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How far will global population rise? Researchers can’t agree

The United Nations forecasts that nearly 11 billion people will be living on Earth at the end of the century, but other demographic research groups project that population will peak earlier and at a much lower level.
  1. David Adam

    1. David Adam is a freelance journalist based in London.

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A cartoon person looks in confusion at a giant abacus on which the counting beads are cartoon faces

Illustration by Karol Banach

The 1980s were a puzzling time for would-be parents in Singapore. The government initially told them to “Stop-at-Two” and backed up the policy with a series of measures to deter couples from having three or more children. It increased hospital fees for the delivery of third babies and withdrew maternity pay.

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Nature 597, 462-465 (2021)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-021-02522-6

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