[Announcer] Alabama Scholars Bowl is made possible by: The Alabama Community College System.

Here we go!

The Holle Family Foundation, established to honor the legacy of Brigadier General Everett Holle and his parents, Evelyn and Fred Holle, champions of servant leadership.

Syntax, investing in others.

(upbeat music) Alabama Scholars Bowl, where junior high school students from all over the state compete for scholarship money, questions in science, technology, engineering, math, and history.

Keep track and see how well you do up against the best junior high school students in Alabama.

Now, here's your host, Mike Royer.

Hello, everyone, and welcome into the Alabama Scholars Bowl.

My name is Mike Royer.

It's a real joy to host this program every week, and we're so glad you've joined us again.

This is the semi-final round now of the Alabama Scholars Bowl for our middle school students.

We have two fine teams, one from Arab Junior High School, and another from Valley Leadership Academy up in Huntsville.

You've seen these teams play before on our program.

This should be a very good match today.

Our executive producer is Mike Ousley, Sharon Dailey, Josh Gretsky, Kate Wilson, and Anne Harris are our judges, and do so much to make this program happen.

Thanks to all the folks, leadership, and the workers here at Alabama Public Television.

I think we've done all of our housekeeping chores.

You guys ready to go?

20 questions.

If you answer correctly in this part of the round, you get a bonus.

Let's go.

What planet is surrounded by the Van Allen belts, has a moon which maybe have been created -through an impact- -(tone buzzes) Earth -Earth is right.

-(tone dings) Bonus.

In both the thermosphere and this layer of the atmosphere, temperature increases with altitude.

Commercial flights cruise in what layer of the atmosphere, which contains the ozone layer and lies just above the troposphere?

Stratosphere.

-Stratosphere is correct.

-(tone dings) Good job.

Bonus question, everybody.

The protagonist of this novel is locked in the red room and at the end of the novel her husband regains his vision.

Name This novel by Charlotte Bronte -about an orphan- -(tone buzzes) And it is, I'm looking.

There it is.

Ben.

Jane Eyre.

-Jane Eyre is correct.

-(tone dings) Well done.

Bonus for your team.

Gregor needs to solve for x in the equation x squared plus 16x plus 64 equals 0 and notices that the equation is a perfect square trinomial.

What is the solution to the equation x plus 8 all squared equals 0?

(soft suspenseful music) Anybody want to take a shot?

We need an answer.

(tone buzzes) Oh, wait, I don't need the buzz.

8.

[Mike] It's -8.

8.

Good try.

Next question for both teams.

Which landmark Supreme Court case, in which a Georgetown businessman and Deputy Tax Collector sued for his confirmation as a Midnight Judge, -(tone buzzes) -established- Sam.

Marbury v. Madison.

-That's right.

-(tone dings) Your bonus question for that correct answer.

Congress under this president passed the Enforcement Acts, also known as the Force Acts, to fight against the KKK.

What president presided over the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad and succeeded Andrew Johnson?

Grant.

-Ulysses S. Grant.

-(tone dings) That's right.

Next question.

An art deco building in this city includes hubcaps and hood ornaments on its facade.

What city is home to the Flatiron Building and the Chrysler Building where- -(tone buzzes) -And it is Sophia.

New York City.

-New York City.

-(tone dings) That's right.

Bonus for you, Arab.

This man wrote a requiem based on the Luther Bible and a medley of drinking songs for his "Academic Festival Overture."

What man who wrote only four symphonies in his lifetime is the last of the three B's, following Bach and Beethoven?

-Brahms.

-Brahms is right.

Good job.

Question number five of 20.

In this city, Frank Lloyd Wright designed a Mayan Revival themed Imperial Hotel -(tone buzzes) -that survived- Taylor.

-Tokyo.

-Tokyo is right.

Your bonus.

What American statesman was appointed Secretary of State in the corrupt bargain of 1828 and was a longtime representative from Kentucky commonly referred to as the Great Compromiser?

(participants whispering) Bryant.

[Mike] It's Henry Clay is the answer we needed there.

At the beginning of this play, a character makes a comment about a valet's apparent lack of eyelids.

