This week on Granite State Challenge, the team from ConVal Regional High School takes on the team from Nashua South 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 NEA New Hampshire, Safety.

Insurance, D.F.Richard Energy, HRCU 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 thank you for joining us for Granite State Challenge.

We're working our way through the first round of our 42nd season.

Five teams have already punched their ticket surround two.

And we've got two teams here this week hoping to join them.

Let's introduce them to you.

First up, we have the team from ConVal Regional High School.

I'm Laura.

I'm a senior.

Hi, I'm Charlie.

I'm a senior.

I am Frank.

I'm a senior.

I am Lukas.

I'm a sophomore.

The team alternates are seniors.

Aiden and Colin and the coaches are social studies teachers.

Eric Bowman and Chris Heider.

And they're the team from ConVal Regional High School.

And their opponents this week is the team from Nashua South High School.

Hi, I'm Curtis.

I'm a senior.

I am Deetya Senior.

Hi, I'm Narayan.

I'm a senior.

I'm Calvin and I'm a junior.

The alternates for Nashua South are sophomores Henry and Eric, and Coach is our social studies teacher, Lex Duvall, and English teacher Kelly Thornhill, Tyler Ski.

And that's the team from Nashua South.

And, of course, one more introduction.

We would not be Granite State Challenge if it were not for our beloved judge Ann Boulanger.

All right.

Team's introductions are out of the way.

Go ahead and grab those signaling devices.

We'll get to know you a little bit after round one, but we're going to play around one first.

We're going to play some ten point toss up questions.

So ConVal, Nashua South.

Good luck.

Here we go.

In 2020, this rapper who first became popular through videos of her freestyling that she posted on social media, released her first album, Good News, Deetya of Nashua South.

Lizzo?

Sorry, no.

That album by Megan Thee Stallion Three U.S. Supreme Court justices have been black.

Thurgood Marshall.

Clarence Thomas, and this woman who was appointed in 2022 Narayan of Nashua South.

Jackson Yes.

Cotangent Brown Jackson.

This could be a musical about characters from the Wizard of Oz or an intensifying adverb common in New England.

Curtis of Nashua South.

Wicked.

Yes.

When they were first released in 1908.

Crayola crayons came in this many colors.

Calvin of National South.

I'll say 12.

Sorry, no.

ConVal Lukas.

16.

Sorry eight colors in that original box.

Ecto one is the license plate on the 1959 Cadillac Miller Meteor Sentinel driven by the character Ray stance in this 1984 movie.

Frank of ConVal.

Ghostbusters.

Yes.

This fictional spaceship captained by James.

T Kirk, was powered by dilithium crystals.

Curtis of Nashua South.

The Enterprise.

Yes.

Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States.

It was formed by the collapse of Mount Matsuyama and is known for the clarity of its water.

In what state will you find?

Crater Lake Laura of ConVal.

Oregon.

That's the one.

If the little baby in a well known lullaby doesn't say a word, what is the first thing it's.

Momma is going to get for that Baby.

Charlie of ConVall?

Mockingbird?

Mockingbird?

You got it.

In this professional sport, if you played every game in a regular season, you would have played 162 games.

Charlie of ConVal.

Baseball.

Yes.

This 1860 composition by Tchaikovsky celebrating the Russian defense of the country from invasion by Napoleon's forces ends with cannon fire.

Frank of ConVal.

Tchaikovsky's 1812 overture.

That is right.

In 1945, this man became the first US.

President to visit the Soviet Union.

Narayan of Nashua South.

Truman.

Sorry, no.

Frank of ConVal.

Reagan Sorry, no.

It was FDR, Franklin Roosevelt.

This element is odorless, tasteless and colorless.

Its name is derived from the name of the Greek god of the Sun, and it is often found in balloons.

Charlie of ConVal, Helium.

Yes, you got it.

This Spanish painter spent much of his time in France and is known for works like Guernica and the old guitarist.

Frank of ConVal.

Pablo Picasso.

Yes.

You'll find the sisters Anastasia and Drizella in this Disney film Deetya of Nashua South.

Cinderella.

That's the one parts of the 1995 film Jumanji were filmed in this New Hampshire city in Cheshire County.

Laura of ConVal.

Keene That's right.

