MIDDLETOWN, Conn. -- The exhibit at Wesleyan University's Zilkha Gallery titled "All the People in All the World" contains 11,000 pounds of rice and represents the population of the United States and more.

Though the piles of rice may not seem provocative, when viewers see how they represent the number of people born in the world alongside the number of deaths, the exhibit takes on a new life.

"We're looking for ways to humanize issues around climate change, so we spoke to James (Yarker), of Stan's Café, and said, 'Would you come and do climate change, but also bring all the wonderful statistics about the United States' history to Connecticut as well?'" said Pamela Tatge, of Wesleyan University.

Stan's Café, a theater group out of Birmingham, England, came up with the rice-as-people concept and has toured the world for six years working off a variety of themes.

"People find it very moving and emotionally engaging because they see all the individual grains as people and engage in that way when you see stuff about war and child, soldiers and diseases," Yarker said. "It's heart-rending."

The rice is weighed down to the grains -- or people -- per gram to get the statistics, then set out with labels.

Some piles even show the population of Iraq and the number of people who ate at McDonald's in given day.

"Everywhere you go, you meet new people with new stories to tell and you can incorporate that into the show as well," Yarker said.

The show is constantly changing, with new categories added, he said. Others will also be deleted over the course of the 10 days the exhibit will be on display at Wesleyan, he said.

For more information, visit the Wesleyan University Web site