Tammy installed a set of wind chimes in her backyard. She enjoys listening to the musical tones when the breeze hits them. Her neighbor Steven also enjoys the chimes, but her other neighbor Sally hates the constant noise. Tammy's wind chimes: a. are a public good because all three parties can hear the wind chimes. b. create a negative externality for Steven and a positive externality for Sally. c. create a positive externality for Steven and a negative externality for Sally. d. are an example of an efficient market since the benefits to one party are balanced by costs to another party. e. are not related to the issue of property rights since all parties are homeowners.

Suppose that a major city’s main thoroughfare, which is also an interstate highway, will be completely closed to traffic for two years, from january 2014 to december 2015, for reconstruction at a cost of $535 million. if the construction company were to keep the highway open for traffic during construction, the highway reconstruction project would take much longer and be more expensive. suppose that construction would take four years if the highway were kept open, at a total cost of $800 million. the state department of transportation had to make its decision in 2014, one year before the start of construction (so that the first payment was one year away). so the department of transportation had the following choices: (i) close the highway during construction, at an annual cost of $267.5 million per year for two years. (ii) keep the highway open during construction, at an annual cost of $200 million per year for four years. now suppose the interest rate is 80%. calculate the present value of the costs incurred under each plan.