English actor and comedian Kenny Baker portrayed this beeping and chirping droid in Star Wars.

Curtis of Nashua South R2-D2.

Yes.

For the next question, teams, go ahead and take a look at your monitors found in open landscapes in North and South America.

These birds often nest in abandoned prairie dog burrows.

Lucas of ConVal.

Burrowing owls.

That's right.

Teams, two Presidents Ulysses S Grant and Dwight.

Eisenhower graduated from West Point.

One other president graduated from the US Naval Academy.

Who was he?

Frank of ConVal?

Say it again.

John F Kennedy.

Sorry.

No Nashua South.

It was Jimmy Carter.

This could be a rock band made up of Ginger Baker, Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce and known for songs like Sunshine of Your Love and White Room or something you add to your coffee.

Frank of ConVal.

Cream.

Is right.

Massachusetts is one of three states that border New Hampshire spell Massachusetts.

Calvin of Nashua South M a ss a c h u s e t t s. Very well done.

Crikey.

In what country might you enjoy some chook or chicken on the barbie?

Maybe with some red and green capsicum bell pepper all while wearing thongs or flip flops.

Lucas of ConVal Australia.

That's where you would be.

This future US President was the defense attorney for the British soldiers on trial for the events at the Boston Massacre.

Deetya of National South.

John Adams.

Yes, the saxophone invented by Belgian instrument maker Adolph Sax in the 1840s is part of this musical family.

Calvin of Nashua South.

Woodwinds.

It is.

This novel by Victor Hugo includes a sentence about King Louis Felipe that is 823 words long and includes 53 semicolons and 93 commas.

Narayan of Nashua South.

Ulysses Sorry, no, I'm not going to read it.

Les Miserables.

The ten second bugle fanfare First Call is played at military installations before rebel reveille on navy ships, 5 minutes before morning colors and at the start of these types of races.

Curtis of Nashua South.

Horse races.

Horse races is right.

And that sound ends round one, a well-played, fast paced, first round.

ConVal out to a bit of a lead 110 to 80.

Great work teams.

Keep it up.

But we're going to break the momentum here for just a second before we head into round two and get to know you a little bit better.

And we're going to start with the team from ConVal.

Regional High School.

ConVal is located in the town of Peterborough.

It's about 730 students and nine towns, including Peterborough.

And of those students, they're led by team captain.

Laura is a senior who, like I was when I was your age, likes to spend a lot of time where?

Outside.

Outside.

And is there a favorite activity that you enjoy outside?

In the winter, I really love to ski and all the seasons, hiking, camping, you name it.

So it depends on the season.

It doesn't matter if it's warm and sunny or cold and windy, you're outside taking advantage of all of the natural wonders.

New Hampshire has to offer.

Yeah, Fantastic.

I love it.

All right.

Joining is Charlie and Charlie, maybe a future politician.

What's your current political position at school?

I'm currently study by student body president.

Student body president.

So is that so?

Are you elected by the entire student body?

How does that work?

So I was elected by the entire student body as a representative, and then I was elected student council president by my fellow student council members.

Okay, great.

And anything upcoming that's big that the student council is working on.

So we're raising money for Shriner's.

Children's Hospital and we're also planning the first ever ConVal talent show, Fantastic Love it.

Good luck with those things.

Joining is Frank.

Frank is learning a language at school, but not a lot of kids in New Hampshire get to learn this language.

What is it?

I speak German.

German.

All right.

And how did you get into speaking?

Learning and speaking German?

Took some classes at our school.

We have two amazing German teachers, a ConVal.

Raul Hodgkin, Frau O'Cannon.

Giving them a shout out.

And so you got plans to go visit Germany, Put this to good use.

Want to go to college for it?

Okay.

Well, there you go.

Good luck with that.

Rounding out the team is Lukas and Lukas.

You performed in a play that really piques my interest.

Tell us about the play you were in.

Yeah.

So it was the world's first Choose your own adventure play.

And how did that how did that work?

So all the seats in the audience were rigged with the voting buttons, and at certain points within the production and the audience members could vote to alter the events of the story.

Okay, so every night, how many how many productions did you put on?

How many shows?

We put on seven productions.

And was there ever any was it seven completely different or totally different stories?

