This week on Granite State Challenge.

It's the Bulldogs of Bedford High School taking on the Tomahawks of Merrimack High School.

Only one team will advance.

Granite State Challenge starts now.

Major funding for the production of Granite State Challenge is provided by Unitil.

Additional funding provided by Bangor Savings Bank.

Safety insurance, NEA New Hampshire, Aroma Joe's and viewers like you.

Thank you.

Get ready.

It's time for New Hampshire high schools to match wits in a high stakes scholastic showdown.

It's time for Granite State Challenge.

Here's your host, Jon Cannon.

Hello, everyone, and welcome to Granite State Challenge.

If you watched last week, you saw the Tilton School punch their ticket to the Granite State Super Challenge, and one of these two teams will be their opponent.

Let's introduce them to you.

First off, we've got the team from Bedford High School.

I'm Matt and I'm a freshman.

I'm Alina and I'm a sophomore.

I'm Sumedh and I'm a freshman.

I'm Tabitha and I'm a sophomore.

Their alternates are Tristan and Samantha, and the team is coached by Destination Imagination Coordinator Kelly Chausovsky And parent volunteer Sherry Arp.

And they're the Bulldogs of Bedford High School.

And their opponents in this semifinal matchup is the team from Merrimack High School.

I'm Erin I'm a senior.

Hi.

I'm Liam.

I'm a senior I'm Maeve.

I'm a senior.

Hi I'm Avis.

I'm a junior.

Their alternates are Hikari and Bridget and Lauren.

And they're coached by chemistry teacher doctor Sara Campbell and physics teacher Liz Dumais.

And they are the Tomahawks of Merrimack High School.

All right, those are the teams this week.

But of course, back with us again for this semifinal matchup is our beloved judge on the Ann Cam, Ann Boulanger.

All right.

Teams introductions are out of the way.

Go ahead and grab those signaling devices as we get ready to play some Granite State challenge.

As you know we play in four rounds and in round one we're going to do some ten point tossup questions.

So Bedford and Merrimack.

Good luck.

Here we go.

In what play by Shakespeare will you find the line "to be or not to be"?

Erin of Merrimack.

Hamlet.

That's right.

It was two degrees at kickoff for Super Bowl 52, in 2017, between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles in this host city.

Sumedh of Bedford.

Saint Paul.

Sorry.

No.

Merrimack.

Liam.

Minneapolis.

Minneapolis is right.

This 19th century English woman is known for her finds along the Jurassic marine fossil beds in the cliffs along the English Channel.

Erin of Merrimack.

Mary Anning.

That is right.

DNA is made up of two poly nucleotide chains that form a double helix.

What does DNA stand for?

Alina of Bedford.

Deoxyribonucleic acid.

Correct.

These laws regulate the concentration of economic power from monopolies and anti-competitive practices.

Erin of Merrimack.

Antitrust laws.

That's right.

This singer, known for the song Driver's License, got her start on the Disney series Bizaardvark.

Erin of Merrimack.

Olivia Rodrigo.

Yes.

All right, teams, a math question for you.

You have pencil and paper, if you like.

What is 50 cubed?

Matthew of Bedford.

It is, 125,000.

That is right.

This nut inspired name originally referred to the cheapest and rowdiest seats in the theater.

Avis of Merrimack.

Peanuts.

Sorry.

No.

Bedford, Alina.

Peanut gallery.

The peanut gallery is what we were looking for.

After unexpectedly coming in second to Paul Tsongas in the New Hampshire primary in 1992.

This candidate for the Democratic ticket and eventual 42nd president of the United States called himself the Comeback Kid.

Matthew of Bedford.

Bill Clinton.

Yes.

The song I Did It My Way was a signature song by this singer known as Old Blue Eyes.

Avis of Merrimack.

Frank Sinatra.

Yes.

Take a look at your monitors teams for the next question.

This species of solitary leopard is found in the forests and foothills of the Himalayas in Nepal, Bhutan, and India, as well as in Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and China.

It is the state animal of the Indian state of Meghalaya Matthew of Bedford.

The fishing cat.

Sorry.

No.

Merrimack.

Maeve.

Snow leopard.

Sorry.

No.

It is called the clouded leopard.

All right.

Teams.

This blond actor was married to playwright Arthur Miller and baseball player Joe DiMaggio.

Not at the same time.

Maeve of Merrimack.

Marilyn Monroe.

Yes.

All right, teams, for your next question, go ahead and take a look at your monitors for a question coming to you from New Hampshire's Kid Governor.

Hi, I'm Jade Adams.

The 2025 New Hampshire's Kid Governor.

And I have a civics question for you.

This man was just a kid when his father, John, served as governor of New Hampshire.

He became the state's youngest governor at age 42.

Liam of Merrimack.

Chris Sununu.

Yes.

All right, teams, another math question.

Pencil and paper, if you want it.

What is the area rounded to the nearest whole number of a pizza with a radius of 12in.

If pi is 3.14.

Liam of Merrimack.

27.

Sorry.

No.

Sumedh of Bedford.

13.

Sorry.

No.

It's 452 square inches.

But I'm going to trust the math on that.

This woman who was the first black woman elected to Congress, used the campaign slogan Unbought and Unbossed when she ran for president in 1972.

Erin of Merrimack.

Shirley Chisholm.

Correct.

At 919,600mi .

This is the largest country in Africa.

Erin of Merrimack.

Algeria.

That's right.

Lake Winnipesaukee, which covers around 71mi , is the largest lake in New Hampshire.

Spell.

Winnipesaukee.

Matthew of Bedford.

W i n n i p e s a u k e e. Congratulations.

You've got them all.

Checkpoint Charlie was a famous crossing point between these two cities during the Cold War.

Erin of Merrimack.

East and West Berlin.

Yes.

Cowabunga!

This sculptor's 15th century statue of David is naked except for his helmet and boots.

Liam of Merrimack.

Michelangelo.

Sorry.

No.

Bedford.

Matthew.

Sorry.

No.

It's a great statue by Donatello.

Check it out.

All right, teams, for our next question.

Take a look at your monitors for a clue from my good friend Tom Bergeron.

When I was a teenager, I interviewed Larry Fine and Moe Howard.

Larry and Moe, along with Curly Howard, were the three main characters in this group, known for its slapstick comedy that sometimes actually involved slapping.

Liam of Merrimack.

Three Stooges.

Yes.

Animals that produce and exhibit light exhibit this.

Liam of Merrimack.

Bioluminescence.

That is right.

Despite what Elaine Benes says in an episode of Seinfeld, the working title of this work by Tolstoy was not War, What is it good for?

Maeve of Merrimack.

War and Peace.

Yes.

All right.

We'll leave that next question for round four.

Merrimack out to a lead by a score of 140 to 50.

All right.

We're going to take a break in the action teams.

Great job in round one.

But before we get to round two, we're going to take a moment to get to know our teams a little bit better.

And we're going to start with the team from Bedford High School.

Bedford High School of course, about 1500 kids in the town of Bedford.

And on their way to this game, they bested Hopkinton and Profile.

And we're going to start with a conversation with Tabitha.

And we've been talking in the semifinals about your future.

You're a young team right?

You yourself only a sophomore.

But what are you thinking in the future?

Like going to like, the medical field.

Okay.

What is it about the medical field that has drawn you in?

I'm really good with terminology and memorizing what could happen in any circumstance or like stuff like that.

So I'm also in IB bio currently.

And for me personally I'm finding it quite easy.

Yeah.

And it's interesting.

So you have an interest.

You have a knack for it.

And there's certainly we need as many healers as we can get in our society.

So excellent.

Sumedh, you maybe not sure what you want to do, but you're pretty sure where you want to be.

Tell us.

I want to stay right here in New England.

Okay?

Why is that?

Because my sister, she goes all the way to university, to Pittsburgh, and it's not that far away, but it's kind of far away where she has to take a plane to to here and back.

So it's kind of annoying.

And I don't really see her a lot, so I want to stay here.

Oh, well, that's great and good news.

Lots of great colleges and universities in the New England area for you to choose from, so good luck.

Next up is Alina and Alina, a budding linguist thinking about doing something in the world of languages.

How did that come about?

I've always loved language.

I want to communicate with as many people as possible.

So right now I'm studying Spanish and Russian, and I have a very long expanding list of other languages I'd like to learn.

All right, so are you taking any of those in school right now?

Yeah, Spanish is in school and Russian is just a tutor I found on the internet.

Oh, excellent.

Well, certainly we can use as many folks who can speak as many languages as possible.

So, excellent.

Lastly, is Matt just a freshman, Matt.

So like we're we're projecting a little down the road.

But what do you what are you interested in.

What are you thinking?

I think I want to work in government.

Okay.

What, what form of government are you thinking?

Like politics.

Civil service.

I'm interested in civil service stuff.

Okay.

Yeah.

And so, Washington, D.C., maybe working abroad for the State Department International relations are very interesting to me, but, it's a long way down the road.

Yeah, it's a long way to run down the road.

A lot can change.

But certainly we would be lucky to have you representing us anywhere in the world.

And that's the team from Bedford High School.

All right.

Next up we're going to talk to the team from Merrimack High School, of course, in Merrimack, New Hampshire.

And on their way to this match, they defeated both Winnisquam and ConVal.

We're going to start down here at the end with Avis.

We were talking with Bedford about some of the academic pursuits in their future, but, you're looking for something that's maybe a little less academic.

What's your goal?

I'd like to be a crazy cat lady.

Okay.

So.

Okay.

All right, so you've got.

I assume you have a cat?

Yes.

How many cats do you have?

Just one so far.

I want to get him a friend, but my dad's not a fan of the idea just yet.

I'm working on it.

Okay, so you're working on that.

So, good question.

Philosophical question.

How many cats does it take before you become a crazy cat lady?

For me, I'd say it's five because.

Seems high.

Because like, two is like, yeah, cat, a cat's friend.

Like it's just good.

But then three is like, oh, you've got a lot of cats.

And then four is a lot of cats.

Yes.

Five is just gotcha.

Okay.

Five I'm going to go with three.

But we can agree to disagree on that.

All right.

Maeve, senior, you've already decided where you're going to go next year.

Where are you going to go?

I'm going to go right here to UNH.

Yeah.

So for the folks at home, if you don't know, the New Hampshire PBS studio is in Durham.

So right down the road at University of New Hampshire, what are you planning on studying?

Anthropology and archeology.

Oh, excellent.

And, why those things?

I love history.

And I love learning about people and connections.

And when I found this subgroup of social science and history, I was like, this is perfect.

Awesome.

Well, I think it's great.

As a UNH alum.

Love UNH.

And and, Good luck.

Thank you.

All right.

Liam is up next thinking about the military.

What are you thinking in the military?

Well, I know I want to be a marine at some point, okay.

Before or after college.

But why the Marines?

I just I love the brotherhood that they have.

I mean, I've seen so much because I worked out with them here and there, but also I want to do the work that they do.

I'm interested in the Marine Security guard program overseas at guarding the embassies, and I think that'd be really cool to see the world and serve my country.

Yeah.

That's fantastic.

Love it.

Right on board with you.

All right, Erin, we actually talked in your first round game about your your future plans.

So, like Avis, you've got maybe more of a personal goal in your future.

What is it?

I want to never have hair that is not dyed in some way.

Okay, so you've got blue.

Why blue?

You know, tomahawk spirit.

Okay.

So you got the blue for tomahawk spirit.

When was the last time you didn't have your hair dyed a color?

I dyed it in the summer before eighth grade.

So it has been, 5 or 6 years at this point.

All right.

And so, any colors you haven't tried yet that you're thinking about?

I might one day go green, but my hairstylist has warned me that if you go green, you cannot get it out ever.

So I'm a little nervous.

Okay, so you got to wait until you're ready to take that green plunge.

But, hey, we'll be here to see it, hopefully.

And this is the team from Merrimack High School.

Great job teams.

Before we're going to get right back into the action with round two in our three strikes and you're out round.

So you know how to play this round Bedford and Merrimack.

Because you've been here.

But if you are at home and you don't know the way this round works is we go down the line, player by player, each player gets a question, they get ten questions as team.

And then we keep going until they get three strikes and they're out or until all ten questions are asked.

And each team has three passes that you can use.

And just as a reminder, something in the previous question will be the inspiration for the next question.

So be on the lookout for that.

We'll do it alphabetically.

Bedford.

So that means we'll start with you and Matthew.

This is your question.

Superman is said to be stronger than a locomotive and faster than one of these.

Cheetah.

Sorry, it's a speeding bullet.

Alina.

In the 1994 movie speed, Sandra Bullock plays bus driver Annie Porter, who must keep the speed of the bus over this speed 70 miles an hour.

A little bit less than that.

It's 50 miles an hour.

Sumedh.

Singer Sammy Hagar had a hit with the song, I Can't Drive 55.

Hagar replaced David Lee Roth as the lead singer for this band that included brothers Eddie and Alex.

Pass.

Pass to Tabitha.

You can pass.

Pass.

Pass to Matthew.

Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Ooh, that's a good guess.

But no, we were looking for Van Halen.

