Despite news of declining birth rates, the world’s population continues to grow because of advances in science, technology, and medicine.
We're nearing a global population of eight billion people.
There have never been as many people alive as there are now. But have you ever wondered how many humans have lived on this planet, in total, over the long arc of history?
via visualcapitalist
The number takes a lot of estimation, but you end up with approximately 109 billion people over the course of human existence.
That means almost 7% of all humans who have ever existed are alive today. It also means that for every person alive, nearly 14 people are dead. That number seems small to me as I think about how many generations came before us.
While this might be somewhat interesting, the more important question is what you will do with the time left in your hourglass? To learn more about what I think about that, here's an article I wrote on the time value of time and here's an article I wrote on the power of purpose and how healthy mindsets extend your life.