dotlah! dotlah!
  • Cities
  • Technology
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Society
  • Science
  • About
Social Links
  • zedreviews.com
  • citi.io
  • aster.cloud
  • liwaiwai.com
  • guzz.co.uk
  • atinatin.com
0 Likes
0 Followers
0 Subscribers
dotlah!
  • Cities
  • Technology
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Society
  • Science
  • About
  • Cities
  • People

If Countries Were As Large As Their Populations, Here’s How The World Would Look Like

  • January 16, 2020
Source: https://ourworldindata.org/
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0

Maps are great instruments for navigation. However, they have little to say when it comes to describing how people are distributed in land.

What if the size of the countries depended on their population sizes? Theoretically, this will be how the world will look like:

Source: https://ourworldindata.org/

To download the full-resolution image, you may do so here.

This is what is known as a cartogram. This particular one was made by Our World in Data.

In cartograms, the size of the population is used as scale instead of the land size. This way, one can clearly see how humanity is distributed across countries.

At first glance, this is clearly the world map that we’ve been used to. However, we can observe that some small countries will become humongous and some larger countries will diminish in size if we take into account the population size.

Uncovered insights

Through the cartogram, we can see some obvious observations like China and India being the most populous countries in the world.

If we look closer,  however, we can see relatively smaller countries like Japan and the Philippines depicted as extremely large.

A small country like Bangladesh will be just about the same size as the giant country of Russia if we only talk about population.

Basing from the map, a few number of countries can seemingly engulf the rest when it comes to sheer size. Our World In Data’s figures report that 13 countries in the world, together are home to 4.75 billion people, which is roughly 62% of the world’s population.

  • China (1.415 billion)
  • India (1.354 billion)
  • United States (326.8m)
  • Indonesia (266.8m)
  • Brazil (210.9m)
  • Pakistan (200.8m)
  • Nigeria (195.9m)
  • Bangladesh (166.4m)
  • Russia (144m)
  • Mexico (130.8m)
  •  Japan (127.2m)
  • Ethiopia (107.5m)
  • Philippines (106.5m)

Here is an interactive chart to explore the population growth from different countries:

A change in perspective

If our traditional maps barely have anything to say about the distribution of people in the world, we can expect that it will perform even worse in characterizing the living conditions in countries.

This is where visualizations like cartograms step in. Whenever we read about country statistics, we have to realize that an improvement in one country may be more or less impactful than the other.

For instance, Our World in Data cites life expectancy statistics: an improved life expectancy in Denmark equates to the improvement of the health of 5.8 million. However, an improved life expectancy in India will imply an improved health status of around 1.35 billion people.

Going back to our example of Russia and Nigeria, in spite of their extreme difference in land area, improvements in healthcare in these countries will amount to about the same magnitude of improvement.

The power of visualization

When we think of data analysis, people dealing with figures in order to arrive at estimates and decisions might come to mind.

However, an important instrument in revealing insights from the data is visualization. The human eye is a powerful analytical tool which can reveal things that a large set of numbers and statistical outputs cannot.

This is a sobering reminder for us now that we are receiving massive amounts of data in this digital age. The usefulness of data heavily relies on our ability to extract information and insights from it.

At times, the enormity of data can become burdensome. This rings even truer if we do not know how to handle it.

With this, we must continue to explore ways for data to speak to us. The ever-exploring mind is a crucial ingredient in paving the way towards inclusive policies and equitable reforms that we desire in this age.

Total
0
Shares
Share
Tweet
Share
Share
Related Topics
  • Data
  • Data Visualization
  • Maps
  • Population
dotlah.com

Previous Article
  • Business
  • Cities

Top Tips For Setting Up A Business In A US City

  • January 16, 2020
View Post
Next Article
  • Lah!

