(gentle music) (camera beeps) (light music) (light music continues) - Welcome back to another episode of "Scholastic Hi-Q," the game where knowledge rules.

I'm your host Ethan Neir, and we have another great show in store for you tonight with our first semifinals matchup.

So let's go ahead and introduce our teams.

On the bottom we have Carbondale with Ryan, Clark, Daniel and Theodor.

And up top we have Mascoutah with Daniel, Dan, Kaylee, and Wyatt.

And I just noticed the amount of Dans in this game.

That's not gonna get confusing at all.

All right, but before we get into our questions, let's just do a quick recap of our rules.

We'll start out with some toss up questions.

Those are worth 10 points.

If a team gets it right, you move on to a bonus question which is worth 20, and can be stolen for 10.

You guys are allowed to interrupt me at any time, but if you interrupt me and get a question wrong, it is five points for the other team, so just be right all the time.

All right, if everybody's ready, let's get into the questions.

What function, whose namesake law generalizes the Pythagorean theorem, describes the ratio between a right triangle's adjacent- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt?

- Law of cosines.

- Law of cosines is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, William Miller's failed prediction of the second coming took place in what 19th century decade in which Mormon prophet Joseph Smith was murdered?

(contestants whisper) - 1850s.

- 1850s.

- [Ethan] 1850s is incorrect.

Carbondale's chance to steal.

- 1830.

- '40s.

- 1840s is correct.

Well done.

All right, next toss up.

In what state were American prisoners, in what state were American prisoners were massacred by Banastre Tarleton at Waxhaws did Patriot forces lose the Battle of Camden and Charles- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- South Carolina.

South Carolina is correct.

For your bonus, Willie Stark, a southern politician based on Huey Long, is the central character of a what novel by Robert Penn Warren?

- "All the King's Men?"

- Yeah, sure.

- "All the King's Men."

- "All the King's Men" is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What search engine introduced a chat bot based on GPT-4 in February, 2023?

(buzzer rings) Theodor.

- Bing.

- Bing is correct.

For your bonus, scroll-like volutes decorate the top of columns of what order that, like the Doric and Corinthian, is one of the three main classical orders?

- Ionic.

- Ionic is correct.

Next question.

What sedimentary rock that has an oolithic form often contains argonite, forms stalagmites in caves- (buzzer rings) Clark.

- Limestone.

- Limestone is correct.

For your bonus, what eight letter word follows social in a term referring to how easily people can change status in a given society?

- Mobility.

- Social mobility?

- Mobility.

- Social mobility is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What city is the setting of a 1960 George Selden novel about the cricket Chester and is home to Harriet the Spy, who lives on the Upper East Side?

(buzzer rings) Theodor.

- New York.

- New York is correct.

For your bonus, what Egyptian god, who was syncretized with Hermes by the Greeks, invented hieroglyphics and was often depicted with the head of an ibis?

- Thoth.

- Thoth is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What mythical creature, the mascot of Notre Dame's athletic teams, is- (buzzer rings) Ryan.

- A leprechaun.

- Leprechaun is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what biological compounds containing four fused rings include hormones such as cortisol and anabolic, ones that increase muscle mass?

- Steroids.

- Steroids is correct.

And that'll take us to our first media question.

This app- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Crunchy roll.

Crunchy roll is correct.

Well done.

And since that was a media question, there is no bonus, so we'll just take it back to toss ups.

And everybody, pencil and paper ready.

What is the only value of X that satisfies the equation 6x - 7 = 17, given that the answer is an integer.

(buzzer rings) Theodor.

- Four.

- Four is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, in August 2023, what district attorney in Fulton County, Georgia indicted 19 people for attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election?

(contestants whisper) - Smith.

- Smith is incorrect.

Mascoutah, a chance to steal.

- Abrams?

- That's incorrect.

The answer we're looking for was Fani Willis.

Fani Willis.

Back to our toss ups.

What character meets immortal struldbrugs on Luggnagg, and talking horses called- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Gulliver.

That is incorrect.

I will reread the question for you.

Oh wait, Gulliver is correct.

Nevermind.

It's in "Gulliver's Travels."

- I was a little confused.

I was incorrect.

The answer, well done, Wyatt.

Your bonus, what queen, the final monarch from the House of Stuart, was reigning when the Acts of Union united England and Scotland?

