the original amount a saver deposits in a bank or a borrower borrows
principal-agent problem 所有者—代理人问题
any situation in which one party (the principal) needs to delegate actions to another party (the agent), and thus wishes to provide the agent with incentives to work hard and make decisions about risk that reflects the interests of the principal
private marginal cost 私人边际成本
the marginal cost of production borne by the producer of a good; when there is a negative externality, such as air pollution, private marginal cost is less than social marginal cost