Question

it is very difficult to find goods with perfectly elastic or perfectly inelastic demand. we can, however, find goods that lie near these extremes. character
a. corn grown and harvested by a small farmer in lowa

b. heroin for a drug addict

c. water for a desert hiker

d. one of several optional textbooks in a pass - fail course

near perfectly inelastic demand
near perfectly elastic demand

Explanation:

Part a: Corn grown by a small Iowa farmer

Corn from a small farmer is a homogeneous product in a competitive market. Many sellers exist, and the farmer is a price - taker. If the farmer raises the price, buyers will switch to other corn sellers. So, the demand for this corn is highly responsive to price changes, meaning near perfectly elastic demand.

A drug addict has a very strong need for heroin, and their demand is not very responsive to price changes. Even if the price of heroin changes, the addict will still try to buy it because of their addiction. So, the demand is near perfectly inelastic.

A desert hiker has a life - or - death need for water. No matter how much the price of water changes (within a reasonable range), the hiker will still want to buy water to survive. So, the demand for water here is near perfectly inelastic.

Answer:

near perfectly elastic demand

Part b: Heroin for a drug addict