The infamous overpopulation bet: Simon vs. Ehrlich - Soraya Field Fiorio episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 9, 2026 · 6 MIN

The infamous overpopulation bet: Simon vs. Ehrlich - Soraya Field Fiorio

from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed

Discover an infamous bet between two professors, which sought to predict whether the earth would run out of resources due to a growing human population.--In 1980, Paul Ehrlich and Julian Simon bet $1,000 on a question with stakes that couldn’t be higher: would the earth run out of resources to sustain a growing human population? They bet $200 on the price of five metals. If the price of a metal decreased or held steady over the next decade, Simon won. If the price increased, Ehrlich won. So, what happened? Soraya Field Fiorio investigates.Lesson by Soraya Field Fiorio, directed by Avi Ofer.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-infamous-overpopulation-bet-simon-vs-ehrlich-soraya-field-fiorioDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-infamous-overpopulation-bet-simon-vs-ehrlich-soraya-field-fiorio#digdeeperAnimator's website: https://aviofer.comMusic: https://www.campstudio.co----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Karen Warner, Isorn Sookwanish, Iryna Panasiuk, Diane Gallin, Aaron Torres, Vasundhar, Eric Braun, Denka Wee, Sonja Worzewski, Amy, Michael Clement, Ghaith Tarawneh, Nathan Milford, Tomas Beckett, Alice Ice, Eric Berman, Kurt Paolo Sevillano, Ron Kakar, Megulo Abebe, TAO7CADENCE, isolwi, Vedasheersh, Michael Chang, Waqar Sheikh, Irene Y., Kate Sem, VPpurplebelt, Ujjwal Dasu, Angel, Minh Quan Dinh, Sylvain, Terran Gimpel, Talia Sari, Phan Quang Lam, Katie McDowell, Allen, Sarat Chandra Vegunta, Mahina Knuckles, Charmaine Hanson, Paul Aldred-Bann, Thawsitt, Jezabel, Abdullah Abdulaziz, Adriano Fontes, Xiao Yu, Melissa Suarez, SpartacusDMR, Brian A. Dunn, Francisco Amaya and Daisuke Goto. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover an infamous bet between two professors, which sought to predict whether the earth would run out of resources due to a growing human population.--In 1980, Paul Ehrlich and Julian Simon bet $1,000 on a question with stakes that couldn’t be higher: would the earth run out of resources to sustain a growing human population? They bet $200 on the price of five metals. If the price of a metal decreased or held steady over the next decade, Simon won. If the price increased, Ehrlich won. So, what happened? Soraya Field Fiorio investigates.Lesson by Soraya Field Fiorio, directed by Avi Ofer.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-infamous-overpopulation-bet-simon-vs-ehrlich-soraya-field-fiorioDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-infamous-overpopulation-bet-simon-vs-ehrlich-soraya-field-fiorio#digdeeperAnimator's website: https://aviofer.comMusic: https://www.campstudio.co----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Karen Warner, Isorn Sookwanish, Iryna Panasiuk, Diane Gallin, Aaron Torres, Vasundhar, Eric Braun, Denka Wee, Sonja Worzewski, Amy, Michael Clement, Ghaith Tarawneh, Nathan Milford, Tomas Beckett, Alice Ice, Eric Berman, Kurt Paolo Sevillano, Ron Kakar, Megulo Abebe, TAO7CADENCE, isolwi, Vedasheersh, Michael Chang, Waqar Sheikh, Irene Y., Kate Sem, VPpurplebelt, Ujjwal Dasu, Angel, Minh Quan Dinh, Sylvain, Terran Gimpel, Talia Sari, Phan Quang Lam, Katie McDowell, Allen, Sarat Chandra Vegunta, Mahina Knuckles, Charmaine Hanson, Paul Aldred-Bann, Thawsitt, Jezabel, Abdullah Abdulaziz, Adriano Fontes, Xiao Yu, Melissa Suarez, SpartacusDMR, Brian A. Dunn, Francisco Amaya and Daisuke Goto. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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The infamous overpopulation bet: Simon vs. Ehrlich - Soraya Field Fiorio

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Discover an infamous bet between two professors, which sought to predict whether the earth would run out of resources due to a growing human population.--In 1980, Paul Ehrlich and Julian Simon bet $1,000 on a question with stakes that couldn’t be...

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