The marketplace disagrees strongly. Otherwise the cost of an angled measuring cup would approximate the cost of a nurse, which it does not -- the difference is at least 4 [decimal] orders of magnitude.
That's the wrong comparison: you have to combine the cost of ALL angled cup (possibly deduct the value of all non angled cup) and compare with the cost of one nurse, since the two scenarios are: angled cups vs no angled cup at all and one more nurse
The marketplace won't necessarily value the angled measuring cup inventor as a nurse at all, indeed it may value them negatively (eg by reducing patients who attend a clinic because this person is a nurse there). That would mean that on a market based evaluation, for a person who makes a bad enough nurse, the availability of the cup "improvement" would have to be detrimental to measuring-cup users in order for the market to value the person as a nurse above them as a measuring-cup inventor.
As you note there's a big problem with working out how the market values the item in the first place. Just because something costs more doens't mean it's better value, of course. In a way if the cup costs less than the traditional measuring-cup it's a better product; in another way if it costs more but the same number buy it then it's a better product. You have to make a cost-benefit judgement.
If people say they wouldn't buy a new angled measuring-cup just for the USP, but that they would replace a broken traditional cup with the new style one, how then do you establish the value? You have to take in to account the person's value judgements on disposal of working items. I don't think you can genuinely make an objective market-based analysis here?
I do not understand this. It seems to be an argument that a measuring cup is more valuable than a nurse. All the words in the world won't convince. Ever been sick?
Yes. A measuring cup that aids 10 million people in saving 10c is more valuable to society than a specific person becoming a nurse [who makes you sick].
Obviously if you need a nurse then 10 million measuring cups won't make you better. But if you need a measuring cup, a nurse won't really be that helpful either.
The world needs both, but generally we don't need people who have inventive ideas to shun them in favouring of doing things they are ill-suited and unmotivated to do.
A measuring cup is not valuable than a nurse. Hundreds of millions of measuring cups serving hundreds of millions of people, on the other hand, IS more valuable than a nurse
