-Students from C.G.

Woodson, West Springfield, and Loudoun County meet today on "It's Academic."

♪♪ ♪♪ Hello, everybody.

I'm Hillary Howard.

Welcome to "It's Academic," the world's longest-running TV quiz show, now in its 65th season.

All of those seasons produced by Altman Productions and now with WETA.

-Support for "It's Academic" has been provided by the following.

George Mason University.

All Together Different.

-Call us different.

-Different in where we come from.

-Where we're going.

-And how we think.

-But the same in our dreams for tomorrow.

-Driven by the pull of possibility.

-To inspire.

-To think fearlessly.

-To protect and to heal the planet.

We know the world will change.

-Together... -We will be the ones to change it.

-Call Mason different.

All... -Together... -Different.

-Hi.

We are so glad that you are with us today as we begin our Fast Start.

Hello, teams.

-Hi.

-Hi.

-Hi.

There you go.

You know how this works.

In Fast Start, questions are worth 10 points up or down.

First team to buzz in gets to answer, and the teams don't see what you do on the screens at home.

Here we go.

Monster Madness.

Don't be scared even though all of these questions are about monsters.

You people were sacrificed to what bull-headed monster in -- Woodson.

-The Minotaur.

-Correct.

Modern Sherpas claim to have seen this creature in the -- Woodson.

-The Yeti.

-Yes, the abominable snowman.

Any Shakespeare fans?

Caliban.

Yeah, West Springfield.

-Shelob.

-Yes.

Yep.

-Scylla.

Scylla is right, Woodson.

This many-headed monster was slain by -- West Springfield.

-Hydra.

-Hydra's right.

Nice.

At the full moon, this type of man turns into a -- West Springfield.

-Werewolf.

-Yeah.

In this 1954 film, what huge monster attacks Tokyo?

Yep.

West Springfield.

-Godzilla.

-Godzilla, the ferocious.

Mary Shelley created this -- Yes, Woodson.

-Frankenstein's monster.

-Frankenstein's right.

This gigantic sea monster is part of Norse mythology.

Woodson.

-Jormungandr.

-No, kraken, but good try.

That does it for our fast start.

Let's take a look at the scores.

C.G.

Woodson -- 130 points.

West Springfield -- 140 points.

Loudoun County -- 100 points.

♪♪ All right, let's meet these teams.

We begin with C.G.

Woodson from Fairfax.

How are you doing, Austin?

-I'm doing fine.

-Good.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

-I'm a junior at C.G.

Woodson, and something outside of Scholastic Bowl and school I like to participate in is I like to play badminton a lot.

It's my favorite sport.

-Oh, yeah.

That's wonderful.

Hello, Eleanor.

-Hi.

I am a senior this year, and outside of "It's Academic" -- we call it Scholastic Bowl -- I like to run and I do FCA at my school.

-Awesome.

It's good to have you.

And hello, Ujaan.

-Hi.

I'm a junior at C.G.

Woodson, and outside of "It's Academic," I'm a member of my school's Model UN team.

-Wonderful.

That's always fun and interesting.

All right, guys, here we go.

Within this sentence, you can find the name of what Paris prison stormed at the start of the French Revolution?

-Bastille.

-Correct.

Which of these adjectives best describes someone who is contemplative and reflective?

-Pensive.

-Pensive.

-Yeah.

This phrase titles a biography of what patron saint of Ireland credited with driving all the snakes from the country?

-Saint Patrick.

-You're right.

Please combine the symbols for these chemical elements to name a small brown bird.

-Tern?

-Tern.

-Nah.

Wren.

A map that showed only the Northern Hemisphere would not include which of these countries?

-Angola.

-Right.

To complete this comment from a 20th-century American poet, add what sport played by Coco Gauff, Jannik Sinner, and Aryna Sabalenka?

-Tennis.

-Tennis is right.

Woodson -- 230 points.

Nicely done.

To West Springfield High School from Springfield.

Russell, tell us about yourself.

-Hello.

My name is Russell.

I'm a senior at West Springfield.

I'm the captain of our debate team.

And in my free time, I'm an avid hiker.

-Very nice.

I do too, occasionally.

Hello, Logan.

What's going on?

-Hi.

I'm a 17-year-old senior, and I've been to over 140 national park sites.

-Wonderful.

Hi, Devin.

-I'm a 16-year-old junior at West Springfield, and I'm also part of Model UN and I row for our high-school team.

-Oh, rowing's nice.

All right, guys, here we go.

You'll be vindicated if you find here the hidden name of what British lord who developed and gave his name to the absolute temperature scale.

-Kelvin.

-Yes.

Which of these words would best describe someone who's despondent?

-Dejected.

-Yes.

This book describes the efforts of two French astronomers to establish what unit of measurement used in Europe that's a little longer than a yard?

-Meter.