Three different shows.

Wow.

Fantastic.

Hope to do it again?

I would love to.

I would love to see that if you do, do it again, all right.

And that is the team from ConVal Regional High School.

And their opponents in this match are the team from Nashua South High School.

Nashua South is, of course, in Nashua, New Hampshire.

It's a big school, 1800 students at Nashua South.

But among those number is this squad right here, led by senior Captain Curtis, who is not quite 18 yet, but is looking forward to your 18th birthday.

So you can do what I auditioned for Jeopardy, so you can audition for Jeopardy.

So obviously trivia.

You like trivia and everything like that.

Why do you want to be on Jeopardy?

I think it's just an interesting experience, just taking it to the next level, taking it to the next level, and maybe earning some money to bring home.

Yeah, that's that would be a benefit.

A multi day championship.

Well, good luck.

I wish you the best of luck with that.

Joining Curtis is Deetya who has a pretty cool hobby that I would think is like not easy to do tell us about it.

So I really like doing calligraphy, especially with brush pen calligraphy.

So brush pen calligraphy.

So this is you're writing scripts like, like words to things and do you ever get the chance to, like, publish your art or put it in a in a gallery or a show or anything?

Nothing yet.

But maybe soon.

Not yet, but soon.

I love it.

All right.

Joining is Narayan, who got to go on a trip that I wish I could have gone on.

Tell us about it.

Yeah.

So I went to Machu Picchu in Peru over the summer.

It is such an amazing experience.

So Machu.

Picchu is an ancient city way up in the Andes Mountains.

What country is that in?

That's in Peru, I believe in Peru.

Okay.

Yeah.

And so you took a bus up there and did you have good did you have good weather when you got to see it?

Yeah, I was a little cloudy both day.

It wasn't mountains.

It was just so beautiful.

And you could see it all.

You could see it all.

All right, So Machu Picchu got that done.

South America is done.

What's the next continent and or destination?

I haven't really traveled on in Africa, so maybe you travel around there.

Okay.

All the continents.

Yeah.

At some point, all right.

That's a lofty goal.

Hey, speaking of lofty goals, Calvin is here, and you made a New Year's resolution that I think is a lofty goal.

What's that?

So I made the resolution to listen to 500 new music albums this year.

All right.

500 new music albums this year.

How far in are you or 14 days in?

I have 40, 40 albums in 14 days.

That's pretty good.

That's pretty good.

So what what led to this resolution?

I think two things.

Like one, my love for music.

I'm in a band, I'm the session of the Oracle band at school.

So yeah, it's very much a part of my life.

The second thing is that I kind of want to battle my short attention span.

If I'm able to make myself sit through something like half an hour through an hour long, it's going to cause who listens to whole albums anymore.

Yeah.

Am I right?

It's a lost art.

It is a lost art indeed.

All right.

And that is the team from Nashua South High School.

All right, teams, great to meet you.

We're going to roll into round two.

You don't need those signaling devices for this round because it is our three strikes and you're out round in this round.

Each team gets ten questions.

Each player on each team gets a question.

We go down the line, player by player until all ten questions are asked or until three strikes and you're out.

Each team has three passes that you can use to pass to the teammate next to you.

And as a reminder, each question has a bit of a clue.

In the previous question, each one leads to the next.

So ConVal, we'll start with you and Laura.

This is your question.

This composer had completely lost his hearing by the time he was 44.

Beethoven Yes.

Charlie.

The 1992 family movie Beethoven was written by John Hughes and was about this very large breed of dog.

Skip All right, pass to Frank.

Great Dane.

Close.

It was the Saint Bernard.

Lukas.

John Hughes is famous for directing movies like Pretty in Pink, 16 Candles, and this movie about a high school senior and his friends playing hooky from school.

Pass.

Pass to Laura.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

That is correct.

Charlie.

Matthew Broderick, who played Ferris Bueller, was also the adult voice of this lion in the movie, The Lion King.

Mufasa.

It was Simba.

Frank, Lionel Messi plays soccer for a professional team in this US city.

Miami.

That is right.

Lukas, this man considered to be one of the best quarterbacks ever played for the Miami Dolphins from 1983 to 1989.

I don't know.

It is Dan Marino.

