
請依下文回答第 16 題至第 20 題
Price elasticity of demand (PED) is a measure used in economics to show the relationship between a change in the
quantity demanded of a particular good or service and a change in its price. More 16 , it gives the percentage
change in quantity demanded in response to a one percent change in price.
PED is often used when discussing price sensitivity in economics. In general, the demand for a good is said to
be elastic, or 17 price changes,when its PED is greater than one. That is, changes in price have a relatively large
effect on the quantity of a good demanded. 18 , the demand for a good is said to be inelastic when the PED is less
than one. In such cases, a large change in price is accompanied by a small amount of change in quantity demanded.
Price elasticities are almost always negative, although analysts tend to ignore the sign even though this can lead to
ambiguity. According to the law of demand, when price goes up, demand goes down and vice versa. Thus, only goods
which do not 19 the law of demand, such as Veblen goods for their exclusive nature and appeal as a status
symbol, have a positive PED.
A firm’s revenue is maximized when price is set so that the PED is exactly one. Therefore, knowing PED helps
the firm decide whether to raise, lower, or 20 price, which would require the firm to charge consumers different
prices for the same product. Typically, if demand is elastic, revenue is gained by reducing price, but if demand is
inelastic, revenue is gained by raising price.
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請依下文回答第 21 題至第 25 題
Kraken, a 17-year-old rollercoaster at SeaWorld Orlando, an amusement park in Florida, reopened recently after
several months of refurbishment. That, in itself, is unusual. The normal fate of old rides is demolition and replacement
by new ones offering fresh thrills. More unusual still is that Kraken, though it had not undergone any physical upgrade
during its refurbishment, had customers queuing eagerly to get on it as though it were a brand new offering.
SeaWorld Orlando is the latest in a string of parks to turn to virtual reality (VR) to recycle rollercoasters of days
past. In the case of Kraken, the rider wears a headset that takes him on an underwater journey which matches the
coaster’s movements, dodging prehistoric sea creatures such as pliosaurs, careering down into an underwater canyon,
and straining to escape the clutches of the terrible, tentacled monster after which the ride is named.