Human demography in ecology teaching

Abstract

Age specific expectation of life may be calculated for human populations from obituary entries in news papers, tombstones, and parish records. The method for doing so is described. Examples are given which illustrate large differences between the sexes, social classes, and dates at a given locality.

Age structure and survivorship in cars: another inanimate population ecology study

“…Actuarial or 'vertical' life tables can be con structed which give, for each category, the expec tation of further life. A discussion of this calculation and its interpretation is given in Cook et al (1980). The expectation of life at any age is the mean life span remaining to individuals of that age.…”

“…A recent paper by Cook, Fussey, and Sutton (1980) presented the heuristic use of human demographic data in ecology teaching. Using the readily available sources of information found on tombstones, in parish registers, and in obituary entries in newspapers they showed the effect of differences in sex and environment on survival and life expectancy.…”