And just like that, it's three strikes and the end of your round.

All right, Merrimack, same drill.

We turn over to you.

We'll start with you.

Erin, this is your question.

This president's favorite horses were Nelson and Blueskin which he rode on during the Revolutionary War.

George Washington.

Correct.

Liam.

A horse, a horse.

My Kingdom for a horse is a famous line from this play by Shakespeare.

King Lear.

Sorry, it's Richard the Third.

Maeve.

Richard Nixon is famous for a speech that included this family dog.

Checkers.

Correct.

Avis.

Singer Chubby Checker popularized a number of dances, including The Twist and this dance, named for a small horse.

Pony?

Pony is right.

Erin.

Most of the action in the animated series My Little Pony Friendship is Magic takes place here.

Pass.

Liam.

Passing to Maeve.

Equestria.

Oh, it's Ponyville, but think about that, judge.

And Avis to you.

In a traditional American song, this man came riding into town on a pony.

The Yankee Doodle.

Yes, Erin.

Yankee magazine, which at its peak had a circulation of over 1 million, is published in this New Hampshire town in Cheshire County.

Concord.

Sorry.

No, it's in Dublin.

And that is three strikes and the end of your round.

All right, teams, we're going to keep this train rolling.

I'd like to invite the alternates to come on up and join their teams for our 60 second round.

In our 60 second round, each team gets ten questions in a category.

They can work together and talk together as a team.

We'll give them ten points for each correct response, and a bonus of ten points if you get them all correct.

And Bedford as the team trailing right now we're going to start with you and Matthew.

You can talk to your team and choose from these three categories.

Take a Bow, Bearable, and Around the World.

I think we should do Around the World.

Take a Bow, Bearable and Around the World.

Okay.

Let's do Around the World.

Around the World.

Okay.

The answers to the following will all be New Hampshire cities and towns that share a name with locations around the world.

All right.

Again, Matthew, you can talk to your team.

I'll take your answer as the team answer.

60 seconds.

Start the clock.

Small town in Grafton County, or the second largest city in Egypt.

Alexandria.

Correct.

Small town in Grafton County, or the largest city in Portugal.

Lisbon.

Yes.

Small town in Coos County or large city in Italy.

Milan.

Yes.

Ancient city in what is now Turkey or a small town in Cheshire County.

Constantinople.

Troy.

City in Germany that was once split or city on the Androscoggin River in Coos County.

Berlin.

Yes.

Town in England that is home to a famous castle or a small town in Hillsborough County.

Bedford.

No, it's Windsor.

The only city in Grafton County or a middle eastern country with a tree on its flag.

Lebanon.

Yes.

West Bank city that was the birthplace of Jesus or a small town in Grafton County.

Bethlehem.

Yes.

The capital of Ireland or a town in Chester Country.

Yes.

Destination of a group of travelers in a work by Chaucer or a town in Merrimack County.

Canterbury.

Yes.

Correct.

And at the end of their round on the Ann Cam, 8 out of 10 on your 60 second round.

Nice job Bedford picking up some points.

But we're going to go to Merrimack.

It is your turn Erin.

You could talk to your team and choose from either Take a Bow or Bearable.

We'd like Take a Bow please.

Take a Bow okay.

The answers to the following will all include the letters B, O, W in that order.

So again, Erin, I'll take your answer as the team answer.

60s.

Start the clock .English singer known for the songs Space Oddity, Changes and Under Pressure.

David Bowie.

Yes.

Song Dorothy sings in The Wizard of Oz about.

Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

Yes.

Onomatopoeia that is used to express what a dog says.

Bow wow.

Yes.

The bendy part of your arm or type of macaroni.

Elbow.

Yes.

Taylor Swift named a song after this silent film star.

Clara Bow.

Yes.

This is where the AFC and NFC champions meet.

Super Bowl.

Super Bowl.

Yes.

This is one of the largest species of baleen whale.

Bow whale.

It is the bowhead.

This species of bird is known for creating elaborate structures to attract a mate.

Bow.

It is the bower bird.

This is a place you keep your swimming pets.

Fishbowl.

Fishbowl.

Yes.

This term is based on the name of a person who took the naughty bits out of the works of Shakespeare.

Boulderism.

We'll think about that judges.

They said Boulderism.

I have bowdlerize on here, but we'll let them think that out on the Ann Cam.

8 out of 10 on your 60 second round.

All right.

Alternates, thank you so much.

You can go ahead and take your seats as we get ready for round four.

