“现在在意大利旅行比十年前便宜得多”，一个朋友说，“十年前，一美元兑换1000里拉，而现在一个美元可以换1500里

拉了。”你的这位朋友的话正确还是错误呢？假定这个时期总体通货膨胀是美国25%而意大利100%，这会使到意大利旅行更贵呢？还是更便宜呢？用一个具体的例子——像美国的一杯咖啡与意大利的一杯咖啡——写出将令你的朋友信服的答案。

“Traveling in Italy is much cheaper now than it was ten years ago, ”says a friend, “Ten years ago, a dollar bought 1,000 lire; this year, a dollar buys 1,500 lire. ”Is your friend right or wrong？ Given that total inflation over this period was 25 percent in the United States and 100 percent in Italy, has it become more or less expensive to travel in Italy？ Write your answer using a concrete example-such as a cup of American coffee versus a cup of Italian coffee-that will convince your friend.