Step 1: Population Distribution and Proximity to Water
Open the Distribution view and turn on the Pop Density 2000, Oceans, Lakes, and Rivers themes. Rearrange the layers so that you can view all of the themes clearly.
Do you notice any patterns of population distribution that might be related to water bodies?
Can you think of any reasons that might explain this pattern?
Step 2: Population Distribution and Vegetation
Turn on the Vegetation theme. Your Distribution
view should look something like this.
Would you like to know what the vegetation types look
like? Make the Vegetation theme active and click on the 
button. Move the mouse to the Distribution view and click
once on a vegetation type. A picture will appear that shows you what
it looks like. Close each of the hotlink picture windows and look
at the Distribution view again.
Which type of vegetation seems to have the highest population density? It's hard to tell isn't it?
It is hard to tell which vegetation type has the highest
population density by looking at the map. Sometimes charts are easier
to read than maps. You will make a chart that shows the average population
density for each vegetation type. Make the
Vegetation theme
active and open the attribute table. Click on the 
button to open the Chart Properties window and name the chart
VegChart.
Double click on PDAve under Field and then click on the 
button. Change the Label series using to Veg and look
at your window. Does it look like this? If so, click 
.
Your chart will appear, but you need to give it a title.
Go to the ArcView toolbar and click on the 
button to edit your chart. Click on "title" in the VegChart window
to open the Chart Title Properties window. Rename your chart
Average
Population Density/km for 6 Vegetation Types in Africa and click
. Your chart will look like this.
List the vegetation types from least densely populated to most densely populated.
What is the average population density for each?
Resize the VegChart and Distribution windows so that you can view them at the same time.
Does the information provided in the chart agree with the information on the map?
Close the VegChart window and the Attributes of Veg.shp window. Turn off the Vegetation and Pop Density 2000 themes.
Step 4: Population Distribution and Precipitation
Turn on the Precipitation per Year theme.
Compare the Vegetation and Precipitation per Year themes.
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Do you see any similarities?
Turn on the Pop Density 2000 theme.
Do you notice a pattern of distribution?
Hint: Evergreen forests in Africa are not like
evergreen forests in Colorado. They are very dry!
Step 5: Population Distribution and Political Boundaries
Turn off the Precipitation theme and turn on the Vegetation theme. Make the Pop Density 2000 theme active and examine the most densely populated areas. Most Africans depend on agriculture and livestock for subsistence and prefer to live in relatively moist areas (for Africa!) that have vegetation for fuel and grazing.
However, look closely and you will notice some exceptions
to this rule. Click on the 
button to activate the identify tool. Find an area on the map that is very
dry, but densely populated and click on it. This will open the Identify
Results window which shows you all of the attributes about the area
that you have selected.
Close the Identify Results window and repeat this process two more times.
*Trouble Shoot: The Identify Results window is very squirrelly. If you do not close it after every identify, it will move behind the ArcView window, which makes it difficult to find. If this happens to you, resize the entire ArcView window, find the Identify Results window, and close it. Then, try again.
Name three densely populated countries that are located in dry areas.
What type of vegetation do they have?
What level of precipitation do they receive each year?
Now turn on the Border theme. The Distribution view should look like this.
Turn the Border theme on and off and look at Nigeria. Notice how densely populated it is compared to the countries directly to the north and east.
Are the areas that you selected constrained by political boundaries?
What are some possible reasons for the relationship between population density and political boundaries?
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