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Science 29 April 1977:
Vol. 196. no. 4289, pp. 523 - 524
DOI: 10.1126/science.196.4289.523
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Articles

Territorial Division: The Least-Time Constraint Behind the Formation of Subnational Boundaries

G. EDWARD STEPHAN 1

1 Department of Sociology, Western Washington State College, Bellingham 98225

Nations usually locate their smaller administrative subdivisions in regions of highest population density. This report derives a precise form of the size-density relationship from the general assumption that social structures evolve in such a way as to minimize the total time expended by society in their operation. The result is confirmed empirically.

Submitted on January 13, 1977


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Scaling laws between population and facility densities.
J. Um, S.-W. Son, S.-I. Lee, H. Jeong, and B. J. Kim (2009)
PNAS 106, 14236-14240
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