-Yeah.

Combine the chemical symbols for these elements, and you'll name what Native American tribe?

-Hopi.

-Yes.

In February 1898, the U.S.

battleship Maine exploded and sank in the harbor of which of these cities?

-Havana.

-Yeah.

You can complete this dismissive opinion of experts by adding the name of what luxury ship that sank on its maiden voyage in 1912 after hitting an iceberg?

-Titanic.

-You are right.

Nicely done, West Springfield.

260 points.

And now to Loudoun County High School from Leesburg.

Tyler, what should we know about you?

-Hi.

I'm a junior at Loudoun County High, and outside of the academic team, I'm the captain of my rugby team.

-Wow.

You're tough.

-Yeah.

-Okay.

Hello, Nathan.

-Hi.

Outside of academic team, I'd like to design Lego sets.

-All right.

Hi, Anuj.

-Hi.

I'm Anuj.

I'm a senior at Loudoun County High School and outside of academic team, I am in the NJROTC unit at Loudoun County High School.

NJROTC stands for Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps.

And you kind of get an introduction into what it's like to be in the Navy.

-Props to you.

Here we go, guys.

Hidden in this phrase is which of the basic freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment?

-Petition.

-Yes.

A person who is very fussy and hard to please could best be described by which of these adjectives?

-Finicky.

-Yeah.

This was the title of a little book by what 16th-century Polish astronomer who gained a big reputation when he stated the sun is the center of the universe?

-Copernicus.

-Yes.

This is not a typo.

Combine the symbols for these elements to get the double name of what Polynesian island in the South Pacific?

-Bora.

-Yeah.

That's it.

Bora Bora.

X will not be an unknown quantity if you tell me which of these X-initialed people was a king in ancient Persia.

-Xerxes.

-Xerxes it is.

You can complete this 1976 statement about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers if you fill in the blank with what word meaning 100 years?

-Century.

-Yeah.

Well done, Loudoun County.

220 points.

We're just getting started.

The Picture Perfect round is next.

See you in a second.

♪♪ -In 1961, nine high-school students walked into a TV studio in Washington, D.C., to film the very first episode of "It's Academic."

-Good evening, and welcome to "It's Academic," the weekly program... -Little did they know that over the course of the next 65 years, thousands of high-school students would follow them onto the set and into broadcast history.

-I think what has kept "It's Academic" on the air for so long, you had strong support from the schools and we've had strong community support.

-There aren't a ton of outlets to, like, be competitive in an academic setting.

-It teaches composure, knowledge, wisdom.

-And it's like an engaging, fun quiz show.

But it also teaches you so much about the world in so many different facets.

-Today, "It's Academic" is celebrating 65 years, and is the world's longest-running TV quiz show.

Thank you, students, schools, viewers, and fans.

And remember, it's academic.

♪♪ We at "It's Academic" are smart enough to know that we do not know everything.

And in fact, over at Woodson, Austin had the right answer when he said a Norse sea creature was named Jormungandr.

That's pretty amazing.

We didn't know.

And it came from where, Austin?

-A video game.

-A video game.

There you go.

So now, 260 points for Woodson, West Springfield, 260 points, and Loudoun County, 220 points.

And now we can begin the Picture Perfect round where questions are worth 20 points up or down.

Once again, first team to buzz in gets to answer.

Here we go.

Cézanne titled this painting Still Life With a Plaster Statue of what young son of Venus, the Roman god of love?

Yep.

Loudoun County.

-Eros.

-No.

Cupid is what we're looking for.

Beyond these homes, you can see the Napo River, whose source is in what South American country where Quito is capital?

Woodson.

-Ecuador.

-Yes.

These berries mark what W-initialed road that Daniel Boone blazed through the Cumberland Gap and was the major route followed by the pioneers into Kentucky?

Anybody?

It is the Wilderness Road.

Give the value of this expression in terms of i. Yep.

Woodson.

-18i.

-You've got it.

This 1946 newspaper headline announced the guilty verdict against Nazi leaders convicted in war crime trials held in?

Yes, Woodson.

-Nuremberg.

-Nuremberg is correct.

This Monet work is one of his series of paintings of what aquatic plant with a two-word name?

Yep.

Woodson.

-Lily pads.

-No.

It is water lilies.

So close.

I don't think we give you credit for that.

Which of these halogens is a gas at room temperature?

Yep.

West Springfield.

-Fluorine.

-Yes.

You're right.

Painted in the 19th century, this is a moonlit view of what river that runs through London?

Yep.

West Springfield.

-Thames.

-The Thames is right.

And that does it for Picture Perfect.

Let's look at these scores.

Woodson -- 300 points.

West Springfield -- 300 points.

Loudoun County -- 200 points.

And now we are going to meet the coaches.

Let's begin with C.G.

Woodson.

Eleanor, who's with you?

