Quote:
Originally Posted by cosmicfish
If 90% of the population died in the first 5 years then 20-30 million would require that the following 145 years saw a net population loss, and I don't see how to justify that unless there were other large-scale population decreasing events in the meantime.
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Let's assume the 90% death rate in the first 5 years. We have the central part of the US at temperatures 15-20°C colder in the summer months for the next couple of decades. Coastal regions should see the temperature decline a little less. Seeds recovered from standing crops would be F2 and need to be selectively bred to get better crops for a number of years. Food riots are likely with more people moving out of the central plains to the southern and coastal states, increasing pressure for food. Pockets of farmers and survivalists with heritage seeds would pop up in the central US, but they would quickly become targets for refugees bringing more violence to the central plains.
With the killing during food riots and the killing continuing for a protracted period coupled with bitter cold winters for a few decades and wave of migrant refugees looking for food will keep people in harms way for years. Not sure how you could model this behavior or if it would enough to drive the population low enough for your needs.