Physiological Density
• A more meaningful population measure is looking
at the number of people per area of a region.
• Arable land- land suited for agriculture
• Example: In the U.S. the physiological density is
172 persons per kilometer (445 per square mile)
of arable land
– Egypt has 2,580 persons per square kilometer (6,682
per square mile) of arable land
= This large difference in physiological densities
demonstrates crops grown on a hectacre of land in
Eygpt must feed far more people than in the U.S.
• Example: In the U.S. the physiological density
is 172 persons per kilometer (445 per square
mile) of arable land
– Egypt has 2,580 persons per square kilometer
(6,682 per square mile) of arable land
= This large difference in physiological densities
demonstrates crops grown on a hectare of land in
Egypt must feed far more people than in the U.S.
• The higher the physiological density- the
greater the pressure people may put on the
land to produce food
• Provides insights into the relationship
between the size of a population and
availability in a region