This article was originally published with the title “ Population of the Earth, in Diagram ” in SA Supplements Vol. 39 No. 1006supp (April 1895), p. 16081 doi:10.1038 ...

Fifty years ago biologist Paul Ehrlich published ‘The Population Bomb,’ an apocalyptic warning that overcrowding would lead to wars and famine. Here’s what the book got right and wrong.

How did India get so big? Not surprisingly, fertility is key to understanding what drives the rise or fall of a country’s population. It is commonly accepted that a country’s average fertility ...