Suppose the government taxes the wealthy at a higher rate than it taxes the poor and then develops programs to redistribute the tax revenue from the wealthy to the poor. This redistribution of wealth is a. is more efficient and more equal for society. b. is more efficient but less equal for society. c. is more equal but less efficient for society. is less equal and less efficient for society.

Bridget drinks three soda during a particular day. The marginal benefits she enjoys from drinking the third soda. a. can be thought of as the total benefit Bridget enjoys by drinking three sodas minus the total benefit she would have enjoyed by drinking just two sodas. b. determines Bridget's willingness to pay for the third soda. c. is likely different from the marginal benefit provided to Bridget by the second soda.

1. When taxes reduce the income going to the wealthy and instead redistributes it to the poorer members of society, it increases equality because the poorer members will have some form of income to bridge the gap between them and the rich. However, this may not be good for the efficiency of the society. This is because increasing the income on the wealthier will both reduce the income they have for investment as well as their willingness to work knowing that they will lose some of their rewards to taxes. These 2 things will reduce the output of the society thereby hurting its efficiency.

2. Marginal benefit in terms of production for instance is the extra benefit gained from producing one extra good. It can therefore be calculated by subtracting the total benefit of all the other produced goods from the total benefits of all produced goods including the additional one. In the same way, the marginal benefit of Bridget drinking the third soda can be thought of as the total benefit Bridget enjoys by drinking three sodas minus the total benefit she would have enjoyed by drinking just two sodas.

The marginal benefit that Bridget will get from drinking the third soda will indeed determine what she will pay for it. If she feels that it costs more to her than what she will benefit, she will not buy.

As more of a good is consumed, the marginal benefit decreases in general and is almost never the same. For Bridget therefore, the marginal benefit of the third soda is likely different from the marginal benefit provided to Bridget by the second soda.