Population

Introduction to
Math
Important Equations (#’ed) & Practice
Problems
1. Growth Rate (r)
r = (births + immigration) – (deaths + emigration)
Total Population

r as a percent (multiply by 100%)

If a city with a population of 30,000 experiences 100 births,
40 deaths, 10 immigrants, and 30 emigrants in the course
of a year, what is its net annual percentage growth?
If a city with a population of 30,000 experiences 100 births,
40 deaths, 10 immigrants, and 30 emigrants in the course
of a year, what is its net annual percentage growth?

(b + i) – (d + e) = (100 + 10) – (40 + 30)

Total population 30,000 people

= 40 = 0.0013 x 100 = 0.13%

30,000
2. Birth/Death Rate
# births/deaths per year (x 100 for %)
Total Population

3. CBR/CDR (Crude birth rate/ crude death rate)

# births/death per 1000 people

The United States experiences 4 million births per
year. What is the birth rate for the US?
**Memorize: US population is 320 million.
The United States experiences 4 million births per
year. What is the birth rate for the US?
**Memorize: US population is 320 million.

4,000,000 or 4 million
320,000,000 320 million

= 0.0125 or 1.25%
For every 100 people in the United States, 2 die.
What is the CDR for the US?
For every 100 people in the United States, 2 die. What is the
CDR for the US?

CDR = # deaths
1000 people

2 deaths x 10 = 20 deaths/1000 people

100 people 10
4. Doubling Time (how long it would take a
population to double in size)

Rule of 70 70 = Doubling time (in years)

r (in percent)
If a population grows at a rate of approximately 5 percent per
year, how many years are required for the population to
double?
If a population grows at a rate of approximately 5 percent per
year, how many years are required for the population to
double?

Rule of 70! 70 = 14 years

5%
5. Population Density
(amount of people per amount of area)

Population Density = Population

Area
There are 2.7 million people in Chicago. What is
the population density of Chicago, assuming its
area is 606 km ?
2
There are 2.7 million people in Chicago. What is
the population density of Chicago, assuming its
area is 606 km ?
2

2,700,000 people = 27,000 = 4500 people/km2

600 km2 6
6. Per Capita = Per Person

Amount of interest
Number of people
The United States’ net worth is 86.8 trillion ( x 1012).
What is the per capita net worth of the US?
The United States’ net worth is 86.8 trillion ( x 1012).
What is the per capita net worth of the US?

86.8 x 1012 = 86.8 x 106 = $270,000 /person

320 x 106 320
7. Percent Increase

Final amount – Initial x 100 = % inc.

Initial
The city of Brentwood welcomed 3,000 new residents this
fall. What was the percent increase in the population of
Brentwood? (original population is 55,000 people).
The city of Brentwood welcomed 3,000 new residents this
fall. What was the percent increase in the population of
Brentwood? (original population is 55,000 people).

58,000 – 55,000 x 100 = 3,000 x 100 = 5.5% increase

55,000 55,000
Practice Problems

1. If a population of 100,000 experiences 2,000 births, 1,600

deaths, 200 immigrants, and 100 emigrants in the course of
one year, what is its net annual percentage growth rate?
2. If the % annual growth rate is 8%, what is the doubling time
in years?
3. If the doubling time is 7 years, what is the % annual growth
rate?
4. A bank advertises doubling your investment money is 12.3
years. What percent simple interest will it be paying?
5. The world population grows at a rate of 1.2% annually.
a. What is the doubling time for the world population?
b. What would be the doubling time if the growth rate is cut
to 1%?
c. Assuming the growth rate stays constant (at 1.2%), how
many doublings would take place in a 500-year period?
d. What would the world’s population be in 500 years if there
are currently 7 billion people? (Think: one doubling is how
long? So after that time you’d have 14 billion. Then you’d
have 28 billion after a second doubling time had passed…
etc.)
6. One thousand two hundred and seventy deer are living on
a island that is eight hundred and thirty square kilometers
in size. What is the population density of the deer per
square kilometer?
7. A city with 53,340 people has 876 births. What is the birth
rate? (as a percent and CBR-per1000)
8. In 1990, there were 1.2 billion people living in China. At
the end of 2002, there were 1280 million people. What
was the percent increase in China from 1990 to 2002?
What was the annual percent increase?
Answers – You’re Welcome

1. 0.5% 6. 1.5 deer/km2

2. 8.75 years 7. 1.6% / CBR: 16/1000
3. 10% 8. 6.7%
4. 5.7%
5. a. 58 years
b. 70 years
c. 8 doublings
d. 1.8 trillion