And that is the third strike and ends your round with three.

Correct.

All right.

Nashua South, we turn our attention over to you.

Same drill.

Curtis, we'll start with you.

This is your question.

Welsh singer Tom Jones, known for the songs, It's not Unusual.

And What's New Pussycat, which was the theme song for.

Thunderball, a film featuring this suave British spy.

Pass.

Deetya, James Bond.

James Bond is right.

Narayan, this singer songwriter and her brother Finneas created the song No Time to Die for the latest James Bond film.

Pass.

Pass to Calvin.

Billie Eilish.

It is.

Curtis, back to you.

The three Billy Goats Gruff is a tale about three goat brothers who must outsmart this creature to cross a bridge.

A troll?

That's right, Deetya.

The 2016 animated film Trolls features the voices of Anna Kendrick and this singer who was a member of the Mickey Mouse Club, Insync and known for bringing sexy back.

Justin Timberlake.

Yes.

Narayan, The former members of the Mickey Mouse Club include Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and Ryan Gosling, who recently played the main Ken in this movie.

Barbie.

That's right.

Calvin.

Barbie is a slang word for a barbecue grill in this country.

Australia.

Australia is right.

Curtis.

The flag of Australia features a seven sided star, the Southern Cross Constellation and the Union Jack, which is the flag of this country.

The United Kingdom.

That's right.

Deetya, The United Kingdom is made up of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and this home of the Welsh Wales.

Yes, Narayan, The Prince of Wales is a title given to the heir to the British throne, who is the current Prince of Wales.

Pass.

Pass to Calvin.

It's King Charles.

It is William is the Prince of Wales and Curtis.

William the Conqueror was the first Norman King of England.

What year did his reign begin?

1066.

1066 Is correct.

And a strong three strikes and you're out round.

All right, teams, we move into round three.

I'd like to invite the alternates to come on up and join their teams at the podiums in our 60 second round, each team gets ten questions in around.

You have 60 seconds to try to answer as many as you can.

We'll give you ten points for each correct response, an additional ten points if you get them alright.

You are able to talk and work as a team, but I will be taking captain's answers as the team answer.

So, Laura, as the captain of the team trailing you and your ConVal team, get to choose from these three categories.

Feeling Blue, Oh To Be Seen and Are You a Mouse or a Man.

Feeling Blue?

Feeling blue.

Okay.

The answers to the following will all begin with the word blue.

So, Laura, I'll take your answer as the team answer 60 seconds.

Start the clock.

She is an animated Australian sheepdog.

Bluie.

Yes.

This children's series features a dog and his friends Steve, and later, Joe with.

Blue's Clues.

Yes, this bird is often seen as a harbinger of happiness.

Bluejay Bluejay Sorry, it's a blue bird.

This Navy flight group is known for its acrobatic stunts and precision flying angels.

Blue Angels?

Yes.

Big Mama Thornton and Elvis warned you not to step on these blue suede shoes.

Blue suede shoes?

Yes.

This Marine bird is known for its mating dance and its colorful feats.

Beware of blue footed boogie.

Yes, This is a raucous bird and the mascot of a Canadian baseball team, Blue Jays.

That's it.

Yeah.

This is another name for denim pants.

Blue jeans.

Yes.

This is a technical drawing used in building things.

Blueprint.

Yes.

This is a 620 mile range found in the Appalachian Mountains, Blue Mountains.

It is the Blue Ridge Mountains, but a strong round eight out of ten on your 60 second round.

All right.

Nashua South, it is your turn.

And, Curtis, you and your team can choose from, Oh To Be Seen.

Or Are You a Mouse or a Man?

Are you a Mouse or a Man?

Okay.

Are You a Mouse or a Man?

The answers to the following will be mythological or fictional creatures with human characteristics.

Curtis, I'll take your answer as the team Answer 60 seconds.

Start the clock.

The little one in the Disney movie had red hair.

Skip, Skip, Mermaid.

If you call this Marvel character Raccoon, he gets angry.

Rocket Raccoon Yes.

This creature from Greek mythology is both man and horse centaur.

Yes.

This creature wants to suck your blood.

Vampire.

Yes.

This character changes to a candid when the moon is full.

Werewolf?

Yes.

