翻译内容如下：
As expiration granularity relates to a resource’s inherent characteristics, we measure each resource’s expiration granularity in relation to its own estimated lifespan and not along an absolute time scale. Fresh fruit has a life of a few days. However, we can preserve fresh fruit for a few days, meaning that its benefits can be stored for a substantial portion of its life. Thus, fresh fruit has coarse expiration granularity. In contrast, although a roof lasts for decades, its benefits expire continuously over time. Thus, a roof has fine expiration granularity because we cannot store its benefits for later use.
Because of the inherent links between the expiration granularity of a resource and the storability of its benefits over time, we use the term “storability” for ease of exposition.
Consumption Granularity
Consumption granularity pertains to the controllability by the user of the rate at which she can extract available benefits. The greater the user’s ability to vary the rate of benefit extraction, the greater the resource’s consumption granularity. The user has considerable discretion in extracting available benefits from raw materials. Thus, the rate of benefit extraction can display extreme discontinuities or lumpiness because the user can accelerate or slowdown the rate of benefit extraction. A use- based metric is appropriate for measuring the opportunity cost of resources with coarse consumption granularity. In contrast, the user’s inability to control the rate of deterioration of a stone sculpture standing in open weather means that the rate of benefit extraction is constant. This resource therefore has fine consumption granularity. A use-or consumption-based measure dose not appropriately measure the opportunity cost of using a resource with fine consumption granularity.
Due to the inherent link of a resource’s consumption granularity to controllability by the user, we often use term controllability for expositional clarity. Also, we note that definitions of expiration and consumption granularity are with respect to normal and expected use. When we employ resources for purposes other than what we call normal and ordinary, their granularities may change. The resultant estimates of opportunity costs may also change because opportunity costs depend on the context in which resources are used.
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