(upbeat music) ♪ Go (upbeat music) - Welcome to the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit Championship Game on WVIA "Scholastic Scrimmage."

I'm your host, Paul Lazar.

"Scholastic Scrimmage" is a question and answer competition featuring high school students from across the WVIA viewing area.

In each program, two schools will compete in a single elimination tournament for a chance to win one, three, or $5,000.

Tonight's match features North Pocono versus Wayne Highlands.

Representing North Pocono are Evangeline Clausson, Minerva Corea, Grace Beckish, and Noah Beckish.

Their alternates are Reyna Nemitz and Elizabeth Donovan, and their advisor is Christopher Wilbur.

Representing Wayne Highlands are Jordan Patsuk, Mia Wolf, Avery Oliger, and Mattice Harkum.

Their advisor is Laura Lockwood.

"Scholastic Scrimmage" is a game of rapid recall of factual information.

So let's take a moment and review the rules.

The first team to buzz in will have an opportunity to answer a toss-up question.

Correct answers to these questions are awarded 10 points and that team will then receive a five-point bonus question.

If that toss-up answer is incorrect, no points will be deducted, but the question will then rebound to the other team.

If the other team answers correctly, they'll be given the toss-up points but will not receive a bonus question.

Well, let's go ahead and begin our first quarter with this toss-up question.

What material, a type of thermoplastic polyamide, was used in parachutes in World War II and has largely replaced silk for use in pantyhose?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Nylon.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus question.

The Marriage of the Sea ceremony was carried out in what city where the blind Enrico Dandolo was a doge?

(buzzer beeps) - Sicily.

- Very close.

We're looking for Venice.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

In what novel does Roger Chillingworth suspect Minister Arthur Dimmesdale?

(buzzer beeps) Grace, North Pocono.

- "The Scarlet Letter."

- Is correct.

And your bonus question, and get your pencils and papers ready.

How many unique meals can be made from three appetizers, seven entrees, and eight desserts if they must have exactly one of each?

(buzzer beeps) Noah.

- 168.

- Is correct for your bonus points, North Pocono.

As we move on to another toss-up, what type of animal nicknamed NBA player, Dennis Rodman, a type of self- (buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Bull.

- [Paul] I'm sorry?

- Bull.

- Is incorrect.

I'll finish the question and rebound to Wayne Highlands.

A type of self-replicating computer malware and parasites with round and tape types.

(buzzer beeping) Avery.

- A worm?

- Is correct for your rebound points, Wayne Highlands, very good.

Here's our next toss-up.

What composer wrote about sisters, Dorabella and Fiordiligi who are tricked into falling for each other's lovers in his opera, "Cosi fan tutte"?

(buzzer beeps) Minerva, North Pocono.

- Saint-Saens?

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Wayne Highlands.

(buzzer beeps) Avery.

- Vivaldi.

- Nope, the answer we're looking for was Mozart.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What joint where compression of the median nerve can cause numbness and pain and carpal tunnel syndrome lies between the forearm?

(buzzer beeps) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- Wrist.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus question.

The 12 tribes of Israel are descended from the 12 sons of what Biblical son of Isaac who buys his twin, Esau's birthright?

(buzzer beeps) - Abraham?

- No, we're looking for Jacob, Jacob.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What war ended after the Battle of Aegospotami and inspired a funeral oration by Pericles on clashes between the Athens-led Delian League and Sparta?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Peloponnesian War.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus question.

Condensates of integer spin particles sometimes called the fifth state of matter are named after Albert Einstein and what Indian physicist?

(buzzer beeps) - Bose?

- Bose is correct for your bonus points, North Pocono.

And here comes our next toss-up.

What Dutch artist depicted a pair of ears wielding a blade and a bird monster eating a human in the hell panel of his garden of earthly delights?

(buzzer beeps) That was Hieronymus Bosch.

Let's go to another toss-up.

What desert who's Nemegt Basin contains many fossilized dinosaur eggs, is formed by a rain shadow from the Himalayas and covers Southern Mongolia?

(buzzer beeping) Mattice, Wayne Highlands.

- Gobi.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus.

What Mesopotamian City where the oldest known law code was produced, was built near the mouth of the Euphrates River, and is home to a Great Ziggurat.

(buzzer beeps) That is Ur.

Well, that sound that you heard signals the end of the first quarter, and it's now time for the lightning round.

(electricity crackling) In this segment, each team will have an opportunity to answer as many of the 10 rapid fire questions as they can in one minute.

Wayne Highlands has won the coin toss and will pick first.

Your categories are international artists or mountains.

- International artists.

- International artists, it is.

And your time begins after I finish reading the first question.

Given an artist, name the modern day country where he or she was born.

Rene Magritte.

(buzzer beeping) - France.

- [Paul] Belgium.

Katsushika Hokusai.

(buzzer beeping) - Japan.

- [Paul] Yes.

Andy Warhol.

(buzzer beeping) - In the United States.

- [Paul] Yes.

Constantin Brancusi.

- What do you think?

(buzzer beeping) - Pass.

- [Paul] Romania.

Pablo Picasso.

(buzzer beeping) - Spain.

- Yes.

Claude Monet.

(buzzer beeping) - France.

- Yes.

Vincent Van Gogh.

(buzzer beeping) - Netherlands.

- [Paul] Yes.

Frida Kahlo.

(buzzer beeping) - Mexico.

- [Paul] Yes.

Edvard Munch.

(buzzer beeping) - Pass.

- [Paul] Norway.

William Hogarth.

(buzzer beeping) - United Kingdom?

- Is correct.

Okay, Wayne Highlands, that's going to do it for your portion of the lightning round.

North Pocono, we're coming over to you and your remaining category will be mountains.

And once again, your time begins after I finish reading the first question.

Name these mountains.

The world's highest.

(buzzer beeps) - Mount Everest.

- [Paul] Yes.

The highest in South America.

(buzzer beeps) - Machu Picchu.

- [Paul] Aconcagua.

Is the tallest in Africa.

(buzzer beeps) - Kilimanjaro.

- [Paul] Yes.

Shares its name with a country led from Nairobi.

(buzzer beeps) - Kenya.

- Yes.

The world's second highest.

(buzzer beeps) - Olympus?

- K2.

Hawaiian mountains slightly higher than Mauna Loa.

(buzzer beeps) - Maui.

- [Paul] Mauna Kea.

A Colorado peak named for explorer, Zebulon.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] Pike.

Italian Volcano that shares its name with a stuffed dish.

(buzzer beeps) - Vesuvius?

- [Paul] Stromboli.

Alpine peak whose name means white mountain.

(buzzer beeps) - Pass.

- [Paul] Mont Blanc.

The highest point in Antarctica.

(buzzer beeps) That was Vinson Massif.

And that's going to do it for the lightning round.

And after that, we currently have Wayne Highlands in the lead over North Pocono, 65 to 55.

And we're now going to go ahead and begin the second quarter with this toss-up question.

What English language name denotes the block that won the battle of Cerro Cora over Francisco Solano Lopez to defeat Paraguay in an 1860s war?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Simon Bolivar?

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Wayne Highlands.

(buzzer beeps) That English language name was the Triple Alliance.

Let's go now to another toss-up.

What SI unit which is used to rate fuses and circuit breakers equals one watt per volt or one coulomb per second, (buzzer beeps) and is the SI, Noah, North Pocono.

- Ampere.

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus.

Nucleoli reappear and the spindle disassembles during what stage of mitosis, which is often accompanied by cytokinesis?

(buzzer beeps) - Telophase?

- Telophase is correct for your bonus points, North Pocono.

As we move on to our next toss-up, what actress who played Helen Shivers in "I Know What You Did Last Summer" and Daphne in the live action, "Scooby-Doo," played "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"?

(buzzer beeps) Minerva, North Pocono.

- Jennifer Lawrence.

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Wayne Highlands.

(buzzer beeping) - Mary-Kate Olsen.

- No, no.

We're looking for Sarah Michelle Gellar, Sarah Michelle Gellar.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

What US city that names a steel company that went bankrupt in 2003.

(buzzer beeping) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- Pittsburgh?

- Is incorrect.

I'll finish the question and rebound to North Pocono.

Shares its name with a West Bank City, said to be the birthplace of Jesus.

(buzzer beeps) Evangeline.

- Bethlehem.

Bethlehem.

- Is correct for your rebound points, North Pocono.

And here's our next toss-up.

Mersenne numbers are one less than what numbers, which have no odd prime factors and are obtained by multiplying two times itself repeatedly.

(buzzer beeping) Avery, Wayne Highlands.

- Prime?

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to North Pocono.

(buzzer beeps) - Powers of two?

- Is correct for your rebound points, North Pocono.

And here comes our next toss-up question.

