Comments on: Demographic Transitions from the Past http://blog.arnavsheth.net/2009/04/16/demographic-transitions-from-the-past/ Reality-based macroeconomics, finance and more. Thu, 10 Jun 2010 06:47:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=24 By: Rabia Akram http://blog.arnavsheth.net/2009/04/16/demographic-transitions-from-the-past/comment-page-1/#comment-319 Rabia Akram Tue, 28 Apr 2009 20:47:08 +0000 http://blog.arnavsheth.net/?p=369#comment-319 In my biology 1B class, Professor Resh, was talking about how the investment in children is different in countries like Bangladesh and the United States. Raising a child in the United States is far more costly than it is in 3rd world countries, you need diapers when they are young, school supplies, toys, brand name clothes, entertainment, video games, and etc. the list could go on for ever. But children in third world countries just require the basic resources for survival food, water and shelter. So children in countries like the US are using up 250 times the resources of a child from a poor country. That is why we are having fewer children because it is more expensive for us to raise a child due to our higher standard of living. Where as the poor nations, have as many kids as they possibly can so they can get jobs at young ages and start helping to feed the family, the more workers the more chances of getting a meal. In my biology 1B class, Professor Resh, was talking about how the investment in children is different in countries like Bangladesh and the United States. Raising a child in the United States is far more costly than it is in 3rd world countries, you need diapers when they are young, school supplies, toys, brand name clothes, entertainment, video games, and etc. the list could go on for ever. But children in third world countries just require the basic resources for survival food, water and shelter. So children in countries like the US are using up 250 times the resources of a child from a poor country. That is why we are having fewer children because it is more expensive for us to raise a child due to our higher standard of living. Where as the poor nations, have as many kids as they possibly can so they can get jobs at young ages and start helping to feed the family, the more workers the more chances of getting a meal.

]]> By: Jennifer Stanton http://blog.arnavsheth.net/2009/04/16/demographic-transitions-from-the-past/comment-page-1/#comment-316 Jennifer Stanton Fri, 24 Apr 2009 03:05:32 +0000 http://blog.arnavsheth.net/?p=369#comment-316 Yeah, I know they are completely different, but where's the fun in life if you can't play around with seemingly unrelated concepts? Think about it, the decision to have a kid relies on many factors. But we can simplify it down like our "investment" model: fear and greed. It's been going down in all the rich countries because of greed. People like being rich or having lots of leisure time, and they don't want to waste their hard earned money or free time investing in raising children. But on the other hand, you have fear; fear that if you don't have children, was their any purpose to your life, what will you do when you get bored of your marriage, who will visit you when you're old and look after you when you're not working anymore, etc, etc. Haven't you ever thought about why no one is having children anymore? (Japan, Europe) Is it because of the expectation that "no one is having children anymore?" Yeah, I know they are completely different, but where’s the fun in life if you can’t play around with seemingly unrelated concepts? Think about it, the decision to have a kid relies on many factors. But we can simplify it down like our “investment” model: fear and greed. It’s been going down in all the rich countries because of greed. People like being rich or having lots of leisure time, and they don’t want to waste their hard earned money or free time investing in raising children. But on the other hand, you have fear; fear that if you don’t have children, was their any purpose to your life, what will you do when you get bored of your marriage, who will visit you when you’re old and look after you when you’re not working anymore, etc, etc. Haven’t you ever thought about why no one is having children anymore? (Japan, Europe) Is it because of the expectation that “no one is having children anymore?”

]]> By: Arnav http://blog.arnavsheth.net/2009/04/16/demographic-transitions-from-the-past/comment-page-1/#comment-308 Arnav Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:36:58 +0000 http://blog.arnavsheth.net/?p=369#comment-308 Animal spirits and fertility rates? Don't really see the connection there... Animal spirits and fertility rates? Don’t really see the connection there…

]]> By: Jennifer Stanton http://blog.arnavsheth.net/2009/04/16/demographic-transitions-from-the-past/comment-page-1/#comment-307 Jennifer Stanton Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:32:41 +0000 http://blog.arnavsheth.net/?p=369#comment-307 So are you bringing this up because it implies there are just as many animal spirits that determine fertility rates as there are manifested in stock market fluctuations? (Akerlof, G.A., (2009) Animal Spirits: how human psychology drives the economy, and why it matters for global capitalism) So are you bringing this up because it implies there are just as many animal spirits that determine fertility rates as there are manifested in stock market fluctuations?

(Akerlof, G.A., (2009) Animal Spirits: how human psychology drives the economy, and why it matters for global capitalism)

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