In human demography and population studies, “population (human)” refers to the total set of individuals of Homo sapiens occupying a defined spatial, temporal, or social frame, serving as the primary unit of analysis for topics such as fertility, mortality, migration, and population structure. Research addresses population size, age–sex composition, density, spatial distribution, and dynamic processes governed by demographic rates and transitions. Human populations are modeled using formal demographic methods (e.g., life tables, stable and multistate population models) and are central to analyses of population growth, demographic transitions, population health, urbanization, and the interaction between human numbers and economic, environmental, and social systems.
Throughout history, most of the world's genomic research has relied on DNA data from people of European ancestry.
Molecular & Computational biology
May 12, 2026
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12
What do you see when you imagine a conservation area? Perhaps a remote rainforest, a towering mountain range or a coral reef teeming with life. But do you expect to see any people?
Environment
May 12, 2026
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6
Indigenous people of the Andes were the first to domesticate the potato, making the starch-rich crop a dietary staple for this high-altitude population long before it spread to the rest of the world. Today, their descendants ...
Evolution
May 5, 2026
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442
The number of wildfires burning in the Western United States each year dropped roughly 28% over the past three decades, even as annual burned area and damage from wildfires have soared. A decline in fires accidentally sparked ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 30, 2026
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12
A new study, conducted by researchers from the Netherlands and Germany, estimates that urban agriculture in European cities could produce up to 20 million tons of vegetables annually, representing roughly one-third of the ...
Agriculture
Apr 28, 2026
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16
Increasing evidence suggests that our species emerged through interactions between populations living in different parts of Africa, rather than from a single birthplace. Until now, however, most explanations for how those ...
Evolution
Apr 22, 2026
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3426
From the ability to detect the smell of wet soil to the scent of ripe fruit, the human olfactory system has evolved over thousands of years in response to how people live and what they eat, according to a new genetic study ...
Evolution
Apr 16, 2026
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20
A new study reveals that most fatal landslides occur in human-transformed environments. Conducted by an international team of researchers from the University of Vienna, Ankara University, Istanbul Technical University, Bursa ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 8, 2026
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15
Earth has already exceeded its ability to support the global population sustainably, with new research warning of increasing pressure on food security, climate stability, and human well-being. However, slowing population ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 30, 2026
14
588
A new study by University of Vermont researchers finds that a majority of people across the globe favor protecting the environment over growing the economy when the two goals conflict. The paper, published recently in the ...
Environment
Mar 18, 2026
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27
