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Study is first to measure global population/energy relationship
http://newsroom.unl.edu/releases/2015/07/24/Study+is+first+to+measure+global+population%2Fenergy+relationshi[font face=Serif][font size=5]Study is first to measure global population/energy relationship[/font]
Released on 07/24/2015, at 12:00 AM
Office of University Communications
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
[font size=3]incoln, Neb., July 24th, 2015 —
…
“Broadly speaking, no one’s really (quantified) this,” said DeLong, assistant professor of biological sciences. “But it was important, because there are studies going back decades that assume this kind of positive feedback loop: We grow, we expand our capacity to extract energy, and then we grow some more.”
However, DeLong and colleague Oskar Burger also found that this dynamic has shifted in the decades following 1963, when the world’s population was growing faster than ever before or since.
During the subsequent half-century, the ratio between energy increases and population growth has narrowed, with the former now aligning more closely to the latter. A 1:1 ratio would theoretically limit the planet’s population to a linear rather than exponential growth rate.
“I do think this should challenge our assumptions about future population growth,” DeLong said. “The study supports conventional wisdom to a degree, but it also reminds us that (abundant energy) is maybe not something that we can count on indefinitely.
…[/font][/font]
Released on 07/24/2015, at 12:00 AM
Office of University Communications
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
[font size=3]incoln, Neb., July 24th, 2015 —
…
“Broadly speaking, no one’s really (quantified) this,” said DeLong, assistant professor of biological sciences. “But it was important, because there are studies going back decades that assume this kind of positive feedback loop: We grow, we expand our capacity to extract energy, and then we grow some more.”
However, DeLong and colleague Oskar Burger also found that this dynamic has shifted in the decades following 1963, when the world’s population was growing faster than ever before or since.
During the subsequent half-century, the ratio between energy increases and population growth has narrowed, with the former now aligning more closely to the latter. A 1:1 ratio would theoretically limit the planet’s population to a linear rather than exponential growth rate.
“I do think this should challenge our assumptions about future population growth,” DeLong said. “The study supports conventional wisdom to a degree, but it also reminds us that (abundant energy) is maybe not something that we can count on indefinitely.
…[/font][/font]
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