- Mary Queen of Scots?

- I'd say that.

- Mary Queen of Scots.

- [Ethan] Mary is incorrect.

Carbondale, chance to steal.

- Ann.

- Ann.

- Ann.

- Ann is correct.

Well done.

The next toss up.

What family, which included the corrupt Pope Alexander VI and his daughter Lucrezia rivaled the support- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Medici.

Can you repeat that for me?

- Medici.

- Medici is incorrect.

Now that one for sure that time.

I will repeat it for you, Carbondale.

What family which included the corrupt Pope Alexander VI and his daughter Lucrezia rivaled the Sforzas and Medicis in Renaissance Italy?

(buzzer rings) Theodor.

- Borgonis?

- That is incorrect.

The answer we're looking for was Borgia.

The Borgia house.

All right, back to our toss ups.

What German scientist, who names the smallest possible length, proposed the idea that energy is quantized and is called the father of quantum physics?

(buzzer rings) Daniel.

- Planck.

- Max Planck is correct.

Wow.

For your bonus, in E. coli tryptophan synthesis and lactose metabolism are regulated by what structures, clusters of genes that are transcribed together?

- Operons.

- Operons is correct.

Well done.

Back to the toss ups.

What sitcom in which entrepreneurial Tom Haverford was played by Aziz- (buzzer rings) Theodor.

- "Parks and Recreation."

- "Parks and Rec" is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, Frederick the Great was a virtuoso on and wrote more than 100 sonatas for what wind instrument whose modern form was developed by Theobald Boehm?

- Oh, clarinet.

- Clarinet.

- [Ethan] Clarinet is incorrect.

Mascoutah, a chance to steal.

- Flute.

- Flute is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What body of water contains the Dahlak Archipelago, provides the origin of the name Eritrea, and separates Egypt and Sudan from- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Nile.

- The Nile's incorrect.

I'll repeat it for you, Carbondale.

What body of water contains the Dahlak Archipelago, provides the original name of the Eritrea, and separates Egypt and Sudan from the Arabian Peninsula?

(buzzer rings) Theodor.

- The Red Sea.

- The Red Sea is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what World War I battle took place over nine months in 1916 and involved over 300,000 deaths in trench warfare in northeast France?

- Battle of Verdun.

- Battle of Verdun is correct.

Well done.

And that'll take us to our next media question.

This Indian- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Jinx.

- Jinx is correct.

I'll take us back to our toss ups.

What son of Seti I was a 19th century dynasty Pharaoh, who built the temple of Abu Simbel, may be the Pharaoh in Exodus, and was known as The Great?

(buzzer rings) Ryan.

- Ramesses.

- [Ethan] We need more than just Ramesses.

- Ramesses II.

- Ramesses II is correct.

For your bonus, what British poet laureate wrote the 1998 collection "Birthday Letters," in which he reflected on his marriage to American author Sylvia Plath?

(contestants whisper) - Zelda.

- Smith?

- [Ethan] Smith is incorrect.

Mascoutah, a chance to steal.

- Hughes.

- Ted Hughes is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What commentator who in August 2023 interviewed Donald Trump on Twitter was fired by Rupert Murdoch- (buzzer chimes) Ryan.

- Carlson.

- Tucker Carlson is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what ordinary matter particles which are part of the second generation of leptons are about 200 times heavier than electrons?

- Protons?

- Yes.

Protons?

- [Ethan] Protons is incorrect.

Mascoutah, a chance to steal.

- Neutron?

- Hadrons.

- Hadrons is incorrect.

The answer we're looking for was a muon.

Muon.

Next toss up.

What title character is found with a dog on an ice floe by Captain Walton who learns- (buzzer rings) Daniel.

- Frankenstein.

- Victor Frankenstein is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus.

What Alabama city has an annual commemoration to mark Bloody Sunday, in which civil rights protestors were beaten on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965?

- Selma, Selma.

- Selma.

- Selma?

- Selma.

- Selma.

- Selma, Alabama is correct.

Well done.

The next toss up.

What company founded Cape Town, monopolized Japan's external trade for 200 years, founded- (buzzer rings) Theodor.

- Dutch East India Company.

- Dutch East India Company is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus.

What conflict is the setting of "The Dentist," "The Man I Killed," and other stories in the Tim O'Brien collection, "The Things They Carried."

- Vietnam.

