would try to have a better attitude, since I frankly thought the work was "silly".