2011 AMC 12A Problem 2

Below is the professionally curated solution for Problem 2 of the 2011 AMC 12A, from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 2011 AMC 12A solutions, or check the answer key.

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Concepts:logical deduction

Difficulty rating: 840

There are $5$ coins placed flat on a table according to the figure. What is the order of the coins from top to bottom?

$(C, A, E, D, B)$

$(C, A, D, E, B)$

$(C, D, E, A, B)$

$(C, E, A, D, B)$

$(C, E, D, A, B)$

Solution:

Coin $C$ is drawn as a complete, unbroken circle, so nothing covers it and it lies on top.

Reading the remaining overlaps, each coin's uncovered arc shows it sits above the next: $C$ covers $E,$ $E$ covers $D,$ $D$ covers $B,$ and $A$ covers $B$ while lying under the others. This gives the top-to-bottom order $(C, E, D, A, B).$

Thus, the correct answer is E.

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