Inez and Estelle appear in what Jean-Paul Sartre play in which- -(tone buzzes) -"No Exit."

-"No Exit" is correct.

-(tone dings) Bonus.

This quantity can be measured with the GDP deflator, and an increase in aggregate demand causes an increase in real output and this quantity, according to AD-AS model.

What quantity measures change in prices?

-Inflation.

-That's right.

Inflation is right.

Everyone, Hoovervilles were named after the president -during the start of this era- -(tone buzzes) Great Depression.

-Great Depression is right.

-(tone dings) Bonus.

This general was beheaded in Egypt after fleeing there after his defeat at the Battle of Pharsalus.

What Roman general, alongside Crassus and Julius Caesar, formed the First Triumvirate?

Pompey.

[Mike] Judges, take it.

-Pompey the Great.

-(tone dings) Pompey.

Next.

Polychromatic paintings of animals appear on the ceiling of one of these places, Altamira.

The Hall of Bulls and stencils of human hands are artwork in other places -(tone buzzes) -of these places- And it's Taylor.

-Cave.

-Caves are correct.

Is correct.

Bonus next.

The orientation of atoms around one of these interactions defines a trans fat, while their presence defines an unsaturated fatty acid.

Alkenes have what kind of bond denoted by two parallel lines between atoms?

(participants whispering) Equilibrium.

[Mike] We were looking for double bonds.

Double bonds is what we needed.

Moving on.

The independence of this country was fought for in the Anyanya rebellion largely by its Dinka and Nuer people.

-(tone buzzes) -What African country- Maggie.

South Africa.

[Mike] No, that's incorrect.

I'll finish it for you.

What African country with its capital at Juba became independent from its northern neighbor in 2011.

(participants whispering) (tone buzzes) [Mike] Do you have an answer?

-Rwanda.

-No.

Would you have accepted Sudan?

Yeah, it was South Sudan is what we needed.

(participants chatter) Many fishermen live in floating villages along this river's Tonle Sap.

The river's flow is threatened by dams in the Yunnan.

This river separates the city of Vientiane -from Thailand, Cambodia.

-(tone buzzes) Mekong.

-(tone dings) -Mekong River is right.

Bonus.

This leader ordered the Anfal Campaign, which resulted in a genocide of Kurds.

An internet meme shows that man's hiding place in a foxhole south of Tikrit.

What Iraqi dictator was overthrown by the United States in 2003?

Saddam Hussein.

-Yeah.

Could have just read -(tone dings) that last sentence and gotten there the same way.

This country's city of Sihanoukville is named for its king Norodom Sihanouk.

So it's Sihanoukville.

While it's resort town of Siem Reap hosts a temple complex on its flag.

-Angkor Wat is in what Asian- -(tone buzzes) Cambodia.

-Cambodia is correct.

-(tone dings) Kingdom of Cambodia.

Math question is a bonus.

How many unique prime factors does the number 210 have?

210.

(soft suspenseful music continues) And an answer.

Four.

-Four is correct.

-(tone dings) Toss up, everybody.

This deity created the human Galatea from a statue created by Pygmalion.

The Trojan War started after the judgment of Paris was won -by what Greek goddess of love?

-(tone buzzes) And its Sam.

Aphrodite.

-Aphrodite is correct.

-(tone dings) Your bonus.

This author wrote about the murder of Santiago Nasar in the novella "Chronicle of a Death Foretold."

The fictional town of Macondo, which appears in "One Hundred Years of Solitude," was created by what Colombian author?

Garcia Marquez.

-That's correct.

-(tone dings) Number 13 on the way to 20.

This radiation is commercially used to induce dielectric heating in substances with high water content.

-What radiation lies between- -(tone buzzes) Microwave.

[Mike] Microwave is the right answer.

Bonus.

This ruler created a set of rock edicts after a bloody invasion of Kalinga led to his conversion to Buddhism.

-What is the name of the Great- -Ashoka.

-Ashoka is right.

-(tone dings) Next.

This author wrote about his time as a World War II pilot -in Going Solo.