- Vietnam War.

- Vietnam War is correct.

Well done.

Next question.

What animals, one of which was strangled to death due to its impervious fur in the first of Hercules' labors- (buzzer rings) Clark.

- Lion.

- Lion is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus.

What noble gas is at concentration of about 1% the third most common gas in dry air, and it has atomic number 18?

- Argon.

- Argon.

- Argon.

- Argon is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What author wrote about the abduction of Cora and Alice Munro and the death of Uncas in a novel about Natty Bump- (buzzer rings) Ryan.

- Cooper.

- Cooper is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what politician who served as Secretary of State in both Whig administrations debated federal power with Robert Hayne and represented Massachusetts?

- Webster.

- Webster.

- Daniel Webster is correct.

Well done.

And that'll take us to our next media question.

This- (buzzer chimes) - Jimmy Donaldson.

- That is his full name.

Mr.

Beast is correct.

Well done.

And you are just so quick.

I didn't even...

I don't think I've said a single word of any of the media questions tonight, but well done.

Back to our toss ups.

What country where a hundred people died in an October 2023 drone strike in Homs has been the site of a decade long civil war against Bashar al-Assad?

(buzzer rings) Clark.

- Syria.

Syria is correct.

For your bonus, what surname which belonged to a humorist who died in an Alaska plane crash in 1935 is also the last name of the hero known as Captain America?

- Rogers.

- Rogers.

- Rogers.

- Rogers is correct.

Well done.

Next question.

What animals are fully, are free floating Medusa stages in phylum- (buzzer rings) Daniel.

- Jellyfish.

- Jellyfish is correct.

For your bonus, what author of the Border trilogy, which includes the novel "All the Pretty Horses," wrote about the brutal Judge Holden in "Blood Meridian?"

- McCarthy.

- McCarthy.

- Cormac McCarthy is correct.

And that'll take us to our lightning round.

(thunder rumbles) The way our lightning round works is each team will have 60 seconds to answer as many questions as they can about a certain topic.

Now Mascoutah, since you guys are trailing in this one, you get the first pick of the litter.

Your choices are literary dogs, visual art terms, islands of the world, or double vowels.

- Visual art terms.

- Visual art terms it is.

Given an art term identify whether it is most commonly used in the discipline of painting, sculpture, drawing, or photography.

60 seconds on the clock.

I will count you down.

3, 2, 1.

Acrylics.

- Painting.

Bust and relief.

- Sculpting.

Aperture.

- Photo.

Photography.

Crosshatching.

- Drawing.

Shutter speed.

- Photography.

Lost wax technique.

- Pass.

- [Ethan] Speed as measured with the ISO system.

- Photography.

- [Ethan] Encaustic.

- Pass.

- [Ethan] A bouquet.

- Photography.

- [Ethan] A la prima.

- Painting.

- Lost wax technique.

- Sculpting.

Encaustic.

- Drawing.

- That is incorrect, but going in nine for 10 in very quick order.

Encaustic is painting.

- [Kaylee] Second guess.

- Painting.

But very well done Kaylee, the rest of Mascoutah.

Now Carbondale, it is your guys' turn.

Your choices are islands of the world, double vowels, or literary dogs.

- [Daniel] Double vowels.

- Double vowels it is.

Give these answers that begin with a double vowel.

60 seconds on the clock.

I will count you down.

3, 2, 1.

Long fish with an electric type.

- Eel.

- Electros.

- [Ethan] Biblical brother of Moses.

- Aaron.

- [Ethan] The number two in Roman numerals.

- [All] II.

- [Ethan] Distant solar system region that long-period comets come from.

- Oort cloud.

- [Ethan] African mammal whose name means earth pig.

- Aardvark.

- [Ethan] Five letter adjective meaning spooky.

- [All] Eerie.

- [Ethan] Acronym for US roadside assistance organization found in 1902.

- AA.

- AARP.

- [Ethan] That's incorrect.

First name of architect Saarinen who designed the Gateway Arch.

- Eero.

- [Ethan] German name of Charlemagne's capital.

- [Both] Aachen.

- [Ethan] Term for the study of eggs.

- Oology.

- And that is all of 'em.

It was not AA, but AAA, but I think you guys probably did know that.

How many of you guys have your license, just outta curiosity?

- [Contestant] Oh, not him.

