STANDARD OF LIVING
Various demographic traits can be used to assess standard of living and analyze it geographically. Figure 3.16 is a simple attempt to map living standards using the infant mortality rate: a measure of how many children per 1000 live births die before reaching one year of age. Many experts believe that the infant mortality rate is the best single index of living standards because it is affected by many different factors: health, nutrition, sanitation, access to doctors, availability of clinics, education, ability to obtain medicines, and adequacy of housing. A striking geographical pattern is revealed by the infant mortality rate.
infant mortality rate
The number of infants per 1000 live births who die before reaching one year of age.
Another good measure of quality of life is the United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), which combines measures of literacy, life expectancy, education, and wealth (see Figure 1.11, pages 22–23). The highest possible score is 1.000, and the three top-ranked countries in 2012 were Norway, Australia, and the United States. Examination of the HDI reveals some surprises. If all countries spent equally on those things that improve their HDI rankings, such as education and health care, then we would expect the wealthiest countries to place first on the list. According to the International Monetary Fund, Luxembourg ranked first among 183 ranked nations in wealth as measured by the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in 2012. Yet, it ranked 26th in the world on the HDI. Compare this to Barbados, which ranked 24th by GDP per capita but came in much higher on the HDI at 6th. Why did Barbados rank higher in living standards than its monetary wealth wouldindicate, whereas Luxembourg ranked lower? We would have to conclude that the government of Barbados places a relative priority on spending for education and health care, whereas the government of Luxembourg does not.
Great Expectations for Female Lawyers
Great Expectations for Female Lawyers
http://www.tinyurl.com/ogfxqje
In this video, five women who work at the law firm Debevoise and Plimpton are interviewed. These same women were profiled in The NewYorkTimes Magazine 12 years earlier, when they started their jobs at the firm. In the interviews, they reflect on their careers and how being a woman has affected their professional success. They talk about how other aspects of their lives, such as their race, age, and motherhood, have combined in ways that have both advantaged and disadvantaged them.
Thinking Geographically:
Chapter 3 talks about a geography of gender, wherein women who work outside of the home are seen to be “out of place” What specifics do these women mention regarding feeling out of place, or not, in their jobs?
In Chapter 3 we learned that gender roles change when fertility levels fall and women become more highly educated. In what ways have these women experienced changing gender roles, and in what ways have the expectations and norms around being a woman not changed for them?
Though women make up roughly half of the human population, women are underrepresented relative to men in some professions, such as law. Women also tend to make less than men in equal positions: for the top executive positions, women are paid about $0.82 for every $1.00 that a man in the same job earns. At the end of the video, it is noted that only 4% of top U.S. law firms are led by a woman. What do you think the social as well as the individual consequences of these labor market imbalances may be?
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