Question

In: Economics

duane breeds parrots for a living he has discovred that the production function for parrot q=5kL...

duane breeds parrots for a living he has discovred that the production function for parrot q=5kL
where k is capital and L is labor. the price of l is 20 and for K is 80 what is the optimal mix of labor and capital?

Solutions

Expert Solution

Answer: K: L = 1:4

Solution : Given the production function as:

q = 5 KL. .....(1)

Where K= capital and L = labor

Also, given the price of labor and capital:

PL = w = $20

PK = r = $80

Least cost combination of capital and labor will be :

MPL/ MP​​​​​​K = w/ r. ...... (2)

From equation(1)

MPL= dq/dL= 5K

MPK = dq/dK = 5L

Put the above values in equation(2).

5K/ 5L= 20/80

K/L = 1/4

K:L =1:4 or L =4K


Related Solutions

27) A firm has a production function Q = KL, where Q is the quantity of...
27) A firm has a production function Q = KL, where Q is the quantity of output, K is the amount of capital and L is the amount of labor. MPL=K and MPK=L. a) Suppose that capital is fixed at K=10 in short run. In this case, the marginal product of labor is MPL=10. Does this production function exhibit diminishing marginal returns to labor? b) Suppose that in the short run, K is fixed at 10. The interest rate is...
A firm has a production function Q = KL, where Q is the quantity of output,...
A firm has a production function Q = KL, where Q is the quantity of output, K is the amount of capital and L is the amount of labor. MPL=K and MPK=L . a) Suppose that capital is fixed at K=10 in short run. In this case, the marginal product of labor is MPL=10. Does this production function exhibit diminishing marginal returns to labor? b) Suppose that in the short run, K is fixed at 10. The interest rate is...
Suppose a firm has the production function, Q = 12KL. It has a contract to produce...
Suppose a firm has the production function, Q = 12KL. It has a contract to produce 144 units of output per day. One way to do is to use 3 units of capital (K) and 4 units of labor (L). Suppose a unit of labor costs $2 (wage = w) while a unit of capital costs $3 (r). What is the slope of the isocost line? A) 2/3 B) 1/4 C) 1/3 D) 3/2 At this combination of inputs, is...
Suppose a firm has the production function, Q = 12KL. It has a contract to produce...
Suppose a firm has the production function, Q = 12KL. It has a contract to produce 144 units of output per day. One way to do is to use 3 units of capital (K) and 4 units of labor (L). Suppose a unit of labor costs $2 (wage = w) while a unit of capital costs $3 (r). What is the Marginal Rate of Technical Substitution (MRTS) at this specific input ratio, i.e., K = 3 and L = 4?...
Suppose a firm has the production function, Q = 12KL. It has a contract to produce...
Suppose a firm has the production function, Q = 12KL. It has a contract to produce 144 units of output per day. One way to do is to use 3 units of capital (K) and 4 units of labor (L). Suppose a unit of labor costs $2 (wage = w) while a unit of capital costs $3 (r). What will be the marginal product of capital (MPK) when K = 3 units and L = 4 units? A) MPK =...
A firm has the following production function: Q = K0.8L0.1 Show if this is a constant,...
A firm has the following production function: Q = K0.8L0.1 Show if this is a constant, decreasing, or increasing returns to scale production function? Explain. Find the marginal rate of technical substitution (MRTS) and discuss how MRTS changes as the firm uses more L, holding output constant. Suppose that the wage rate is $10 per hour and the rental rate of capital is $10 per hour. If the firm wants to produce 500 units of output, what is the cost-minimizing...
Tom owns a business. He knows that the production function(q) requires workers(L) and machines (K), and...
Tom owns a business. He knows that the production function(q) requires workers(L) and machines (K), and L and K are perfect complements. A worker can work on 2 product per hour. That is, the production function per hour is q = min(2L, 2K) . The wage of a worker per hour is w = 30, and the cost of using a machine for an hour is r = 5 . First, suppose we are in the short run, and Tom...
13 A firm has a production function for steel (x) and aluminum (z) that is q...
13 A firm has a production function for steel (x) and aluminum (z) that is q = 2x + z. If the price of steel is $50 and the price of aluminum is $20, then: A. the firm is indifferent between using aluminum and steel. B. the firm should only use aluminum. C. the firm should only use steel. D. the firm should use 2 steel for every aluminum. 15 In the short run, a firm 's output level is...
A firm has a production function of Q = KL + L, where MPL = K...
A firm has a production function of Q = KL + L, where MPL = K + 1 and MPK = L. The wage rate (W) is $100 per worker and the rental (R) is $100 per unit of capital. a. In the short run, capital (K) is fixed at 4 and the firm produces 100 units of output. What is the firm's total cost? b. In the long run, what is the total cost of producing 100 units of...
Steve and Sons Solar Panels has a production function of Q = 4KL and faces a...
Steve and Sons Solar Panels has a production function of Q = 4KL and faces a wage rate of $8 per hour and a rental rate of capital of $10 per hour. Assume that, in the short run, capital is fixed at K = 10. a. Derive the short-run total cost curve for the firm. b. Derive expressions for the firm’s short-run average total cost, average fixed cost, average variable cost, and marginal cost. c. Derive the long-run expansion path...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT