A population grows from 11,000 to 18,000 in five years. Round your answers to three decimal places. (a) Assuming the growth is exponential, find the annual growth rate.

Step 1 ：We are given a population that grows from 11,000 to 18,000 in five years. We are assuming the growth is exponential, and we need to find the annual growth rate.

Step 2 ：The formula for exponential growth is \(P = P0 * e^{rt}\), where \(P\) is the final population, \(P0\) is the initial population, \(r\) is the growth rate, and \(t\) is the time in years.

Step 3 ：We can rearrange this formula to solve for \(r\): \(r = \ln(P/P0) / t\).

Step 4 ：Substituting the given values into the formula, we get \(r = \ln(18000/11000) / 5\).

Step 5 ：Calculating the above expression, we find that \(r\) is approximately 0.09849529701955885.

Step 6 ：Rounding to three decimal places, we get \(r = 0.098\).

Step 7 ：Final Answer: The annual growth rate is approximately \(\boxed{0.098}\).