- Okay, so one outta four.

All right, that's not as bad as I thought it would be, but let's take a look at our... Oh, two?

Okay, that's not as bad as I thought it would be.

Let's take a look at our scores after our lightning round.

We have Carbondale on top, 520 to Mascoutah's 190, so still plenty of time to catch up in a very high scoring game.

Let's take it back to our toss ups.

In September 2023, what athlete defeated Aryna Sabalenka to become the first American teenage tennis player since Serena Williams to win the US Open?

(buzzer rings) Ryan.

- Coco Gauff.

- Coco Gauff is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what form of arthritis caused by the buildup of uric acid crystals in the joints often affects the big toe first?

- Oh like goit?

Gort?

- Gout?

- Gout.

What do you?

- Gout.

Gout.

- Gout is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What empire known as the Realm of Four Parts to its subjects was founded by Manco Capac and destroyed by conquistadors led by Francisco Pizarro?

(buzzer rings) Theodor.

- Inca.

- Inca is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what monarch entered a holy league designed to control the Black Sea coast two years after taking the throne, and later went on the Grand Embassy?

- Catherine the Great?

- Or who?

Catherine the Great.

- Catherine.

- [Ethan] Catherine is incorrect.

Mascoutah, a chance to steal.

- No answer.

- Answer we're looking for was Peter the Great.

Peter the Great.

Next toss up.

What play in which Ulrich leads a revolt against Gessler was written by Friedrich Schiller?

(buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- "William Tell."

- "William Tell" is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what city south of Sardis Lake, which is the home of the University of Mississippi, shares its name with an English city?

- Birmingham.

- Birmingham is incorrect.

Ox- Carbondale, a chance to steal.

- [Carbondale] Manchester.

- Manchester is incorrect.

I almost said the answer instead of saying your name, and thank God no one caught it.

It's Oxford, Mississippi.

Oxford.

That'll take us to our next toss up.

What interactions that hold together the base pairs in DNA explain the- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Hydrogen bonds.

Hydrogen bonds is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, topologists often joke that a coffee mug is equivalent to what shape that looks like a donut?

- What is that called?

- Speed?

Sphenoid.

- [Ethan] Sphenoid is incorrect.

Carbondale, chance to steal.

- Taurus.

- Taurus is correct.

Well done.

And that'll take us to our next media question.

("More" by K/DA plays) This song "More" is from a virtual K-pop group named K/DA featuring four main members and additional guests.

This group was created by Riot Games for one of their most widely known MOBA games.

Name this game.

(buzzer rings) Daniel.

- "Genshin Impact".

- [Ethan] "Genshin Impact" is incorrect.

(buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- [Wyatt] "BLACKPINK THE GAME."

- [Ethan] "BLACKPINK THE GAME" is incorrect.

Thank God, honestly that none of you play "League of Legends."

You are better off for it.

That'll take us to our next toss up.

What 2023 film in which a medium Joyce Reynolds becomes impaled on a statue, is about Detective Hercule Poirot?

(buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- "Killers of the Flower Moon."

- That's incorrect.

Great movie though.

I'll reread it for you, Carbondale.

What 2023 film in which medium Joyce Reynolds becomes impaled on a statue is about Detective Hercule Poirot investigating a murder in Italy?

(buzzer rings) Ryan.

- "Mask of the Red Dust."

- That's incorrect.

It is "A Haunting in Venice."

"A Haunting in Venice."

Great movie.

For your next toss up, what province whose town of Churchill is known as the Polar Bear Capital of the World is- (buzzer rings) Clark.

- Nunavut.

- Nunavut is incorrect.

I wanna read it for you, Mascoutah.

What province whose town of Churchill is known as the Polar Bear Capital of the World is east of Saskatchewan and is governed from Winnipeg?

(buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Manitoba.

- Manitoba is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus.

In English, what characteristic of a verb may be indicative, imperative, or subjunctive?

- Mood.

- Grammatical mood is correct.

Well done.

Your next question.

The Attl technique is used to play what musical instrument whose concert version has a- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Clarinet.

- [Ethan] Clarinet is incorrect.

I will read it for you, Carbondale.

The Attl technique is used to play what musical instrument whose concert version has a six and one half octave range and seven pedals to control its 47 strings?

(buzzer rings) Daniel.

- Organ.

- Organ is incorrect.

