If real GDP per capita in the United States is $10,000, what will real GDP per capita in the United States be after five years if real GDP per capita grows at an annual rate of 2.9%? (Show your work and explain your answers.)
Chile has a population of 19.5 million and a GDP of $253 billion. Denmark has a population of 6.25 million and a GDP of $327 billion. Which country has a higher standard of living, and why? How did you determine who has the better living standard? (Reference any academic and non-academic articles used to make this determination.)
Movement between which points in the following diagram would reflect only a technology change? Movement between which points in the following diagram would reflect only an increase in the available capital per worker? If a country is already fairly wealthy, what should it concentrate more on: increasing capital per worker or encouraging positive technological change? Why? (Explain each answer, do not just list letters

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.

God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

Question 1: Real GDP per Capita Growth

Understanding the Problem: We’re given an initial real GDP per capita of $10,000 and an annual growth rate of 2.9%. We need to calculate the final GDP per capita after 5 years.

Solution: We can use the formula for compound interest to calculate the future value of the initial GDP per capita:

Future Value = Present Value * (1 + Interest Rate)^Number of Periods

Question 1: Real GDP per Capita Growth

Understanding the Problem: We’re given an initial real GDP per capita of $10,000 and an annual growth rate of 2.9%. We need to calculate the final GDP per capita after 5 years.

Solution: We can use the formula for compound interest to calculate the future value of the initial GDP per capita:

Future Value = Present Value * (1 + Interest Rate)^Number of Periods

In this case:

  • Present Value = $10,000
  • Interest Rate = 2.9% or 0.029
  • Number of Periods = 5
Future Value = $10,000 * (1 + 0.029)^5 
≈ $11,536.85

So, after 5 years, the real GDP per capita in the United States will be approximately $11,536.85.

Question 2: Comparing Standards of Living: Chile vs. Denmark

Understanding the Problem: We’re given the population and GDP of Chile and Denmark. We need to determine which country has a higher standard of living.

Solution: To compare standards of living, we need to calculate GDP per capita for each country. GDP per capita is calculated by dividing the total GDP by the population.

For Chile:

  • GDP per capita = GDP / Population = $253 billion / 19.5 million ≈ $13,000

For Denmark:

  • GDP per capita = GDP / Population = $327 billion / 6.25 million ≈ $52,320

Conclusion: Denmark has a significantly higher standard of living than Chile. This is because its GDP per capita is much higher, indicating that, on average, each Danish citizen has a greater share of the country’s economic output.

Question 3: Production Possibilities Frontier (PPF) and Economic Growth

Movement Between Points:

  • Technology Change: A movement from point A to point B on the PPF would represent a technological advancement, allowing the economy to produce more of both goods without sacrificing any of the other.
  • Increase in Capital per Worker: A movement from point A to point C on the PPF would represent an increase in capital per worker, allowing the economy to produce more of both goods.

Focus for a Wealthy Country:

A wealthy country should prioritize encouraging positive technological change. While increasing capital per worker can still boost economic growth, the diminishing returns to capital investment in such countries mean that technological advancements are more likely to yield significant productivity gains.

Explanation:

  • Technological Change: Innovation can lead to the development of new products, more efficient production processes, and improved organizational methods, all of which can significantly boost economic growth.
  • Capital per Worker: While additional capital can increase output, its impact may be limited in wealthy countries that already have a high level of capital investment.

In conclusion, while both capital accumulation and technological progress are important drivers of economic growth, a wealthy country should prioritize technological innovation to sustain long-term economic prosperity.

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