Question

Bob loves to eat blue jelly beans. He gets 50 units of utility for the first jelly bean, 40 units of utility for the second, 30 units of utility for the third, 20 units of utility for the fourth, and an additional 10 units of utility for the fifth. For the first jelly bean, the marginal utility is _____, and the total utility for eating five jelly beans is _____.

Answer 1

The marginal utility for the first jelly bean is 50 units and the total utility for eating five jelly beans is 150 units.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student's question is related to the concepts of utility and marginal utility, which are key topics in economics typically taught at the high school or freshman college level. For the first jelly bean Bob eats, the marginal utility is 50 units because that is the utility gained from consuming the first jelly bean. To calculate the total utility for eating five jelly beans, we sum the amount of utility gained from each jelly bean: 50 (first) + 40 (second) + 30 (third) + 20 (fourth) + 10 (fifth) = 150 units of utility. Therefore, the marginal utility for the first jelly bean is 50 units, and the total utility for eating five jelly beans is 150 units.

Answer 2

a. 50;150

Step-by-step explanation:

Bob loves to eat blue jelly beans. He gets 50 units of utility for the first jelly bean, 40 units of utility for the second, 30 units of utility for the third, 20 units of utility for the fourth, and an additional 10 units of utility for the fifth. For the first jelly bean, the marginal utility is 50, and the total utility for eating five jelly beans is 150. Utility is the benefit derived from consuming a product or using a service. Bob gets 50 units of utility for consuming the first jelly bean. His utility is 50. The total utility is the summation of the satisfaction Bob derived from eating the five jelly beans.

That is;

Total utility = 50 + 40 +30 +20 + 10

= 150 units of utility