-(tone buzzes) Dahl.

-Roald Dahl is right.

-(tone dings) This character gives, this is your bonus.

This character gives a wedding cake to Becky Thatcher, and he tricks a group of boys into whitewashing Aunt Polly's fence.

What friend of Huck Finn titles a Mark Twain novel?

Tom Sawyer.

(tone dings) [Mike] Yes, Tom Sawyer is right.

Next.

This mineral's piezoelectricity- (tone buzzes) Quartz.

-Quartz is right.

-(tone dings) Next.

Checkpoint Charlie was in this city, where many civilians died attempting to flee a Soviet client state.

Ronald Reagan demanded the destruction of a wall in what city that was split during the Cold War in Germany?

-Berlin.

-Berlin is right.

Next, everybody.

Works such as Winslow Homer's "The Blue Boat" use what type of paint in which a wet brush is dipped into trays -of solid pigment.

-(tone buzzes) And it is Brighton.

Watercolor.

-Watercolor is correct.

-(tone dings) Here's your bonus.

This molecule forms a tail attached to the 3-prime end of mRNA.

In eukaryotes, this molecule and thymine forms a box in the promoter region.

What molecule nucleotide pairs with uracil and thymine and is symbolized with A?

(soft suspenseful music continues) Amino.

[Mike] It's adenine.

Adenine.

Next question for everybody.

Disturbing the tomb of this non-Egyptian ruler supposedly resulted in the illness of Nader Shah's son and Hitler's invasion of the Soviet Union.

-(tone buzzes) -Towers of skulls- Sam.

Timur the Lame.

-Tamerlane.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Both are correct.

Bonus.

A demonic half-goat who follows this man around in European folklore is Krampus.

Each year, NORAD tracks the movements of this man, who travels with Blixen, Dancer, and Dasher.

Name this Christmas gift-giver.

-Santa Claus.

-You need a moment?

You need a moment?

Okay, Santa Claus.

I think I know it now.

Next question.

Three more left.

What month, which provides the name of a band that released "Joan in the Garden" in 2024, has a name derived from the Latin word for 10 -(tone buzzes) -despite actually- Sam.

November.

[Mike] No.

For 10, despite actually being -the 12th month of the year.

-(tone buzzes) What's the name of it, Taylor?

-December.

-December.

Bonus.

Wangari Maathai founded a movement to perform this action one billion times.

Campaigns to do what action wants for every lumberjack in the Amazon are intended to counter deforestation?

What did he do?

Plant trees.

-Plant trees.

That's right.

-(tone dings) Next question.

In 1979, violence by the SAVAK secret police in this country -led to the overthrow- -(tone buzzes) Iran.

-Iran is right.

Your bonus.

-(tone dings) James has a 3 by 3 cube made of wooden blocks and decides to paint the surface of the cube.

How many blocks have less than two faces painted?

(soft suspenseful music continues) Six.

[Mike] It's seven is the right answer.

Last question of this part of the round.

This food's Gros Michel variety was replaced by the Cavendish after being ravaged -(tone buzzes) -by Panama disease- Bananas.

-Bananas is right.

-(tone dings) This river's name likely comes from the Sumerian for swift river, in contrast with its more leisurely southern counterpart.

Mesopotamia is located between the Euphrates and what other the river?

-Tigris.

-Tigris is right.

Lay your buttons down.

Grab a breath.

Let's get ready to do the lightning round.

The lightning round consists of 10 questions on four different categories.

Those categories for today's competition: Lab techniques and devices, Jane Austen, the west, and bodies of water.

And Arab Junior High, you're trailing here at the midpoint today, so you'll choose first in a moment.

Valley, you'll choose two categories like we always do.

Before we play the lightning round, though, let's meet all of our players and have them tell you a little bit about themselves.

Brighton, would you begin?

My name's Brighton, and (throat clearing) I like football.

My name's Maggie, I'm in seventh grade, and I play soccer.

My name is Taylor, I'm in eighth grade, and I do math team.

My name is Sophia, I'm in eighth grade, and I love to read and write.

My name is Ben Nelson, and I like math.

