Question

a thrifty shopper wants to purchase a new phone that is made with quality parts. what factors should they consider?
high quality phones contain rare earth metals that are a less scarce resource and cost less to the consumer.
high quality phones contain rare earth metals that are a less scarce resource and cost more to the consumer
high quality phones contain rare earth metals that are a more scarce resource and cost more to the consumer
high quality phones contain rare earth metals that are a more scarce resource and cost less to the consumer.

Explanation:

To determine the correct option, we analyze the relationship between resource scarcity and cost. Rare earth metals in high - quality phones: if a resource is more scarce, its extraction and use in production tend to be more costly, which is passed on to the consumer.

• Option 1: Claims less scarce rare earth metals cost less, but less scarce resources should be cheaper to obtain, but high - quality phones with such metals being cheaper contradicts the idea that quality parts (using rare earth metals) would have a cost related to resource scarcity. Also, rare earth metals are generally scarce.
• Option 2: Less scarce rare earth metals costing more is illogical as less scarce resources should be more available and less costly to use in production.
• Option 3: More scarce rare earth metals (which is true for many rare earth metals) would be more expensive to source and use in phone production, so the phone would cost more to the consumer. This follows the economic principle of supply and demand (scarce resources have higher costs).
• Option 4: More scarce resources costing less is against basic economic principles of scarcity and cost.

Answer:

C. High quality phones contain rare earth metals that are a more scarce resource and cost more to the consumer