The answer you're looking for was harp.

Harp.

Next toss up.

What election whose winner ran on the National Union ticket saw former General George McClellan lose to Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War?

(buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- 1864.

- 1864 is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, pencil and paper ready.

What is the median of a data set whose six values are 1, 100, 8, 17, 12 and 4?

- It's about 10.

- 10.

- 10 is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up, what head of state who brokered the end of the 2023 Wagner Group revolt is often called Europe's last dictator- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Lukashenko.

- Alexander Lukashenko is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, Manjushri is what kind of enlightened being in Mahayana Buddhism who delays nirvana to help educate others?

(contestants whisper) - Oh my gosh.

- Therabuddha.

- [Ethan] That's incorrect.

Carbondale, chance to steal.

- [Carbondale] Bodhisattva.

- Bodhisattva is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What word describes both a speaker in the title of a Chang-Rae Lee novel and a son in the title of a novel about Bigger Thomas by Richard- (buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Native.

- Native is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what country is the setting of a novel about 108 heroes who live in a swamp titled "Water Margin?"

- [Wyatt] China.

- China is correct.

And I'll take us to our next media question.

("SuperNatural Possession" by Laura Jane Grace plays) This song by Laura Jane Grace was released in late 2020 and is the sixth track on her solo album titled "Stay Alive."

The accompanying music video for this song is simple, yet bright and colorful.

Name this song.

♪ Lost track of the time ♪ ♪ How long have I been here ♪ ♪ Lost track of the time ♪ ♪ How many tries have I failed ♪ ♪ But the modal many mornings ♪ (buzzer rings) Daniel.

- "Gangnam Style."

- [Ethan] That's incorrect.

We, the answer we were looking for there was "SuperNatural Possession."

"SuperNatural Possession."

Back to our toss ups.

What first name was shared by a daughter of Sir Thomas Parr and an Aragonese princess who were respectively the last and first wives of Henry VIII?

(buzzer chimes) Wyatt.

- Catherine.

- Catherine is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, the Montreal Protocol banned the use of what class of ozone depleting refrigerants that include Freons?

- Hydrofluorocarbons.

- Hydrofluorocarbons.

- Hydrofluorocarbons is correct.

Well done.

- [Daniel] Chlorofluorocarbons.

- Is it chlorofluorocarbons?

It is chlorofluorocarbons.

I thought you said that right, but Daniel is correct.

So well done, Daniel, on the steal.

It is chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs.

(contestants whisper) - Oh my gosh.

- And that'll take us to our next toss up.

What amendment in which Furman v. Georgia was held to apply to the death penalty forbids both excessive bail and cruel and unusual- (buzzer rings) Theodor.

- The eighth.

- Eighth Amendment is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, a "New York Daily News" headline claimed that what president, a former Michigan congressman, told the city to drop dead during a 1970s budget crisis?

- Oh, Eisenhower?

- No.

- 1970s.

- Carter?

- Carter.

- Ford.

- Carter.

- Ford.

- Gerald Ford is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What bodies may be named using a Bayer designation that contains a Greek letter and a form of the name of a constellation, such as Alpha Centauri?

(buzzer rings) Ryan.

- A star.

- Star is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, what second single from the album "Gemini Rights" repeats, "I wish I knew you wanted me," and is the first billboard number one by Steve Lacy?

- "Bad Habit."

- "Bad Habit."

- "Bad Habit" is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

What religious tradition stresses effortless action in its concept of Wu Wei as- (buzzer chimes) Clark.

- Taoism.

- Taoism is correct.

Well done.

For your bonus, in theater, an actor who is corpsing is starting to exhibit what undesirable out of character behavior in the middle of a scene?

- [Clark] Laughing.

- Laughter is correct.

Well done.

Next toss up.

(doorbell rings) And that bell means we are all out of time.

Dang.

We keep getting so close to getting through all the questions.

I get so excited every time.

But let's take a look at our scores after that.

We have Carbondale on top, 690 over Mascoutah's 325.

So congrats, Carbondale.

You got our first spot in the finals.

That is all the time we have for today's, for our lovely contestants here today, and the people working hard behind the scenes.

I'm Ethan Neir.

Thank you so much and goodnight.

(light music) (light music continues) (light music continues) (light music continues) (light music continues) (light music continues) (light music continues) (light music continues)