For which country, which was an independent state from 1404 to 1409 under Owain Glyndwr, does Plaid Cymru advocate independence from the UK?

(buzzer beeps) Grace, North Pocono.

- Ireland?

- [Paul] Is incorrect.

Rebound to Wayne Highlands.

(buzzer beeping) Mattice.

- Scotland.

- Nope, that country was Wales, Wales.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What sitcom who co-starred Vivian Vance as landlady Ethel Mertz was a popular 1950s show about the wacky Mrs. Ricardo played by Lucille Ball?

(buzzer beeping) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- "I love Lucy."

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus.

What British author wrote about Larry Darrell's search for enlightenment in "The Razor's Edge" and depicted Philip Carey's maturation in "Of Human Bondage"?

- No answer.

(buzzer beeps) - Okay, that's William Somerset Maugham.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What reflex has a photic form caused by light is normally triggered by irritation in the nose and causes involuntary closing.

(buzzer beeping) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- Sneezing?

- Is correct.

And here comes your bonus.

In 2023, what Alabama senator announced he would place holds on all military promotions to protest military- (buzzer beeping) - Tommy Tuberville.

- Is correct for your bonus points, Wayne Highlands.

And that's going to do it for the first half of the game.

And we have a tied-game here.

It doesn't get much closer to that, 90 to 90.

So we're now going to take just a moment to give a little break to our contestants and give a chance to you at home to get to know them a little better.

And we'll start with the students from North Pocono.

And Evangeline, I'll come to you first.

If they made a movie out of your life, pick an actress or an actor, whoever you would like, who would play you in that film and why?

- Betty White.

because everyone always tells me I'm an old soul.

- [Paul] That's very nice.

Thank you, Evangeline.

Minerva.

- I would probably also say Betty White.

She's just iconic.

- [Paul] She is.

- Yeah.

- [Paul] Yeah, she is.

Grace.

I - I would also say Betty White because I feel like we look like each other a little bit.

- [Paul] Okay.

Noah?

- I would choose Cillian Murphy because I believe he'd be the actor to represent the complexities of my mind, excuse me, very well.

- Well, thank you for being a friend, Noah, and good luck the rest of the way, North Pocono.

Wayne Highlands, coming over to you, it's the same question.

Jordan, if there was a movie to be made about your life, who would play you and why?

- I would choose Tina Fey 'cause I love Tina Fey.

- [Paul] Who doesn't?

Great answer.

Mia.

- Jennifer Aniston because she's funny.

- [Paul] Absolutely.

Avery.

- I'll choose Will Ferrell.

- [Paul] Funny guy.

Mattice.

- Weird Al 'cause he has the correct hair.

- I love it.

It was very nice to see you both again.

Very good luck to you.

And we're gonna go ahead now and begin the third quarter with this toss-up question.

What man who succeeded Jose de San Martin as commander after the battle of Battle of Maipu who was a Chilean independence leader of partly Irish- (buzzer beeping) Mattice, Wayne Highlands.

- Bolivar.

- Is incorrect.

I'll finish the question and rebound to North Pocono.

Irish ancestry.

(buzzer beeps) That was Bernardo O'Higgins.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

What title character who befriends Polynesia, the parrot, and the two-headed, Pushmi-pullyu, is a doctor created by Hugh Lofting who can talk to animals?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Dr. Dolittle.

- Is correct.

And your bonus now.

What author of Manhattan Transfer interspersed newspaper excerpts with the main narrative in his USA trilogy?

(buzzer beeps) - No answer.

- That is John Dos Passos.

Here's our next toss-up.

What toys made of soft spandex and filled with polyester consists of more than 1000 different round stuffed characters, (buzzer beeps) made by, Grace, North Pocono.

- Squishmallows.

- Is correct.

And your bonus question, what tallest mountain of Turkey overlooks the Armenian capital of Yerevan and was the supposed landing spot of Noah's ark?

(buzzer beeps) That is Mount Ararat.

Here's our next toss-up.

What group of elements whose atomic radii are the smallest in each period have full valent shells of electrons.

(buzzer beeping) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- Noble gases.

- Is correct, and here comes your bonus.

3C 273 was the first known example of what very luminous active galactic nuclei whose name refers to their starlike appearance in early images?

(buzzer beeping) - Supernova?

- No, we're looking for quasar, quasar.

Here's our next toss-up.

What European country whose overseas possessions include Madeira and the Azores has its sole land border with Spain on- (buzzer beeping) Mattice, Wayne Highlands.

