UNIT 7

OPPORTUNITY COST

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TOPIC LECTURE
GETTING READY

1. Match the word on the left with the meaning on the right.

1. Widgets a. (adj.) helpful or important

2. Give up b. (n.) imagined products made by a company

3. Outcome c. (n.) an effect or result

4. Elements d. (n.) a chance to do something that you‟d like to do

5. Valuable e. (n.) choices or things to do

6. Fund f. (v.) to stop owning or doing something

7. Opportunity g. (v.) to provide money for something

8. Concepts h. (n.) important parts of something

9. Options i. (v.) to try to be better than somebody else

10. Compete j. (n) ideas

2. Use the words in exercise 1 to complete the following sentences. Change the
form of the word if necessary.

a. When two companies make similar products, they _______________ with each other
for sales. Each company tries to sell more than the other company sells.

b. There are several _______________ to this problem. They are important things we
need to consider before we can figure out a solution.

c. My company plans to _______________ a new project. As soon as we get that

money, we‟ll start.

d. One of my _______________ is to go to college full-time, or another possibility I

could choose is to go to college part-time and get a part-time job.
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e. If I go away to college, I‟ll have to _______________ my job here.

f. He introduced the _______________ of selling books via the Internet.

g. Going to college will provide me with better _______________ in the future. For
example, if I go to college, I‟ll have a better chance of finding a high-paying job.

h. I had a meeting with my boss. The _______________ was good because I got the
raise that I wanted.

i. I am a very _______________ employee. I am very helpful to my company, so I think

my boss should give me a raise.

j. The professor gave us an example of a company that makes cheap

_______________.

LISTENING
1. Watch the lecture and complete the notes below.

Topic: ………………………………………….. (OC)

- OC is important because ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
- 1st Example :
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
- Definition of OC
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Cost: doing one thing = …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…
- 2nd Example
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
- 3rd Example
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
- 4th Example
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

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2. Use your notes to answer questions below.

a. What is the definition of OC?

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

b. What is the OC of example 1?

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

c. What is the OC of example 2?

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

d. What is the OC of example 3?

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

e. What is the OC of example 4?

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

FOLLOW-UP DISCUSSION
1. Discuss with your partner the following questions.

- Which example from the lecture did you think was the most useful? How did it help you
understand opportunity cost?

- Do you think that the concept of opportunity cost is useful for making decisions in your
everyday life? Give an example of how you might use it to make a decision in your life.

2. Watch the discussion after the lecture.

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LISTENING STRATEGY
Recognize lecture language for transition 1
Professors use a variety of expressions throughout a lecture to signal a new idea, or the
end of one idea and the beginning of a new idea. Think of these transitions as road
signs that help you find your way.

1. Read the expressions that signal a new idea or topic. Think of two more
expressions with the same functions.

Let me start with …

Now let‟s talk about …

What I want to discuss now is …

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

2. Read the expressions that signal the end of one idea and the beginning of a
new idea. Think of two more expressions with the same functions?

Now that we have talked about …., let‟s talk about …

That‟s enough about … Let‟s go to the next point …

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………..

3. Read the excerpt from a lecture about work habits. Then underline the lecture
language that signals a transition.

Marriage and work is an interesting topic, so let me start with the point that
married couples have reacted in a variety of ways to the pressures they feel
when both the husband and wife work. We’ve seen that it’s a struggle for some
couples, and somehow other couples can make it work. Let’s move on to some of
the polling data I collected with my colleagues last summer so that we can
discover some of the reasons for these reactions.

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4. Listen to the lecture about the work lives of three family members. Match the
name of each person to the description of her work experience.

1. Dina a. She has never worked.

2. Laura b. She has worked in a fast food restaurant and in an office.
3. Maria c. She works in a law firm.

5. Listen to the lecture again. Write down the lecture language that signals a
transition from one idea to another

- Idea 1
……………………………………………………………..
transitional lecture language:
……………………………………………………………..
- Idea 2:
……………………………………………………………..
transitional lecture language:
……………………………………………………………..
- Idea 3:
……………………………………………………………..
transitional lecture language:
……………………………………………………………..
- Idea 4:
……………………………………………………………..
transitional lecture language:
……………………………………………………………..

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