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TOTAL REVENUE AND TOTAL COST: A profit-maximizing firm produces output where the difference between total revenue and total cost, that is economic profit, is the greatest. This total revenue and total cost approach to identifying profit-maximizing production can be accomplished using either a table of numbers of a set of curves. However, the end result is the same. Profit-maximizing production takes place at the quantity generating the greatest difference between total revenue and total cost. An added benefit of performing the analysis with curves, however, is the observation that profit-maximizing production occurs where the slopes of the total revenue and total cost curves are equal.
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                           PRINCIPLE: A generally accepted, verified, proven, fundamental law of nature. A principle captures a cause-and-effect relation about the workings of the world that has been tested and verified through the scientific method. The law of demand, law of increasing opportunity cost, and law of diminishing marginal utility are three fundamental (and extremely important) economic principles. Principles form the structural foundation of the theories used in economic analysis. As a house is constructed from concrete, lumber, and nails, a theory is constructed from principles. To be a fundamental law of nature, a principle must capture a cause-and-effect relation about the workings of the real world. One example of a fundamental law is something like: If demand price rises, quantity demanded falls. The scientific method is the process of building theories by identifying and verifying these fundamental laws of nature. Verified HypothesisEvery principle begins life as a hypothesis, as a reasonable cause-and-effect statement about the world. A hypothesis becomes a principle, a law of nature, only after it has been systematically and extensively verified with real world data. Professor Grumpinkston, for example, might hypothesize that seating position in a classroom affects learning and the grades earned by students. But such a hypothesis is little more than speculation until it is verified with actual observations--over and over again.A principle, as such, captures a fundamental piece of the machinery that makes up the complex world. It is the gear, the coiled spring, the lever, the switch, that when assembled with other components make the world work. While the ultimate goal of the scientific method is to understand the entire complexity of the world, this task is accomplished one principle at a time. Ceteris ParibusA principle is generally stated in the form of "If A, then B" or alternatively that "A causes B." For example the law of demand can be stated as:If demand price increases, then quantity demanded decreases. Or:A higher demand price causes a smaller quantity demanded. Whichever form is used, a principle isolates the relation between two events, A and B. To isolate the relation it is critical to control other possible influences using the ceteris paribus assumption. Ceteris paribus means other factors are held constant. For the law of demand, other factors such as buyers' income, the prices of other goods, and buyers' preferences are held unchanged.
Recommended Citation:PRINCIPLE, AmosWEB Encyclonomic WEB*pedia, http://www.AmosWEB.com, AmosWEB LLC, 2000-2025. [Accessed: June 30, 2025].
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Today, you are likely to spend a great deal of time flipping through mail order catalogs looking to buy either income tax software or a how-to book on the art of negotiation. Be on the lookout for fairy dust that tastes like salt.
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The standard "debt" notation I.O.U. does not mean "I owe you," but actually stands for "I owe unto..."
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"I learned about the strength you can get from a close family life. I learned to keep going, even in bad times. I learned not to despair, even when my world was falling apart. I learned that there are no free lunches. And I learned the value of hard work. " -- Lee Iacocca
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Brookings Papers on Economic Activity
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