Edison High Students Win U.S. Trivia Title
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They came, they buzzed, they answered.
Edison High School’s five-member Scholar Bowl team took home a $2,500 prize and national trivia bragging rights this week after capturing a prestigious tournament of academic quiz champions in Washington.
Among the questions that turned the tide in a tense 45-minute contest against a Charleston, S.C., team: “Imaginary mass can travel faster than light. What are these theoretical particles called?”
David Farris, bound for Harvard University next fall, hit the buzzer and had the answer: “Tachyons.”
The competition Sunday, covering 19 subjects from history to physics, was a special challenge match following Edison’s victory in the 46-team National Academic Championship in New Orleans on July 1. Edison won, 375-345.
Other members of the varsity team were Mark Brinkman, Gregg Chapman, Rajay Kumar and alternate David Chan.
Scholar Bowl competitions--using a format somewhat like the quiz show “Jeopardy!”--require different skills than academic decathlons. Encyclopedic memory is rewarded, but so is fast response.
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