-This is our coach, Mr.

Wright.

He has been the coach my four years and longer, I believe.

And every year he hosts us once a week in his classroom or a couple times a week to monitor our practices and our scrimmages.

And it's been great to have him as our growth leader.

-Yeah.

That's wonderful.

All right, over to West Springfield.

Logan, who's standing behind you?

-We have our wonderful coach, Miss Shimp, who also teaches AP World.

We have our principal, Mr.

Patrick, and our director of student activities, Mrs.

Sobota.

-All right.

Nice to have a whole team there, huh?

And over to Loudoun County.

Nathan, who's with you today?

-Here we have our coach, Mr.

Henderson.

Outside of academic team, he's also the coach for the tennis team.

We're super thankful for all his work that he does and also for letting us into the school store after practice.

-Well, good to have you, Mr.

Henderson.

And everybody, thank you so much for supporting your teams.

And now we can jump into the packet round, everybody.

Obviously in this round, C.G.

Woodson, you answer questions first.

West Springfield, you get to decide which packet they answer questions from.

-Packet 2.

-Packet 2.

Questions are worth 20 points.

Nothing off for a wrong answer.

And if you get every single question, there is a... -25-point bonus.

-Yay, thank you.

Here we go, guys.

In Archibald Willard's painting The Spirit of '76, the three figures carry a flag, a fife, and what percussion instrument?

-A French horn?

-A drum.

-A drum.

-Yes, it is a drum.

The first nonstop trans-Pacific flight occurred in the early 1930s, when two American pilots flew from Japan to Wenatchee in what West Coast state whose capital is Olympia?

-Washington.

-Yes.

Temples and pagodas dot the hills lining the gorges through which what longest Chinese river flows?

-Yangtze.

-Yeah, that's it.

Here's your science question.

Which of these terms identifies the organ which allows birds to produce a great number of call and song notes?

-Syrinx.

Syrinx.

-Syrinx.

-Yep.

That's it.

The subway system in Mexico City includes a stop named for what Aztec emperor whose rule came to a stop when he was captured by Cortez?

-Montezuma II.

-Yes.

Very specific, and right.

A book called "The Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin" was published in 1853 by what woman who had written the original novel on which it was based?

-Harriet Beecher Stowe.

-Harriet Beecher Stowe.

-Yeah.

Here's your math question.

Please reduce this expression to its simplest form.

-X + 2.

-X + 2.

-Yes.

The months of the year are traditionally grouped as male or female in what Southeast Asian country where Phnom Penh is the capital?

-Cambodia.

-Cambodia is right.

C.G.

Woodson, 25-point bonus.

Way to go.

West Springfield, you're up.

Loudoun County, packet 1 or 3?

-Packet 1.

-Packet 1.

In 1854, a French company received permission to build what canal, which opened in 1869 and greatly increased trade between Europe and the Far East?

-The Suez.

-Yeah.

That's it.

You're right.

The Gulf Stream is an ocean current.

But what stream of high-velocity winds is named for a type of airplane engine?

-Jet.

-Yes.

Regulation of trade with Native Americans was just one of the subjects covered by what articles that governed the United States before it was superseded by the Constitution?

-The Articles of Confederation.

-You are right.

Here's your science question.

Under which of these conditions would you most likely find a gas behaving close to what is called an ideal gas?

-High pressure?

High pressure.

-No, it's low pressure.

In 2001, evidence of a previously unknown duck-billed dinosaur was found in what largest Asian desert?

-Gobi.

-Gobi is right.

The first poet to be buried in the Poets Corner at Westminster Abbey was what 14th-century author of "The Canterbury Tales"?

Answer is Chaucer, Geoffrey Chaucer.

Here's your math question.

Evaluate this expression, giving your answer as a positive integer.

-13.

-13 is right.

The White Nile and the Blue Nile join to form the main Nile River at Khartoum, the capital of what country?

-Sudan.

-Sudan is right.

Nice, West Springfield.

420 points.

And that leaves packet number 3 for Loudoun County.

"From the Heart" is the title of a study of the Yanomami Indians, an isolated tribe living near what longest South American river?

-Amazon.

-Amazon's right.

May 26th, Sorry Day, is the date set aside each year to apologize for the cruel treatment of Aborigines in what country, the smallest continent?

-Australia.

-It is Australia.

Studies of loud sound indicate that the threshold of pain begins at how many decibels, a number equaling six score?

Answer?

-80.

-Nah, 120 decibels.

Here's your science question.

Light waves and radio waves are both examples of which type of these waves?

-Electromagnetic waves.

-You've got it.

In 1997, a pilot dropped three wreaths over a remote Pacific island in memory of what pioneering aviator who had disappeared there 60 years earlier?

-Amelia Earhart.

-Yeah, Amelia Earhart.

