more dead than alive?

[jas]

I posted this on another forum but didn't get much of a response...

My question:

Are there more dead people than alive?

There are about 6 billion people living right now. Have more than 6 billion people DIED in history?

I don't know the answer - what do you think?

-John

[Baba]

Good question. If there ARE 6 Billion people or more dead, that means we all are constantly walking, driving, playing, residing on alot of dead people! :p

[Chiba]

I think there are more alive than dead at any given point. As the population of the world spirals upward, it would take something hugely catastrophic like a meteor strike or nuclear war or something to change the balance of live v. dead number-wise.

--chiba

[jas]

Good question. If there ARE 6 Billion people or more dead, that means we all are constantly walking, driving, playing, residing on alot of dead people! :p
A big bummer for people who SEE dead people! At the ballgame, for instance, EVERY seat would be an obstructed one. :D

-John

[jas]

I think there are more alive than dead at any given point. As the population of the world spirals upward, it would take something hugely catastrophic like a meteor strike or nuclear war or something to change the balance of live v. dead number-wise.

--chiba
But if that's true, it's a recent thing. The population only topped a billion in about 1850 and then topped 2 billion in 1930.

-John

[Oldgtarz]

It's all mathematics... If there were 1 Billion people in 1850, at least 1 billion people died since 1850 (my guess is, No one has lived from 1850 until now)
If there have been 1 billion deaths in some 150 years, I think there would have been at least 5 billion deaths since the end of the iceage (13-14.000 years ago)!
So my guess is there have been far more deaths, than the mere 6 Billion alive right now...

Interesting Topic!

[merkenball]

Great question.....what got you thinking about it??

[Mike W]

I read the saying somehwere "remember, in 100 years, all new people" which is pretty strange by itself when you think about it (with the small exception of those who live over 100)

Either way I vote more dead people. I have 3 kids which means I have added 3 people to the population. However, looking back at my ancestors, I'm sure I have a lot more than 3 that are dead. Assuming everybody has more dead ancestors than living descendants, I would guess there would have to be more dead people. If that doesn't make sense then oh well.

[jas]

Great question.....what got you thinking about it??
Not sure what got me thinking about it - I've thought about it for several years and have tried to calculate it. Whatever the answer is, I think it's very close but even 50 years ago, was not close at all.

But I've "run into" so many very bright people on this forum that I thought I'd present the quandry here.

-John

[RandyO]

It looks like the current living outnumber the total world population deaths throughout history. BAM is back!

http://desip.igc.org/populationmaps.html

Edit: This may not be correct, see my post below.

[JDJ]

At this point, it's probably about dead even. ;)

[Jon Silberman]

I read a science fiction story once about babies starting to be born without souls due to the population of the earth getting so large that more people were alive than there were souls left over any more to reincarnate in them. Strange concept!

[jas]

I read a science fiction story once about babies starting to be born without souls due to the population of the earth getting so large that more people were alive than there were souls left over any more to reincarnate in them. Strange concept!
Several of the guitarists I've played with lack soul. Too many living guitarists?

-John

[Peter]

I'd say a lot more dead people. Consider the high rates of infant/child mortality in past centuries, so that every living person on a population map is probably worth at least two that didn't make it to be counted.

[Brian D]

Jon, what was the name of that book? I'm pretty sure I read it too but I can't recall what it was...

[Jo]

Several of the guitarists I've played with lack soul. Too many living guitarists?

-JohnHmmmm, and some days I feel more dead that alive .... does that count? :D

Remember a few years ago, when the 5 billionth (sorry, is there such a word as billionth?) person was born (they reported it was someone in China).... How the heck do they know that the 5 billionth person. Who counted them?

I'd like to know how they actually go about calculating that stuff.

[RandyO]

Check out the chart at the bottom of this link.
Only 6% of those ever born are currently living. :eek:
This would indicate that there's plenty of soul to go around.

http://www.prb.org/Content/ContentGroups/PTarticle/0ct-Dec02/How_Many_People_Have_Ever_Lived_on_Earth_.htm

[jas]

Very cool, Randy! Good research.

I've got to read the article again and then find someone who knows math better than I do to poke holes in it.

Jo, I don't think counting 5 billion people is that hard but you must take care not to count the same person twice. You should put some sort of marking on the person that won't come off during the counting procedure. Another way to count the population is to ask each person if they know Kevin Bacon or know anybody else who knows him. Understanding "degrees of separation", you can then extrapolate the world population (which is over 6 billion now) by tallying and multiplying the responses.

-John