Changi Airport Begins Terminal 2 Expansion Works To Increase Capacity And Enhance Passenger Experience

  • January 17, 2020
View Post
You May Also Like
View Post
  • Cities
  • Technology

Meralco PowerGen’s PacificLight starts up 100 MW fast-response plant in Singapore

  • dotlah.com
  • June 20, 2025
View Post
  • People
  • Politics

Singapore PM Wong arrives in Malacañang

  • dotlah.com
  • June 4, 2025
View Post
  • Cities

Renewable energy, carbon credits are priority areas of cooperation for Singapore, Philippines: Lawrence Wong

  • dotlah.com
  • June 4, 2025
View Post
  • Cities
  • Politics

Singapore businesses eye more investments in PH, says PM Wong

  • Dean Marc
  • June 4, 2025
View Post
  • Featured
  • Features
  • People

Conclave: How A New Pope Is Chosen

  • Dean Marc
  • April 25, 2025
View Post
  • Cities
  • Research

Mathematicians uncover the logic behind how people walk in crowds

  • dotlah.com
  • April 3, 2025
“Toyota Woven City,” a Test Course for Mobility, Completes Phase 1 Construction and Prepares for Launch
View Post
  • Cities
  • Technology

“Toyota Woven City,” a Test Course for Mobility, Completes Phase 1 Construction and Prepares for Launch

  • John Francis
  • January 6, 2025
View Post
  • People

PM Wong takes Scoot flight, fellow passengers cheer

  • dotlah.com
  • October 16, 2024


Trending
  • 1
    • Lah!
    Creating A Community, Changing Mindsets And Cleaning Up The Seas
    • June 22, 2021
  • 2
    • Lah!
    Singapore Airlines Offers Fee Waiver And Flexible Rebooking For All Customers
    • March 16, 2020
  • 3
    • Cities
    • Climate Change
    The World Is Not Moving Fast Enough On Climate Change — Social Sciences Can Help Explain Why
    • March 11, 2024
  • 4
    • Cities
    • Lah!
    ATSG Enters Commitment With EFW For 29 A330P2F Conversions
    • March 7, 2022
  • 5
    • Technology
    NTUC Income Launches SNACK, Singapore’s First Bite-sized, Stackable Insurance That Seamlessly Integrates Into Daily Lifestyle Activities
    • June 16, 2020
  • 6
    • Lah!
    • Science
    PISA 2018 Results Are Out: Singapore Ranks 2nd Out Of 79 Countries
    • December 15, 2019
  • 7
    • Technology
    Singtel’s Dash Partners UOB Asset Management To Offer Mobile Robo-Adviser With Exclusive ESG Option
    • December 22, 2021
  • 8
    • Cities
    • Lah!
    Land Transportation Master Plan 2040: Bringing Singapore Together
    • May 27, 2019
  • citi.io-i-want-ai-to-do-my-laundry-and-dishes 9
    • Technology
    This AI Was Not Our AI Dream.
    • June 7, 2024
  • 10
    • Lah!
    Drawing On Design Principles To Build A 5G Future
    • June 29, 2021
  • 11
    • Technology
    NUS Centre For Trusted Internet And Community Organises First Ever Citizens’ Dialogue On The Future Of The Internet In Singapore
    • September 8, 2020
  • 12
    • Cities
    • Technology
    UOB Ramps Up Digital Innovation To Grow Its Wealth Management Franchise Across ASEAN
    • June 28, 2021
Trending
  • 1
    Malaysia’s ‘ASEAN Shenzhen’ needs some significant legal reform to take off — here’s how
    • August 25, 2025
  • French Fries 2
    Air Fryer: The One Cooking Appliance to Rule Them All – Best All-Around Picks in 2025
    • August 22, 2025
  • 3
    Samsung Electronics Debuts Odyssey G7 Monitors, Showcasing Top Games on Its Displays at Gamescom 2025
    • August 20, 2025
  • 4
    HP Cranks Up the Game with Smarter Systems, Cooler Builds, and Gear That Hits Different
    • August 14, 2025
  • 5
    New Trump tariffs: early modelling shows most economies lose – the US more than many
    • August 6, 2025
  • Scuba Diving 6
    Wetsuit or Drysuit? As always, it depends. This quick guide can help you choose.
    • August 2, 2025
  • 7
    Thoughts on America’s AI Action Plan
    • July 24, 2025
  • 8
    Introducing Surface Laptop 5G: Seamless connectivity, built for business
    • July 23, 2025
  • 9
    Press Start (Or Hit Enter)! Your Go-To Loadout for Streamers and Gamers.
    • July 19, 2025
  • 10
    ESWIN Computing launches the EBC77 Series Single Board Computer with Ubuntu
    • July 17, 2025
Social Links
dotlah! dotlah!
  • Cities
  • Technology
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Society
  • Science
  • About
Connecting Dots Across Asia's Tech and Urban Landscape

Input your search keywords and press Enter.