Clifford lives by the motto “Eat drink and be merry today, for tomorrow doesn’t matter.” If today’s consumption is represented by “x” and tomorrow’s consumption is represented by “y”, then which of the following best represents Clifford’s utility function? A) U = x – y B) U = x/y C) U = x D) U […]
If the utility function (U) between bananas (B) and jam (J) can be represented as U(B,J) = 3ln(B)+4ln(J), what is the marginal rate of substitution (MRS) between bananas and jam? A) 4B. B) -3J/(4B). C) 4/(3J). D) 3B/J. ANSWER B
Some people view cosmetic surgery (c) and facials (f) as perfect substitutes as measured by the utility function U(c,f) = 5c + 10f. What is the marginal utility of cosmetic surgery? A) MU = 5. B) MU = 10. C) MU = 15. D) None of the above. ANSWER A
If the prices of both goods and income increase by the same percentage, what will happen to the budget line? A) The budget line rotates inward from the intercept on the axis of the good that did not change in price. B) The budget line rotates outward from the intercept on the axis of the […]
Diminishing marginal rate of substitution can be seen when indifference curves A) cross. B) are convex. C) are downward sloping. D) become flatter as we move down and to the right. ANSWER D
Utility is the set of numerical values that A) yields an absolute level of pleasure from a bundle of goods. B) reflects the relative ranking of various bundles of goods. C) describes how much more a consumer prefers one bundle to another. D) yields a cardinal ranking of bundles. ANSWER B
If two goods are perfect substitutes, then the indifference curves for those two goods would be A) upward sloping and concave to the origin. B) downward sloping and convex to the origin. C) downward sloping and straight. D) L-shaped. ANSWER C
If two bundles are on the same indifference curve, then A) the consumer derives the same level of utility from each. B) the consumer derives the same level of ordinal utility from each but not the same level of cardinal utility. C) no comparison can be made between the two bundles since utility cannot really […]
The statement “There is no accounting for taste” implies A) individuals all have the same preferences. B) individuals all have different cardinal preferences but the same ordinal preferences. C) individuals all have different ordinal preferences but the same cardinal preferences. D) individuals all have different ordinal and cardinal preferences. ANSWER D
Assuming that good “x” is measured on the x-axis and good “y” is measured on the y-axis, if the utility for the two goods “x” and “y” can be measured as U = y, then it can be concluded that A) “x” and “y” are perfect complements. B) “x” is a “bad”. C) the indifference […]