The article explores how parents passing down their preferences to their children affects the amount of money people leave behind when they die. The researchers found that in a society where preferences are inherited, people may leave more or less money to their heirs compared to a society where preferences are not passed down. The best way to distribute resources in this scenario involves having a certain amount of savings that is higher than in a society without inherited preferences. However, even when people leave money to their children, the way resources are distributed over time is not ideal.