Diminishing Marginal Utility of Hamburgers

Diminishing Marginal Utility: Hamburgers Example

The graph shows how a hungry person's satisfaction (total utility) increases as they consume more hamburgers. The first few hamburgers provide a lot of satisfaction, but each additional burger adds less and less. This is known as the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility.

You can use the sliders below to see how different parameters affect the curve.

The Mathematical Model

This graph uses an exponential function to model utility, which accurately represents the concept. The formula is:

U(n) = a * (1 - e^{-b * n})

U(n) represents the total utility after eating n hamburgers.
a is the maximum possible satisfaction or the total utility ceiling. The curve will never exceed this value, no matter how many hamburgers are eaten.
b is the initial growth rate. A higher value of b means satisfaction rises more quickly at the beginning, representing a hungrier person.

The curve's shape perfectly illustrates that the rate of satisfaction gain slows down as n increases, demonstrating diminishing returns.

Multiple-Choice Questions

Question 1:
If you are very, very hungry, which slider would you most likely adjust to a higher value to represent your situation?

A. The **a** (Maximum Satisfaction) slider.
B. The **b** (Growth Rate) slider.（√）
C. Both **a** and **b** to higher values.
D. You would adjust neither slider.

Question 2:
According to the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility, as you eat more and more hamburgers, what happens to the additional satisfaction you get from each new hamburger?

A. It stays the same.
B. It increases at an increasing rate.
C. It increases at a decreasing rate.
D. It decreases.（√）

Question 3:
If you observe the curve getting flatter and flatter as you move to the right, what does this visually demonstrate?

A. The Law of Supply and Demand.
B. The Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility.(√)
C. The principle of compound interest.
D. The effect of inflation.