The specific application of the math does add value.
Most obviously for the opportunity costs, on the math side you only have to understand the “minus” symbol, which pretty much everyone already does. With marginal utility you have to understand the “derivative”, but you still have to apply it in a situation ouside of math class.
It’s applied math, not the pure math that the OP was talking about. Furthermore, these can be useful ideas even when used purely qualitatively; then it’s not even applied math (except in a sense that everything is math, if we make the math sufficiently imprecise).
That’s maths too.
The specific application of the math does add value.
Most obviously for the opportunity costs, on the math side you only have to understand the “minus” symbol, which pretty much everyone already does. With marginal utility you have to understand the “derivative”, but you still have to apply it in a situation ouside of math class.
It’s applied math, not the pure math that the OP was talking about. Furthermore, these can be useful ideas even when used purely qualitatively; then it’s not even applied math (except in a sense that everything is math, if we make the math sufficiently imprecise).