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SUNNY Temp: 89 °F Wind: NNW at 12 mph Tuesday, June 3, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend May 30, 2003 South Medford High School Brain Bowl contestants, from left, include ninth-grader Ana Enriquez, 10th-grader Sean Rotbart, ninth-grader Eric Van Buskirk, and senior Matt Janes. They practiced Thursday for a national competition. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Brain Bowl team will go to nationals By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune South Medford High School brain bowlers have the smarts to go to nationals. Now they just need the money. The six-student team is just a couple thousand dollars away from traveling to St. Louis, where they will battle high school teams across the country for intellectual bragging rights. "I try as a coach to attract good kids ... make it cool to be smart," said Stephen Jensen, a science teacher at South. It’s the second year in a row that these "brains" will compete at the national level after winning Southern Oregon’s regional competition, beating teams from similar-sized schools from Roseburg to Klamath Falls. The team took a bus to nationals in Malibu, Calif., last year. Advertisement This year, they must raise approximately $7,000 for airfare to St. Louis and accommodations over their three-day stay, Jensen said. They still need to collect between $2,000 and $3,000 before they leave for the competition on June 11, Jensen said. In addition to hitting up their parents, brain bowlers are canvassing Rogue Valley businesses for donations. The team also is holding a raffle among high school faculty for several large ceramic pots created by art teacher Ray Foster, the team’s coaching assistant. A club activity, Brain Bowl receives no money from the school district. But that doesn’t mean these students aren’t prepared for stiff competition in their bid to buzz in first with correct answers to tricky trivia questions. South’s brain bowlers — two freshmen, one sophomore, two juniors and one senior — practice each week, anticipating a national showdown with prestigious prep school students. Yet they are decidedly nonchalant about their cerebral prowess. Brain Bowl questions cover a wide range of topics from science to geography to music and cuisine. "A lot of it’s stuff you pick up in school," said senior Matt Janes, the Stanford-bound team captain. And many of the answers can be anticipated, he added. "Anytime they mention Mary Shelley, the answer was ‘Frankenstein.’ " But while brain-bowlers can buzz in before hearing the whole question, being too quick to the draw can be a team’s downfall. Separated into two three-person teams — boys against girls — for a practice session Thursday, the quick- fingered boys buzzed in too quick, incorrectly answering questions that contained a lead-in statement, such as "Budapest is the capital of Hungary. What is the capital of Bulgaria?" Later, they battled back to beat the girls by just one point after correctly naming three heroes who slew mythic monsters. The girls had the right answers, too, but just weren’t quick enough to ring in. How did they know these monikers? "I read Greek mythology for fun," said junior Deidre Krupp. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] Could you beat them on this quiz? Test your knowledge against Brain Bowl players with this quiz: 1. What name was given to the companies of militia organized at the time of the American Revolution? 2. The first line of "The Star-Spangled Banner" is "Oh, say, can you see by the dawn’s early light." Quote the first line of the second stanza of our national anthem. 3. Perhaps the most familiar opera music ever composed is Wagner’s "Wedding March" from what opera? 4. Budapest is the capital of Hungary. What is the capital of Bulgaria? 5. Historians generally agree that this ancient city produced the greatest concentration of genius. From the fifth to the second centuries B.C., its population of less than 25,000 produced such prodigies as Pericles, Plato and Aristotle. Name it. 6. In what language is Thomas Moore’s "Utopia" written? 7. Does "clemency" mean the opposite of harshness, nice weather, humor or mercy? 8. Name the first man to win the heavyweight boxing championship three times. 9. If a distance estimated at 150 feet is really 140 feet, calculate the percent error in the estimate, expressing your answer in the nearest whole number. 10. What is the world’s largest type of warship? Answers 1. Minutemen 2. "On the shore dimly seen through the mists of the deep." 3. "Lohengrin" 4. Sofia 5. Athens 6. Latin 7. Harshness 8. Muhammed Ali 9. 7 percent 10. Aircraft carrier Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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