Can $n$ circles on a plane generate $m$ intersection points where at least $k$ circles intersect? For $k = 2$ the answer is obvious since we can always place circles so that every one of them intersects every other, generating in total at most $2 {n\choose{2}}$ intersection points of $2$ circles. What can we say for $k = 3$? In particular I am interested in $n = 7$, $m = 12$. It is known(see Figure attached) that $8$ circles can generate $12$ intersection points of at least $3$ circles. [enter image description here][1] The question is if we can generate $12$ intersection points of at least $3$ circles using $7$ circles in total. [1]: https://i.sstatic.net/qwyGL.png