Final answer:
To approximate how many pennies can fit in a 5 cm circle, one must compare the area of the circle to the area of a penny. This involves calculating the circle's area and the penny's area, and then dividing the former by the latter. The result is an estimation and does not consider the packing arrangement of the pennies.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks how many pennies can fit in a 5 cm circle. To solve this problem, one would have to calculate the area of the circle using the formula A = πr^2, where r is the radius of the circle. However, since we do not have the exact dimensions of a penny, the question can't be answered precisely without additional information. If one assumes a standard US penny, which has a diameter of 1.9 cm, we can approximate the number of pennies that can fit by dividing the area of the circle by the area of a single penny.
Firstly, find the radius of the 5 cm diameter circle, which is 2.5 cm. Then, calculate the area of this circle. Next, approximate the area of a penny using the diameter of 1.9 cm to find its radius (0.95 cm), and calculate the area of the penny. Finally, divide the area of the 5 cm circle by the area of the penny to estimate the number of pennies that can fit inside the circle.
Note that this is an approximation and does not take into account the gaps between pennies when they are packed together.