- France.

- Is incorrect.

I will finish the question and rebound to North Pocono.

On the Iberian Peninsula.

(buzzer beeps) - Portugal.

- Is correct for your rebound points, North Pocono.

As we move to our next toss-up, what decade-long war attempted to prop up the communist Saur Revolution against the mujahidin until Mikhail Gorbachev withdrew troops in 1988?

(buzzer beeps) Minerva, North Pocono.

- Cold War.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to Wayne Highlands.

(buzzer beeping) - The Engel and Civil War.

- No, this was the 1979 Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan.

Let's go to another toss-up question.

What novel in which a ghost haunts 124 Bluestone Road, the home of Denver and her mother, Sethe, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1988 for Toni Morrison?

(buzzer beeping) Avery, Wayne Highlands.

- "Beloved."

- Is correct.

And your bonus, New Haven, Connecticut is on the northern shore of what title estuary whose southern shore belongs to New York?

(buzzer beeping) - Hudson Bay?

- No, Long Island Sound, Long Island Sound.

Here's our next toss up, and get your pencils and papers ready.

How many yards are in three miles given that one mile is equal to 5,200- (buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- 5,280.

- Is correct, and here comes your bonus.

In 2023, Argentina and Egypt among others were invited to join what block of developing countries?

(buzzer beeps) - BRICS pact.

- BRICS is correct for your bonus points, North Pocono.

And that sound that you heard signals the end of the third quarter and another lightning round.

(electricity crackling) This time, North Pocono will pick first.

Your categories are types of taxes and New Mexico.

- Taxes?

Do you know anything about taxes?

- Do you know anything about New Mexico?

- Do you?

Do you know about taxes?

- Okay, taxes, if you want.

- Types of taxes.

- Types of taxes, it is.

And your time begins after I finish reading the first question.

What type of tax is based on one's salary or other work earnings?

(buzzer beeps) - Income tax?

- [Paul] Yes.

Is used in place of a value added tax in the US and is paid whenever a good is purchased.

(buzzer beeps) - Sales tax?

- [Paul] Yes.

Disincentivizes production of greenhouse gases.

(buzzer beeps) - Carbon tax.

- [Paul] Yes.

Is an ad valorem tax based on the value of real estate.

(buzzer beeps) - Property tax.

- [Paul] Yes.

Is charged on non-essential goods or on a monopoly game square.

(buzzer beeps) - Luxury tax?

- Yes.

Is imposed by a government on imported goods.

(buzzer beeps) - Import?

- [Paul] Tariff.

Targets the profits of sales, of stocks, bonds or other assets.

(buzzer beeps) - Capital investment tax?

- [Paul] Judges?

- [Judge] Yes.

- [Paul] Yes.

Is levied on cigarettes, alcohol and other vices to lower demand.

(buzzer beeps) - Liquor tax?

- [Paul] Sin tax.

Was historically 1/10 of earnings paid to the church.

(buzzer beeps) - Tithe.

- [Paul] Yes.

Was levied by governments under Islamic law on non-Muslim citizens.

(buzzer beeps) That was jizya.

And that's going to do it for your portion of the lightning round, North Pocono.

Great job.

Wayne Highlands, we're coming over to you.

Your remaining category will be New Mexico.

And once again, your time begins after I finish reading the first question.

Answer the following about New Mexico.

It's capital.

(buzzer beeping) - Santa Fe.

- [Paul] Yes.

Caverns that include the Big Room chamber.

(buzzer beeping) - Pass.

- Carlsbad.

New Mexico Outlaw who was killed at age 21 in Fort Sumner.

(buzzer beeping) - Jesse James.

- [Paul] Billy the Kid.

National laboratory that helped develop the atomic bomb.

(buzzer beeping) - Los Amos, Alamos, sorry.

- [Paul] Judges?

- [Judge] Yes.

- [Paul] Is correct.

"Breaking Bad's" setting, the state's most populous city.

(buzzer beeping) - Albuquerque?

- [Paul] Yes.

Name given to the northwest corner of its borders.

(buzzer beeping) - The Four Corners?

- [Paul] Yes.

Town where residents spotted a UFO in- (buzzer beeping) - Roswell.

- [Paul] Yes.

Democrat who's been its governor since 2019.

- Oh, the guy that went to space, grab.

(buzzer beeping) - John Kelly?

- Grisham.

Female artist from New Mexico who painted many flowers and animal skulls.

