原文标题：Population to hit 7bn by the end of October with five babies born every second



hints:
United Nations
Robert Kunzig
entitled '7 Billion' in National Geographic magazine
Earth
A little over a decade ago, the world's population stood at 6 billion. By the end of October, it will reach 7 billion. With five babies being born every second, 78 million people are added to the global community each year. The population was fewer than 1 billion in 1800, 3 billion in 1960 and 6 billion as recently as 1999. According to the United Nations, the next landmark statistic will be 8 billion in 2025. Much of the dramatic increase can be accounted for by the world's poorest nations, which are expected to double their numbers over the next decade. "With the population still growing by about 80 million each year, it's hard not to be alarmed," said Robert Kunzig, author of an article entitled '7 Billion' in National Geographic magazine. "Right now on Earth, water tables are falling, soil is eroding, glaciers are melting, and fish stocks are vanishing. Close to a billion people go hungry each day." Researchers say the world's population will level off at about 9 billion in the middle of the century.
十多年前，世界人口达到了60亿。而到今年十月底，这个数字将会变成70亿。现在地球上每一秒都有5个婴儿出生，每年全球人口增加7800万。1800年，全球人口还不足10亿，1960年全球人口达到了30亿，而1999年达到了60亿。 据联合国预测，下一个里程碑式的数字将出现在2025年，届时全球人口会达到80亿。这些急剧增加的人口中，很大一部分来自世界上最穷的国家，预计他们的人口在下一个十年将会成倍增加。 罗伯特•昆齐希写了一篇题为《70亿》的文章，发表在《国家地理》杂志上。他说，“全球每年增加约8000万人口，很难不让人感到恐慌。在我们今天的地球上，地下水位不断下降，土壤受到侵蚀，冰川正在融化，鱼群种类不断减少，还有近10亿人口每天都在挨饿。” 研究人员称，到本世纪中期，全球人口将会稳定在90亿左右。