1000 years ago, less than 4% of habitat land was used for agriculture. Today, approximately 50% is used for agriculture. What statement best explains why this large change occurred?
a. humans developed new agriculture practices which allows the expansion of agriculture.
b. Most humans live in urban areas, so rural areas are heavily developed to provide food for those densely populated urban areas.
c. The human population increased rapidly, which caused a subsequent increase in the demand for food.
d. As human population grows, more food is produced, causing soil, quality to decline, so more land is needed to grow the same amount of crops.
c. The human population increased rapidly, which caused a subsequent increase in the demand for food.
The statement that best explains why there has been a large change in the amount of land used for agriculture is c. The human population increased rapidly, which caused a subsequent increase in the demand for food.
c. The human population increased rapidly, which caused a subsequent increase in the demand for food.
To understand why this change occurred, we can use deductive reasoning. The statement suggests that the percentage of habitat land used for agriculture increased significantly over a span of 1000 years. We need to identify the factor or factors that could have contributed to this change.
Option a states that humans developed new agriculture practices that allowed the expansion of agriculture. While advancements in agriculture practices can certainly lead to an increase in agricultural productivity, this option does not directly address why the percentage of habitat land used for agriculture increased.
Option b suggests that rural areas are heavily developed to provide food for densely populated urban areas where most humans live. Although urbanization and increased demand for food in urban areas can be a contributing factor, it does not explain the large increase in the overall percentage of habitat land used for agriculture.
Option c, on the other hand, states that the human population increased rapidly, leading to an increased demand for food. This option directly addresses the change in percentage of habitat land used for agriculture by attributing it to the growing population's demand for food. As the population increases, more land is needed to meet the food requirements, which in turn results in a larger portion of habitat land being used for agriculture.
Option d suggests that as the human population grows, more food is produced, causing a decline in soil quality and requiring more land to grow the same amount of crops. While this option addresses the impact of population growth on agriculture, it does not explain why the overall percentage of habitat land used for agriculture increased.
Given the provided options, option c, stating that the human population increased rapidly and caused a subsequent increase in the demand for food, best explains why the large change in the percentage of habitat land used for agriculture occurred.