(buzzer beeping) That was Georgia O'Keeffe, Georgia O'Keeffe.

And that's going to do it for the lightning round, and we still have a great game here.

We have North Pocono in the lead over Wayne Highlands, 170 to 135.

And we're now going to go ahead and begin the last segment of the game with this toss up question.

What president who brokered the SALT II nuclear agreement and the Camp David Accords- (buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Jimmy Carter.

- Is correct, and here comes your bonus.

The "Tryst with Destiny" speech was given just before independence by which first prime minister of India?

(buzzer beeps) - Gandhi.

- No, we're looking for Jawaharlal Nehru, Nehru.

Here's our next toss-up.

In what country where Anthony Rota resigned as speaker after honoring a former Nazi, was Sikh leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar kill near Vancouver?

(buzzer beeping) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- Canada.

- Is correct, and your bonus now.

What poem that describes the title vessel as the eagle of the sea is by Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr, and pays tribute to the USS Constitution?

(buzzer beeping) - "O Captain!

My Captain!"

- No, we're looking for "Old Ironsides."

Let's go to another toss-up.

What language was used to describe a blood-soaked cross in the poem, "The Dream of the Rood," and to portray a mead hall attacked by Grendel in Beowulf?

(buzzer beeping) Mattice, Wayne Highlands.

- Norse.

- [Paul] I'm sorry?

- Norse.

- Is incorrect.

Rebound to North Pocono.

(buzzer beeps) - Old English.

- Old English is correct for your rebound points, North Pocono.

And here's our next toss-up.

In what colony founded in 1587 by John White was the word CROATOAN found carved into a tree trunk?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Jamestown.

- Is incorrect.

I'll finish the question and rebound.

(buzzer beeping) - [Mia And Jordan] Roanoke.

- Roanoke is correct for your rebound points, Wayne Highlands, in stereo.

Here's our next toss-up question.

What figure, also known as Cora or the Maiden was the cause for Demeter's grief when she was kidnapped by Hades?

(buzzer beeping) Mattice, Wayne Highlands.

- Persephone or Kore.

- Persephone is correct.

And here comes your bonus.

What Bay Area jam band whose highest charting song is "Touch of Grey," was fronted by guitarist, Jerry Garcia, and his fans nicknamed Deadheads.

(buzzer beeping) - [Paul] Avery.

- The Grateful Dead.

- Grateful Dead is correct for your bonus points.

And our next toss-up, what is the surname of the nonsense poet who wrote "The Owl and the Pussy-Cat," and the first name of the Shakespearean king who disinherits Cordelia?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- Lear.

- Is correct, and here's your bonus.

What quantity which must exceed one for a sonic boom to occur is the ratio between an object speed and the speed of sound?

(buzzer beeps) - Mock speed.

- Mock is correct for your bonus points.

Here's our next toss-up.

What city which is home to the Henry Vilas Zoo and Frank Lloyd Wright's Jacobs one house, is the seat of Dane County and the capital of Wisconsin?

(buzzer beeping) Jordan, Wayne Highlands.

- Madison.

- Is correct.

And here's your bonus.

Ludwig van Beethoven's "Eroica symphony" is given what number, which is also the number of flats in the key of E-flat major?

(buzzer beeping) - Five?

- Three, we are looking for three.

Here's our next toss-up, and get your pencils and papers ready.

What is the sum of a fraction, 7/8 + 9/10, given that the least common multiple of eight and 10 is 40?

(buzzer beeps) Noah, North Pocono.

- 71/40.

- Is correct, and here comes your bonus.

In 1981, what Arizona Judge was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to become the first female justice of the US Supreme Court?

(buzzer beeps) - Sonia Sotomayor?

- Is incorrect.

We're looking for Sandra Day O'Connor.

Here's our next toss-up.

What woman who wrote the Federal Assault Weapons Ban died in September, 2023 while serving alongside, (buzzer beeps) and Noah, North Pocono.

- Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

- Is incorrect.

I'll finish and rebound to Wayne Highlands.

While serving alongside Alex Padilla as a senator from California.

(buzzer beeping) Avery.

- AOC.

- No, we're looking for Dianne Feinstein.

And that's the end of the game, and our NEIU champion is North Pocono.

They've won tonight's game, 215 to 180.

Congratulations, North Pocono.

You are going to be moving on.

And we'll see you next time with another round of "Scholastic Scrimmage."

I'm your host, Paul Lazar, and thank you for watching.

(upbeat bright music)