In round four, we're going to pick back up with our or toss up questions.

We're going to double the point value to 20 points.

And we'll be deducting 20 points for incorrect responses.

So Bedford's got a little room to make up, but you can do it in round four.

Merrimack and Bedford.

Good luck.

$3.5 million of the $60 million budget for the Cameron Crowe movie Almost Famous went towards acquiring the music rights for 50 songs, including Tiny Dancer by this artist.

Maeve of of Merrimack.

Elton John.

Yes.

This document, signed in 1215, established the rule of law in England.

Matthew of Bedford.

Magna Carta.

Correct.

All right, teams, take a look at your monitors.

The eastern version of this species of turtle is found in the eastern United States, in New Hampshire, two small populations have been identified in southern New Hampshire as they are considered an endangered species.

Erin of Merrimack.

The box turtle.

That is a box turtle.

This isotope has a half life of around 5,730 years, and is used to date fossils.

Erin of Merrimack.

Carbon 14.

That's right.

This downhill skier and first American winner of an Olympic downhill gold is back on the slopes again after retiring in 2019.

Matthew of Bedford.

Iwundu.

Sorry, no Merrimack.

Lindsey Vonn is back on the slopes.

All right, teams, your next question is our Unitil power question.

It's coming to you on your monitors.

And this is a 40 point tossup question.

Take a look.

The Huey Lewis and the News song, The Power of Love was part of this 1985 movie featuring Marty McFly.

Liam of Merrimack.

Back to the Future.

Great movie.

You will find this poet's work, The New Colossus, on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty.

Avis of Merrimack.

Emma Lazarus.

Yes.

This song by the band Chicago is about being up in the early morning before 4 a.m. and the break of day and not being able to write a song.

It is a favorite tune of marching bands.

Chicago fans known it as 25 or 6 to 4.

This could be a chemical element, a planet, a messenger god, or the name of a British rock god.

Tabitha of Bedford.

Mercury.

Yes.

Teams, in what part of the human body will you find the sclera?

Maeve of Merrimack.

The whites of your eyes.

It is the whites of your eyes.

Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote the words to this poem that is set to the tune of an old Scottish folk song, and sung on New Year's Eve.

Erin of Merrimack.

Auld Lang Syne.

Yes.

In 2024, Donald Trump nominated this former rival and Florida senator to be U.S. Secretary of State.

Matthew of Bedford.

Marco Rubio.

That's right.

While the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame was established in 1986, this singer, who was the first woman inducted into the hall, was not recognized until 1987.

She deserved a lot more respect than that.

Semedh of Bedford.

Aretha Franklin.

That is right.

This character urges all of us to take a bite out of crime.

Looking for McGruff the Crime Dog.

One of the harbingers of spring in New Hampshire are the spring peepers, a species of small chorus frog.

One of the harbingers of fall in New Hampshire are these peepers who come to look at the foliage.

Erin of Merrimack.

Leaf peepers.

That's right.

This 1957 film follows the deliberations of 12 jurors as they debate the fate of an accused teenage murderer.

Alina of Bedford.

12 Angry Men.

That's right.

This enslaved woman was one of the first to be accused of witchcraft in Salem.

Matthew of Bedford.

Tituba.

That's right.

This term from Arabic for water course that begins with W, Is it channel ravine or valley that is bone dry except during the rainy season?

Matthew of Bedford.

Wadi.

Yes.

This Australian arboreal marsupial has unique fingerprints on each of its digits, similar to humans.

Matthew of Bedford.

Koala.

Yes.

The Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center is one of the largest employers in New Hampshire.

In what Grafton County city will you find its headquarters?

Matthew of Bedford.

Lebanon.

Yes.

In chemistry, what type of reaction occurs.

Well, we won't get to that question.

A late charge by Bedford, but Merrimack will be moving on by a score of 450 to 290.

To the Granite State Challenge Championship.

Congratulations, Merrimack on a great victory.

We'll see you next week in the championship game.

And Bedford great run for a young team.

We hope you had fun.

We had fun having you on the show and we hope you join us next week for the Granite State Challenge Championship that pits this Merrimack High School team against the team from the Tilton School.

That will do it for us this week.

We're glad you joined us and we hope you learned something because I did too.

So we'll see you next time.

Major funding for the production of Granite State Challenge is provided by Unitil.

Additional funding provided by Bangor Savings Bank, Safety Insurance, NEA New Hampshire, Aroma Joe's and viewers like you.

Thank you.