My name's Lorelai Day, and I really like running.

My name is Sam Nelson, and I love the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

My name is Spencer Batra, and I like to play chess.

[Mike] Very good.

Going to Georgia Tech?

-Maybe.

-Maybe.

Who knows?

You have a little time to make up your mind.

Of the four categories, let's go over to Arab, and Taylor, which one would you like to try?

Jane Austen.

[Mike] Jane Austen.

(throat clearing) My favorite movie is based on one of her books.

Answer the following about Jane Austen and her work.

60 seconds.

10 questions.

Here we go.

The language in which Jane Austen primarily wrote.

-English.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Austen's novels were first published early in this century.

20th.

[Mike] 19th.

Novel featuring the Bennett family that is titled for two flaws.

-"Pride and Prejudice."

-(tone dings) [Mike] Wealthy man who marries Elizabeth Bennett.

-Mr.

Darcy.

-(tone dings) [Mike] That's good enough, judges?

Fitzwilliam Darcy.

Fill in the blank: A single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a... -Wife.

-That's right.

Elinor and Marianne Dashwood represent this novel's two title concepts.

-"Sense and Sensibility."

-(tone dings) [Mike] The novel "Emma" was adapted into this 1995 movie starring Alicia Silverstone.

Pass.

[Mike] Star of "The Queen's Gambit" who played Emma Woodhouse in a 2020 movie.

Pass.

[Mike] The Poor girl Fanny Price is sent to live at this title location.

-"Mansfield Park."

-(tone dings) [Mike] In this novel, Anne Elliot is convinced to break off an engagement.

Pass.

[Mike] The novel "Emma" was adapted into a '95 movie starring Alicia Silverstone.

Oh.

Out of time.

That was "Clueless."

All right.

Let's come over to our friends at Valley.

[Sam] We would like bodies of water and the west, please.

All righty.

You want to do them in that order, Sam?

Yes, please.

All right, let's do that.

Bodies of water, 60 seconds.

Answer the following about bodies of water.

Large sea south of Europe and north of Africa.

-Mediterranean.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Egyptian River that goes through Alexandria -and Cairo.

-Nile.

[Mike] Lake in Utah named for its size -and salinity.

-Salt Lake.

[Mike] No.

Move on, judges?

Largest of the American Great Lakes that also has Duluth -on its shore.

-Superior.

[Mike] River that flows through London.

-Thames.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Largest African Lake by area.

-Victoria.

-Yes.

Holy river that passes through Varanasi.

-Ganges.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Deepest lake in the world -located in Russia.

-Baikal Sea that is a subsection of the Mediterranean bounded by Turkey, Greece, and Crete.

Black Sea.

[Mike] No, it's the Aegean.

Sea northeast of Australia and south of Papua New Guinea with human habitation only at Willis Islands.

-Coral Sea.

-Coral Sea is correct.

You didn't pass on any, I don't believe.

-No, sir.

-Very good.

Good job on that.

And Sam, tell me the second one.

-The west.

-The west.

The west, answer the following about the west.

60 seconds.

Ready?

Celestial object that rises in the east in the morning and sets in the west.

-Sun.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Object that west is a point on and uses magnetism to point north.

-Compass.

-(tone dings) [Mike] State with cities San Francisco and Los Angeles- -California.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Animal herders seen in the Wild West with lassos.

Cowboys.

[Mike] 1939 movie in which the Wicked Witch of the West is melted with water.

-"Wizard of Oz."

-(tone dings) [Mike] Lover of Maria in "West Side Story."

Pass.

[Mike] Capital of West Virginia.

-Charleston.

-(tone dings) [Mike] War depicted in "All Quiet on the Western Front."

World War I.

[Mike] Wally West is the secret identity of what superhero?

-Flash.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Musical whose West End version removed the song "It Roars" and changed "A Cautionary Tale."

Pass.

[Mike] You passed on lover of Maria in "West Side Story."

Is this like Fernando?

[Mike] No, it's Tony Wyzeck.

And eight seconds to answer musical whose West End version removed the song "It Roars" and changed "A Cautionary Tale" too.

"West Side Story."

