Biology 111: Lecture 11Fall 1998

Population Growth

  1. Getting a feel for population growth curves

  2. Growth curves
    1. Lag phase
    2. Exponential growth phase
    3. Stable equilibrium phase

  3. Exponential growth vs. logistic growth

  4. Population regulation
    1. Density-dependent limiting factors
    2. Density-independent limiting factors

  5. Population demographics
    1. Age distribution
    2. Generation time
    3. Sex ratio

  6. Human population growth
    1. Our curve: A view from the past
    2. Population size and its connection to social concerns
    3. Looking to the future


"Well, I've got to tell you there's another way
To be free--to be complete.
But you've got to make it through another day,
And deny your own defeat (don't give in).
And I'm here to tell you there's another way
To consume a hungry heart.
Jesus is waiting just a prayer away.
Let him in to where you are."		 Michael W. Smith, The Last Letter