Population Pyramids

   Today in class, we took a quiz. The quiz covered the whole entire documentary on the lost boys. It was 20 questions that were fill in the blank. We were also surprised with the option of using our blogs. We could use any information that we had on our blog to answer the questions. After the quiz, we started to talk about Population Pyramids. We use population pyramids to analyze the growth (or decline) of fertility, mortality, and migration in cities. The pyramid ranks from "the oldies" at the top, then the "economically active", and then finally "the kiddos". On the pyramid, the oldies would be considered anyone sixty years or older. The economically active would range from 20-59 while the kiddos would range from age 0-19. When making the pyramid, the males are placed on the left side while the women are placed on the right side. Because of the amount of people per category, it can give the pyramid a different shape. There are three types of shapes which are the christmas tree, the box, and the cup. When the pyramid has the shape of a christmas tree, it means that it is a developing nation with a slow growth rate. It has a high birth rate, but also has a short life expectancy. Namibia or Bangladesh would both be examples of a pyramid looking like a tree. If the pyramid has a box shape, it means that it is a developed nation and has a slow growth rate. It has a low infant mortality, a slow population growth, and a long life expectancy. Sweden or the United States is an example of a box pyramid. Finally, the cup shape means that it is a developed nation and has a negative growth. It has a low birth rate, a shrinking population, and a long life expectancy. An example of this type of pyramid shape is Italy or Japan.