[Mike] No, it's "Mean Girls."

-Oh.

-"Mean Girls."

All right.

So, we come back over to you, Arab.

Lab techniques and devices.

You're excited?

Identify the following regarding lab techniques and devices.

60 seconds.

Instrument used to examine objects too small to be seen by the naked eye.

-Microscope.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Method of separating mixtures by passing them through a semipermeable membrane.

Pass.

[Mike] Process of growing cells in a controlled environment.

Pass.

[Mike] Name shared by a Muppet and a common glassware used to hold liquids.

-Beaker.

-Yes.

Gas flame device used to heat substances.

-Bunsen burner.

-(tone dings) [Mike] Solution or strip used to check the pH level of a liquid.

Pass.

[Mike] Device that separates mixtures according to density by spinning quickly.

Funnel.

[Mike] It's a centrifuge.

Technique that uses boiling and condensation to separate liquid components.

Pass.

Curved surface of a liquid in a beaker or a graduated cylinder.

-Meniscus.

-That's right.

Measuring device that measures mass, not weight.

The spinning thing is a centrifuge.

You knew that.

You knew that.

All right.

Everybody did a good job on the lightning round.

Let's move on, though.

We have seven minutes left, actually about six and a half, to do our speed round.

These questions are worth 20 points, no bonuses.

Answer it right, you get 20 points.

Not complicated.

Here we go.

This man was convinced to published a work.

This man was convinced to published a work dedicated to Pope Paul III, his "On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres."

Heliocentrism was expounded by what Polish astronomer?

Taylor.

-Copernicus.

-Copernicus is right.

As this quality of color becomes more extreme the closer it gets to a hex of #FFFFFF.

(tone buzzes) Saturation.

[Mike] No.

What is the term for when white is mixed with color, causing it to become lighter?

What is that called?

-(tone buzzes) -What you got?

Dilation.

[Mike] No, it's called tint.

It's called tint.

In celiac disease, anti-gliadin antibodies damaged parts of this organ, -(tone dings) -which include- Intestine.

-Small intestine.

-That's right.

Small intestine.

A member of this ethnicity ordered the St.

Valentine's Day Massacre.

-(tone buzzes) -Italian.

-Italian is right.

-(tone dings) A composer from this era who wrote the aria "Possente spirto" for his opera "L'Orfeo" was named Claudio Monteverdi.

The opera was popularized during what era?

Taylor.

Romantic.

[Mike] No.

Popularized during what era which filed the Renaissance, included Antonio Vivaldi, -(tone buzzes) -and preceded Classical.

-What you got, Ben?

-Baroque.

-Baroque is right.

-(tone dings) A stepped version of this type of structure -built in ancient Sumeria.

-(tone buzzes) Sophia.

-Pyramid.

-Pyramid.

Yes.

Sometimes the buzzer and your voice gets mixed up.

That's correct.

William T. Sherman gave Atlanta to this man as a Christmas present -(tone buzzes) -and his vice president- Sam.

Sherman.

[Mike] No.

Finishing it for you, Arab.

His vice president was Hannibal Hamlin.

Stephen Douglas debated what Illinois politician, the 16th president who is assassinated -at Ford's theater?

-(tone buzzes) -Lincoln.

-That's right.

One character in this work finds Mary Lou inscribed on a boat at Camp Green Lake, -(tone buzzes) -where they meet- "Holes."

-(tone dings) -"Holes" is right.

Next question is a math one.

If a car travels at an average speed of 56 miles per hour, how many hours will it take to travel a distance of 952 miles?

(soft thoughtful music) -I need an answer, anybody?

-(tone buzzes) What you got, Taylor?

14.

[Mike] No, that's incorrect.

You want to give it a shot?

-(tone buzzes) -Yes, Ben?

20.

[Mike] It's 17.

17.

It's all right.

Next question.

This compound may be used with dry ice to make a cold bath at -78 degrees Celsius.

This compound is the default reagent used to clean -(tone buzzes) -glassware in labs.

-Sam.

-Water.

[Mike] No.

What ingredient in most nail polished removers is its simplest ketone?

