Consider the following production possibilities table for drill presses and corn.The table shows the maximum combination of drills and corn that can be produced when all resources are fully employed.
Drill Presses 10 20 30 40 50
Corn 150 140 120 90 50
Based on the information in the table,

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The opportunity cost of producing 40 drill presses instead of 30 is the amount of corn that must be given up to produce the additional 10 drill presses. From the table, producing 30 drill presses allows for 120 units of corn, while producing 40 drill presses reduces corn production to 90 units. Therefore, the opportunity cost is 30 units of corn (120-90). Choices B and C are incorrect because the varying differences in corn production as drill presses increase indicate a changing opportunity cost, not a constant one, which means the production possibilities curve would be bowed outwards, not a straight line. Choice D is incorrect because the opportunity cost of producing 30 drill presses instead of 20 is 20 units of corn (140-120), not 120.

Consider the Following Production Possibilities Table for Drill Presses and Corn.The