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There are economies of scale in ranching, especially with regard to fencing land

ID: 1220913 • Letter: T

Question

There are economies of scale in ranching, especially with regard to fencing land. Suppose that barbed-wire fencing costs dollar 16, 000 per mile to set up. Instructions: Enter your answers as whole numbers. How much would it cost to fence a single property whose area is one square mile if that property also happens to be perfectly square, with sides that are each one mile long? dollar would it cost to fence exactly four such properties, which together would contain four square miles of area? dollar instead, it comes as a single large square that is two miles long on each side. dollar d which is more costly-tencing in the four, one-square-miles properties or the single four-square-mile property?

Explanation / Answer

(a) Cost of fencing one mile = $16,000

Length of side of single property whose area is one square mile = 1 mile

Perimeter of single property = 4 * side = 4 * 1 mile = 4 miles

Cost of fencing single property = Perimeter * Cost of fencing one mile = 4 miles * $16,000 = $64,000

The cost to fence single property whose area is one square mile is $64,000.

(b) Cost of fencing single property whose area is one square mile = $64,000

Cost of fencing exactly four such properties = 4 * $64,000 = $256,000

The cost to fence exactly four such properties which together would contain four square miles of area is $256,000.

(c) Cost of fencing one mile = $16,000

Length of side of single four-square mile property = 2 miles

Perimeter = 4 * side = 4 * 2 miles = 8 miles

Cost of fencing this property = Perimeter * Cost = 8 * $16,000 = $128,000

The cost of fencing a single four square miles of ranch is $128,000.

(d) Fencing four-square mile properties cost $256,000.

Fencing one single four-square-mile property cost $128,000.

Thus, fencing the four, one-square mile properties is more costly.