Blog Post 2: Micron and Cannabusiness

Part a:

More Demand for Computer Memory Could Lift Micron Shares 50 Percent: Barron's

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2014/10/05/technology/05reuters-usastocks-micron-tech.html?src=busln

A function is a relationship that has exactly one output for each input. In this case, the stock prices of Micron are a function of demand for the goods of the firm.

This function can be represented as f(s) = ds; where f(s) represents the stock price, s represents the amount of shares, and d represents the demand for shares by shareholders.

This function is not linear because the rate of change is not constant at every interval. The stock prices don’t have a constant rate of change due to the volatility of the factors that affect demand, such as the tastes of consumers, expectations of the future, or changes in the prices of related goods.  

The function is a mathematical model because output values are directly dependent on the input values. This means that if the demand for shares rises, the stock prices rise as well. If demand for shares fall, the stock prices will also fall. This implies that there is a positive relationship between demand and stock prices.

Part b:

In Colorado, a Rebranding of Pot Inc.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/05/fashion/in-colorado-a-rebranding-of-pot-inc-marijuana.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&version=HpSectionSumSmallMedia&module=pocket-region&region=pocket-region&WT.nav=pocket-region

As a result of Colorado’s legalization of cannabis, many new businesses have come about to take advantage of the “green rush,” but are trying to put a new, appropriate spin on consumption to make it appear more acceptable for all, much like the early 1900’s marketing of cigarettes to women as an acceptable social action. 

This relationship is not a function because it there could be multiple outputs per input, and there is no definite way of quantifying the recent boom in cannabis advertising and “cannabusiness.”