[extropy-chat] Population Densities (was Panicmongering)

[Damien Sullivan]

On Tue, Jun 27, 2006 at 08:38:05PM -0700, Lee Corbin wrote:
> Damien S. writes

> > Some numbers I have burned into my memory:
> > Manhattan 65,000
> > NYC 25,000
> > (Outer boroughs 15,000)
> 
> I recall reading many, many years ago that in 1900 New York City's
> lower east side attained a density of 600,000 people. (Probably an
> Edward T. Hall book.) Seem possible to you? Know how to check that?

Actually, the same NYT article which provided my other numbers also
mentioned 600,000 (maybe 650,000) for 19th century Manhattan tenements.

*That* seems like overcrowding.

> > "only half of Americans live in 2,000/mile^2 or higher" -- Indianapolis
> > or Tulsa densities.
> > 18% at 5,000 or more.  1/3 at 3,000 or more.  And that's the central
> > cities.
> 
> Yes, thanks for the research.  Since I did say "suburb" my figures
> are inappropriate. 

And even American cities aren't that dense.  Except for the few I'd want
to live in. :)

> > > but are vacant now. Food production has increased per acre by
> > > about a factor of 5 since 1950, while the population has only
> > 
> > It's not clear that's sustainable, given energy inputs to corn from
> > petroleum-made fertilizers comparable to the energy inputs from the sun.
> 
> I don't know what the assumed crops were. 

I'm talking about the actual "food production has increased".  It's been
done with a lot of fertilizer from outside the food chain, pesticides,
and soil erosion.  Mining, basisally, of oil, soil, and aquifers.

-xx- Damien X-)