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A patent is an exclusive right given to an inventor for his or her invention. In other words, a patent is a monopoly right given to the inventor for the invention. A patent confers on the inventor the right to price and to sell the invention in any way he or she desires, in the United States, patents are granted by the Patent Office for 17 years. Although economists generally condemn monopoly as a form of market organization since monopoly imposes costs on the economy, patents present a more subtle case for monopoly theory. Specifically, can patent monopolies be justified In general, economists complain about the costs of monopoly because they believe that the same industry could be organized competitively. A patent monopoly grant for 17 years presents a different problem. That is, the purpose of the patent system is to encourage invention. The issue is not monopoly versus competition but, more fundamentally, invention versus no invention. Is the world better off with the invention, even though it is monopolized for 17 years In other words, what are the costs and benefits of a patent Consider the simple case of a new consumer product with a positive demand, such as a camera utilizing a new exposure process. The costs of the patent monopoly are simply the deadweight costs of monopoly measured by the lost consumers’ surplus from the 17-year patent monopoly. This cost must be assessed carefully in the context of an invention, however. What are the benefits of the patent system First, there is the increase in consumer well-being brought about immediately by a desirable invention. In 17 years, the patent monopoly ends, and a second source of benefits arises: The price of cameras will fall to a competitive level, and consumers will reap the benefits of the camera at a lower price. In sum, theory of monopoly helps us to assess the costs and benefits of the patent. One can quibble about patent monopolies, arguing, for example, that they are granted for too long a time. In the end, the patent system creates goods and services and technologies that did not previously exist. In this respect it is a valuable System for the economy. The patent system also underscores the importance of property rights to ideas as a source of economic growth and progress. The second paragraph suggests strongly______.
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Questions 11 to 18 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
Immediately after the Civil War, however, the diet began to change. 46) Rail transportation increased the supply and improved the quality of the milk that reached urban centers; cold storage and refrigerator cars made possible the greater consumption of fresh vegetables, fresh fruits, and fresh fish; and commercial canning extended the range of appetizing and healthful foods. Subsequently food statistics indicated an increased consumption of dairy products, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, sugar and syrups, coffee, tea, cocoa, and spices. Decreased consumption was shown for meats, potatoes, and grain products. 47) By and large, the American diet continued to reflect a considerable reliance upon animal products: rather than on grains. which meant that a relatively large acreage was required to feed the American public. Whereas a grain and fish diet, such as in Japan, requires only a quarter of an acre high yield cropland and no pasture per capita, the American diet requires about two and a half acres of cropland and ten acres of pasture per capita-Also it indicated a shift toward the so-called protective foods, toward those high in vitamins and proteins. 48) This change was greatly furthered by governmental food inspection ( the Pure Food and Drug Act was passed in 1906), by the increasing, use of mechanical refrigerators in the 1920’s and 1910’s and of freezers for frozen food during recent decades.In the years after World War I a food revolution took place that was reminiscent of the one that occurred after the Civil War. The output of the food manufacturing industry quadrupled from 1900 to 1920.49) In that interval, as we have mentioned earlier, home canning gave way to commercial canning and the labor of housekeeping was lightened.Fortunately most of the major dietary changes that have taken place since the middle of the nineteenth century have resulted in better nutrition for the population. In port, these shifts have taken place because of a preference for new foods rather than old, but in part, they have been made because the new foods were advocated by nutritionists. Apparently American dietary customs were not so deeply ingrained as to prevent change in the interests of better health. 50) Possibly one factor that has contributed to the readiness of Americans to accept new foods or food preparations as the general familiarity most have with a variety of regional dishes coming from many different lands. Within a small area in New York City or San Francisco, one can find restaurants specializing in French, Italian, German, Turkish, Arabian, or Chinese cuisine. And at a Chinese restaurant in the United States the chef and waiter are as likely as not to he Oriental. Possibly one factor that has contributed to the readiness of Americans to accept new foods or food preparations as the general familiarity most have with a variety of regional dishes coming from many different lands.
Questions 11 to 18 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
Everybody loathes it, but everybody does it A recent poll showed that 20% of Americans hate the practice. It seems so arbitrary, after all. Why does a barman get a tip, but not a doctor who saves lives In America alone, tipping is now a $ 16 billion-a-year industry. Consumers acting rationally ought not to pay more than they have to for a given service. Tips should not exist. So why do they The conventional wisdom is that tips both reward the efforts of good service and reduce uncomfortable feelings of inequality. The better the service, the bigger the tip. Such explanations no doubt explain the purported origin of tipping--in the 16th century, boxes in English taverns carried the phrase "To Insure Promptitude" (later just "TIP") . But according to new research from Cornell University, tipping no longer serves any useful function. The paper analyses data from 2, 327 groups dining at 20 different restaurants. The correlation between larger tips and better service was very weak: only a tiny part of the variability in the size of the tip had anything to do with the quality of service. Customers who rated a meal as "excellent" still tipped anywhere between 8% and 17% of the meal price. Tipping is better explained by culture than by economics. In America, the custom has become institutionalized: it is regarded as part of the accepted cost of a service. In a New York restaurant, failing to tip at least 15% could well mean abuse from the waiter. Hairdressers can expect to get 15-20%, the man who delivers your groceries＄2. In Europe, tipping is less common; in many restaurants, discretionary tipping is being replaced by a standard service charge. In many Asian countries, tipping has never really caught on at all. How to account for these national differences Look no further than psychology. According to Michael Lynn, the Cornell paper’s co-author, countries in which people are more extrovert, sociable or neurotic tend to tip more. Tipping relieves anxiety about being served by strangers. And, says Mr. Lynn, "In America, where people are outgoing and expressive, tipping is about social approval, ff you tip badly, people think less of you. Tipping well is a chance to show off." Icelanders, by contrast, do not usually tip-a measure of their introversion, no doubt. While such explanations may be crude, the hard truth seems to be that tipping does not work. It does not benefit the customer. Nor, in the case of restaurants, does it actually stimulate the waiter, or help the restaurant manager to monitor and assess his staff. Service people should "just be paid a decent wage" which may actually make economic sense. It is implied in the passage that______.
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