This bull and man combo guards a lot of time.

Say it again.

Minotaur.

Yes.

There's a statue of this man Lion Eagle combo in Giza.

Sphinx.

Sphinx?

Yes.

This giant has a single eye in the middle of its full.

Cyclops.

Yes.

This large, hairy North American creature known as Sasquatch is also known by its name.

Bigfoot.

Yes.

Robin Williams played one of these magical beings in Aladdin Genie.

Yes.

Also a strong nine out of ten on your 60 second round.

All right.

Strong round for both teams.

Thank you, Alternates.

You can go ahead and take your seats.

Appreciate that.

As we get ready for round four in round four, we're going to pick back up with our toss up questions, but we're going to be doubling the point values to 20 points, but we will be deducting 20 points for incorrect responses.

So a lot can change in round four ConVal Nashua South tight game.

Good luck.

Here we go.

With the help of Madea, Jason and his Argonauts stole this pelt from a winged ram.

Deetya of Nashua South.

The Golden Fleece.

That's correct.

Our next question is our Unitil Power Question.

A double point question 40 point question coming to you on your monitors.

Take a look at the 1989 song.

Fight the Power by the hip hop group Public Enemy was written at the request of this director for his movie Do the Right Thing, Calvin of Nashua South.

Spike Lee.

That is right.

In a 7 to 1 decision, the US Supreme Court upheld the doctrine of separate but equal in this 1896 decision.

Frank of ConVal.

Dred Scott.

Sorry.

No.

Nashua South Narayan.

Plessy versus Ferguson.

That is the one.

This could be the name of a British progressive rock band known for the songs Aqualung and Thick as a Brick, or the inventor of the 18th century horse drawn sea drill.

But on your list of albums, Calvin, it's Jethro Tull.

For our next question, I'd like to turn our attention to our monitors for the 2024.

New Hampshire Kid Governor Ellie Lively.

If the vote in the Electoral College is tied in a presidential election, who selects the next president?

Calvin of Nashua South.

The House of Representatives.

That is right.

Portland is the largest city in these two states.

Laura of ConVal.

Maine, and Oregon.

That's right.

You got them both.

The Oxford Dictionary 2023 word of the year was this word derived from the word charisma and also the name of one of the pink ladies from Greece.

Calvin of Nashau South.

Riz.

Got the riz.

The jumping frog in this author's short story.

The jumping frog of Calaveras County was named Daniel Webster after the Salisbury, New Hampshire native Daniel Webster, The author of that short story was Mark Twain.

There are 23 countries in South America, 20 of them border Brazil.

Name either one of the two countries that do not Charlie of ConVal.

Chile.

Chile and Ecuador is the other.

This New Zealand physicist is often referred to as the father of nuclear physics.

He developed the concept of radioactive half life and discovered the proton.

Deetya of Nashua South.

Rutherford.

Ernest Rutherford is right.

This superhero wears bracelets that protect her and a lasso of truth.

Curtis of Nashua South.

Wonder Woman.

That's right.

Ivan the Terrible was the first czar of Russia.

He served from 1547 to 1584.

The last czar of Russia abdicated in 1917 and was executed along with his wife and children in 1918. Who was he?

Curtis of Nashua South.

Nicholas the second.

That's the one.

You will find this monument commissioned in 1806 to commemorate Napoleon's victory at Austerlitz at the western end of these chandeliers in Paris.

It is the arc of Triomphe.

And with a strong round for Nashua South, we'll be moving on to round two.

Great game, Nashua South, good match.

We'll look forward to seeing you in a few weeks for your second round game.

ConVal putting up a good fight against a strong team.

That was an entertaining game.

I had fun hosting it.

I think the folks at home had fun watching it.

We hope you had fun being here.

We do hope you had fun as well.

We do hope you join us next week when the teams from Hopkinton.

High School and Salem High School face off.

And that'll do it for this week.

And if you learned something this week, good, because I did as well.

We'll see you next time.

Bye bye.

Major funding for the production of Granite State challenge is provided by Unitil and additional funding provided by NEA New Hampshire, Safety.

Insurance, D.F.Richard Energy, HRCU and viewers like you.

Thank you.

Studio support for Granite State.

Challenge is provided by Proulx Oil and Propane.