(soft thoughtful music continues) (tone buzzes) Yes, Sophia.

Alcohol.

[Mike] No, it's acetone.

Acetone is what we needed.

Controversy over this country's city of Gdansk -(tone buzzes) -led two countries- -Poland -(tone dings) Poland is right.

We have three minutes left.

This symphony's finale is nicknamed the Anthem of Europe.

Named this last symphony by Beethoven, whose finale is adapted -(tone buzzes) -from "Ode to Joy."

Sam.

9th.

Good enough, judges?

9th, Beethoven's Symphony 9th.

A novel by this author in which Soaphead Church tricks the protagonist into feeding a dog poisoned meat centers on Pecola Breedlove's desire for the title feature.

Name this author of "The Bluest Eye and Beloved."

(tone buzzes) Morrison.

-Morrison is right.

-(tone dings) This navigator landed on an island he called San Salvador -(tone buzzes) -and took three ships.

And I'm looking, Brighton.

Columbus.

-Columbus is correct.

-(tone dings) What country which disclaimed a maternity ward in its own capital to allow a Dutch princess to be born there landed troops on Juno Beach -and suffered a conscription- -(tone buzzes) USA.

[Mike] No.

Finishing it for you.

And suffered a conscription crisis in 1944 in Quebec.

(tone buzzes) -Yes.

-Canada.

-Canada is right, Brighton.

-(tone dings) In this language, potatoes are literally called apples of earth.

The English words revue and appetite come from what language -(tone buzzes) -whose speakers- French.

-French is right.

-(tone dings) Might greet you with bonjour.

Next question.

This God was suckled by the goat Amalthea as a child.

This God turned into a white bull while pursuing Io -(tone buzzes) -and was served by the- -Sophia.

-Zeus.

-Zeus is correct.

-(tones dings) These phenomena are strongest during syzygy, while their weaker -neap variety happens- -(tone buzzes) Tides.

-Tides is right.

-(tone dings) Grab your pencil.

If Jen's tree grows five centimeters every year.

How many years will it take for the tree to grow four meters tall?

(tone buzzes) Spencer.

125.

(tone buzzes) That's not right.

Do you guys have an answer?

(tone buzzes) Take a shot at it, Brighton.

-80.

-80 is correct.

This artist painted "Melancholy Woman" -during his Blue Period.

-(tone buzzes) Picasso.

-Picasso is correct.

-(tones dings) A couple of more questions.

A vine shading this figure from shade is eaten by a worm after he is scolded for scorning the city of Nineveh.

-After attempting to sail- -(tone buzzes) -Lorelai.

-Jonah.

-Jonah is correct.

-(tone dings) Audiences of this author's play "The Mousetrap" are asked -(tone buzzes) -not to reveal the identity- Sophia.

-Christie.

-Agatha Christie is correct.

The "J'Accuse!"

letter accused the government of discrimination against this religion -(tone buzzes) -after the arrest.

Judaism.

-Judaism is correct.

-(tone dings) The Jackson Plan created the layout of this country, which was nicknamed the Gibraltar of the East.

Lee Kuan Yew was the first prime minister of what East Asian city-state -(tone buzzes) -at the tip- Hong Kong.

[Mike] No.

At the tip of the Malay peninsula, is the rest of the question.

Taylor.

Taiwan.

[Mike] No, Singapore is what we needed.

Last question.

The villain of this biblical book orders the construction of a 75-foot gallows that he himself is hanged from.

Haman is thwarted by what book's namesake Jewish woman?

(tone buzzes) Sam.

-Esther.

-Esther is right.

You need to answer those correct ones with more confidence.

You did a great job.

Both of your teams did.

Valley Leadership Academy comes out on top this time.

Arab, every time you've played, you've played well, and represented your school and your teachers and your coaches as well.

We're proud of you.

I'm proud of you too.

We appreciate you all watching the Alabama Scholars Bowl.

We're here every week on Alabama Public Television.

I'm Mike Royer.

Thanks again for watching.

Have a great day, everybody.

(cheerful music) (cheerful music continues) (cheerful music continues) (cheerful music fades)