What American author was furious in 1966 when a Virginia school board banned as immoral her novel "To Kill a Mockingbird"?

I know you know it.

It is Harper Lee.

Here's your math question.

Evaluate this expression, giving your answer as what integer?

-42.

-42 is right.

During the First World War, the United States purchased the Virgin Islands from what Scandinavian kingdom still politically linked to Greenland?

-Denmark.

-Denmark is right.

Nice, Loudoun County.

320 points.

That does it for the packet round, which means the Grab Bag round is next.

Stick around.

Did you know that Dr.

Seuss wrote "Green Eggs and Ham" to win a bet he could write a book of 50 words or less?

But in this case, kids were the real winners.

And now you know.

Here we are at the Grab Bag round.

You guys, anything can happen.

Questions are worth 20 points up or down.

First team to buzz in gets to answer.

And we're off.

Newfoundland is separated from Canada's mainland by what gulf with the same name as a seaway shared by Canada and the U.S.?

The answer is the St.

Lawrence Seaway.

What Shakespeare tragedy should be a favorite around Halloween, as its characters include Banquo's ghost and the three witches?

Yeah.

Woodson.

-"Macbeth."

-"Macbeth."

Yes.

The grandfather of composer Sir Arthur Sullivan was one of the British soldiers assigned to guard Napoleon on what island where Napoleon died?

Woodson.

-Saint Helena.

-You've got it.

On your screens.

This is a winter view of what European river that is beautiful and blue in the title of a Johann Strauss waltz?

Yep.

Springfield.

-Danube.

-Yeah.

The Danube is right.

Even the best man-made fiberoptic cables are not as good as the natural glass fibers produced by what sea creatures of the phylum Porifera?

That answer is sponges.

The first census, as mandated by Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution took place in what year?

It is 1790.

Dwight Eisenhower once worked as a football coach at a Texas school sharing its name with what colorful bird sacred to the goddess Juno?

Yes, Loudoun County.

-Peacock.

-Yeah.

That's it.

Good.

On your screens.

This was Winston Churchill's description of Hitler's Nazi pilots whose bombing raids on London had -- Yes, West Springfield.

-Luftwaffe.

-No.

We're looking for blitzkrieg.

Every November for nearly 600 years, an onion festival has been held in what capital city of Switzerland?

Yep.

Woodson.

-Bern.

-Bern is right.

How many sides does a polygon have if each exterior angle is 24 degrees?

Anybody?

It is 15.

France's Louis XV once sent strawberry seeds to what Swedish botanist known as the father of taxonomy for his classification of plants?

Yes.

West Springfield.

-Linnaeus.

-Yeah, you've got it.

On your screens.

Lake Assal, the lowest geographical point in Africa, is located in what D-initialed country bordered by Somalia, Ethiopia, and -- Woodson.

-Djibouti.

-Correct.

To portray abolitionist John Brown, artist John Curry placed him with what same weather phenomenon that carried Dorothy to Oz?

Yep.

Loudoun County.

-A tornado.

-Yeah.

That's it.

Tornado.

In 1906, the losing Socialist candidate for a New Jersey congressional seat was what author who had more success with his novel "The Jungle"?

Yep.

West Springfield.

-Sinclair.

-You've got it right.

[ Buzzer ] And that does it.

That's the end of the game.

We're going to have those scores for you in just one moment, so please stay where you are.

I'm Hillary Howard, host of "It's Academic," and I've got a question for you.

The answer is WETA+.

That's right.

WETA+ is a free and easy-to-use streaming service created specifically for D.C.-area viewers like you.

With WETA+ you can watch local shows like "It's Academic" or PBS hits like "Masterpiece" wherever and wherever you want on your TV or on the go.

WETA+ is free and available to download on all major streaming devices and smart TVs.

For more information, go to weta.org/wetaplus.

[ Applause ] The scores are now official.

We begin with Loudoun County High School in Leesburg, home of the Captains.

Tyler, Nathan, and Anuj, 360 points.

From West Springfield High School, home of the Spartans in Fairfax County, Russell, Logan, Daven, 460 points.

And winning their 25-point bonus, C.G.

Woodson from Fairfax County, home of the Cavaliers.

Austin, Eleanor, Ujaan, 565 points.

[ Applause ] We are so happy that all of you guys were with us today.

Can't wait to see you next time.

I'm Hillary Howard and remember, everybody, it's academic.

Bye-bye.

See you.

-Support for "It's Academic" has been provided by the following.

George Mason University.

All Together Different.

-Call us different.

-Different in where we come from.

-Where we're going.

-And how we think.

-But the same in our dreams for tomorrow.

-Driven by the pull of possibility.

-To inspire.

-To think fearlessly.

-To protect and to heal the planet.

We know the world will change.

-Together... -We will be the ones to change it.

-Call Mason different.

-All... -Together... -Different.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