reinout-g

Sure, I'll try to keep it as simple for you as possible

Suppose you have two goods, eg. apples and pears.

Then a utility curve describes what combinations of goods you're indifferent between.

For example, you might like 4 pears and 2 apples just as much as you like 2 pears and 4 apples or 3 pears and 3 apples. All these 'bundles' of pears and apples which you find equally attractive are described on one curve called a utility curve. Now every single curve is given a number. This one might for example have the number 2. Now suppose we have a bundle of 6 pears and 3 apples. Let's assume that you like 6 pears and 3 apples more than 4 pears and 2 apples but you like eg. 3 pears and 6 apples just as much. Then this bundle is on another utility curve with for example the number 4. The higher the number associated with the curve, the more you like all the bundles on the curve. Now if we graph all these curves in one set of axis, we can , given the prices and your income, determine which bundle you prefer most to spend your money on. For example it might be that with €5 you can buy either 6 pears and 3 apples or 2 pears and 4 apples. Since we know that 6 pears and 3 apples lies on the utility curve with number 4 and 2 pears and 4 apples lies on the utility curve with number 2, we know that you like 6 pears and 3 apples better and should therefore buy that combination.

Now the most regular kind of utility curves are the ones you see in the first graph.

'what economists think my utility curve looks like'

The second one clearly leans towards 'stuff I don't really need to buy' (That stuff you buy which you think is awesome but end up using way to little)

And the third one, well... I think you can figure that one out yourself.

It's not like I can make sense of that 

Thank you guys,

Since I'm doing a resit it took me a while to get back to this question, but your answers are really helpful

I hope I  will pass this time 

Thank you Alan,

I made some foolish mistake at

$$p*(\frac{w}{p*a})^{\frac{a}{a-1}} = p*(\frac{w}{p*a})^{\frac{a-1}{a-1}+ \frac{1}{a-1}}$$

Thank you 

Slowing moving towards those 1000 posts

$${\mathtt{169}}{\mathtt{\,\small\textbf+\,}}{\mathtt{1}} = {\mathtt{170}}$$

cot(900) = cot(5pi) [from degrees to radians]

cot(5pi) = cot(4pi+pi) = cot(pi) = cos(pi)/sin(pi) = -1/0 

Therefore cot(900) is undefined

(If you want to keep it in degrees

cot(900) = cot(720+180) = cot(360+360+180) = cot(180) = cos(180)/sin(180) = -1/0)

Reinout 

This image is off course intended as a joke. If you want to succeed in your studies, you will have to do your homework at some point.

I feel seriously offended by the person that wrote 'just die', even though it was not directed to me. The fact that you use such terms so lightly digusts me. I hope you understand that this is one of the dumbest posts I've ever seen on this forum. If you think you have any social intelligence, I hope you can at least show some of it by writing an apology for that.

Reinout

Well yeah,

I found it pretty ironic to see that he interprets the problem

a 300000 35-year mortgage with 6% interest computed monthly

as the problem

300000*35

It's like wolframalpha is 4 years old. 

I want a cookie :)

And now that I'm thinking about it, does anyone know how much 1+1 is?

I've also been wondering where the percentage button is