This program brought you in part by the Erika Lewis Endowment Fund.

-Coming up, it's Moapa... [cheers and applause] ...taking on Spring Valley!

[cheers and applause] This is Varsity Quiz!

[crashing sound] ♪♪♪ Hi and welcome.

This is the 56th season of Varsity Quiz where the best and the brightest high school students match wits in this unique academic competition.

It's an honor for me to be your host, Nathan Tannenbaum.

We want to make sure you know there are now two separate Varsity Quiz leagues in each season's competition.

Tonight, the road to the Blue League Championship continues with Moapa Valley taking on Spring Valley.

So we started with 13 schools in the Blue League, two separate divisions.

Here we are at the second of our two semifinal matches.

Now, once we have a Blue League champion, we'll move on to the quarterfinals of the Silver League.

But let's meet tonight's players, starting with Moapa.

There's Evin.

Hi, Evin and Shelby and Bonnie and Bradach.

And the coach for Moapa, Greg Thompson.

That's Moapa!

[applause] And playing for Spring Valley, Daniel.

Hi, Daniel, Michael, Dylan, and Lucas.

Spring Valley's coaches, Donald Keith and Robert Feller.

That's the team from Spring Valley!

[applause] You ready?

Let's play Varsity Quiz.

What ruler lost the Battle of Actium alongside Mark Antony and was the last pharaoh of Egypt?

Spring Valley, Dylan: Cleopatra -That's correct.

Points on the board.

We keep going.

Next is a calculation question, students.

Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 2 meters, and round your answer to the nearest tenth.

Let me repeat.

Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 2 meters.

Round your answer to the nearest tenth.

[bell chimes, time expires] [buzzer] That's after the buzzer.

So we were looking for 4.2 meters squared.

No points.

Next question.

What most populous Canadian province contains Toronto alongside its namesake Lake?

Spring Valley, Dylan: Ontario -Yes.

What operating system, created by Linus Torvalds, is used on Android phones and many servers?

Spring Valley, Michael: Linux -That's correct.

Next question.

Ocean acidification is caused by this compound's dissolution in water, producing carbonic acid, with the formula CO2.

Spring Valley, Daniel: carbon dioxide -That's right.

What author stated that food supply grows arithmetically and that population grows exponentially in his "An Essay on the Principle of Population"?

[bell chimes, time expires] Thomas Robert Malthus.

No points.

Next question.

Name the sea that surrounds most of the Crimean Peninsula, sharing its name with a color.

Spring Valley, Michael: the Black Sea -That's correct.

Name this 6th century Byzantine emperor who ordered the construction of the Hagia Sophia.

[bell chimes, time expires] Justinian the Great.

No points.

Next question.

What tool, which commonly uses T-shank blades, is used to cut precise curves in a material and gave rise to its namesake type of puzzle?

That's Spring Valley, Michael: the jigsaw -That's right.

Name these objects, which Amir flies and Hassan is a runner of, in the novel by Khaled Hosseini.

[bell chime, time expires] Talking about kites.

No points.

Next question.

What quantity is divided by voltage to yield capacitance and is measured in coulombs?

[bell chimes, time expires] A charge.

Next question.

Name the religion founded by its 24th Tirthankara Mahavira and whose observers often have vegetarian diets to conform with their vow of ahimsa, or nonviolence.

That's Spring Valley, Dylan: Hinduism -Incorrect.

Moapa, Shelby: Dudeism -No.

We were looking for Jainism.

No points.

Next question.

This male deity shapeshifted into a mare and gave birth to Odin's horse Sleipnir.

That's Moapa, Shelby: Loki -That's correct.

Points for Moapa.

Let's keep going.

The Mark Twain essay "Literary Offenses" is about this author who wrote about Natty Bumpo in The Last of the Mohicans.

[bell chime, time expires] James Fenimore Cooper.

No points.

Next question.

Name the state that has the city where General Motors went bankrupt in 2013.

Moapa, Bradach: Michigan -That's correct.

Let's keep going.

Next question.

These objects are put in a reduced echelon form to solve systems of equations in Gaussian elimination by applying row operations.

Spring Valley, Michael: matrices -Yes.

Name the director who cast Chris Evans as Curtis Everett in the movie Snowpiercer and won several awards in 2020, including an Academy Award for Best Director for Parasite.

[bell chimes, time expires] Oh, Parasite, incredible.

Bong Joon-ho.

No points.

Next question.

Sethe, haunted by the ghost of the dead daughter she killed in what Toni Morrison novel?

That's Spring Valley, Lucas: Beloved -Pardon me?

- Beloved.

-That's correct.

Let's move on to the next one.

Name the home country of philosopher William James, who studied at Harvard.

Spring Valley, Michael: the United Kingdom -No.

[bell chimes, time expires] Kind of a trick question.

It was the United States.

Next question.

The "defense" type of these strategies include the "Dutch" and "Sicilian."

What sequences, called gambits when they sacrifice material, are then followed by the "middle game," the "end game"?

Spring Valley, Daniel: the game of chess -That is correct.

[confers with judges] I think we can-- we can't accept that?

Okay.

[buzzer sound] [bell chimes] Too late, or in time?

Moapa, Shelby: chess -We needed "chess openings," so no points.

Next question.

What layer of the Earth below the Gutenberg discontinuity lies between the mantle and the inner core?

Spring Valley, Michael: the magma -No.

[bell chimes, time expires] We were looking for the outer core.

Next question.

A type of horror is named for what creator of the Great Old Ones and Cthulhu?

[buzzer sound] [bell chimes] [confers with judges] In time, or not in time?

In time.

Spring Valley, Dylan: Lovecraft -Yes.

Next question.

Erling Haalland leads which soccer team that won the 2023-- Spring Valley, Daniel: Manchester City -Yes.

Next question.

This author's collection, This is How You Lose Her, and the novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, narrated by the recurring character Yunior.

Name the author.

[bell chimes, time expires] Junot Diaz.

Next question.

This psychological disorder involves constant worry for no particular reason.

Subcategories within the disorder include the "social" type-- We'll go with Moapa, Shelby: anxiety -Yes.

Okay, that is the end of our first round.

Give these kids a round of applause.

[applause] But don't go anywhere!

We're going to take a minute to get to know our players.

We're going to start with Moapa.

We have 11th grader Evin.

Hi, Evin.

-Hello.

-You having fun so far?

-Yep.

-Now, you wrote something about yourself that maybe you'll have to explain.

You wrote, "My family says I can't taste very well."

What does that mean?

-I said that because olives-- this is the example I use.

So they all say olives are really strong in flavor, but I can barely taste them at all.

Don't know why, but they say I can't taste very well, because that is a common theme.

-Okay.

Enjoy your olives whether you can taste them or not.

And good luck on Varsity Quiz.

Evin, nice to have you here.

Here's 10th grader Shelby.

Hi, Shelby.

-Hi.

-Nice to see you.

This says you play a couple of different sports?

-Yes.

-What do you do?

-I play softball and I run cross country.

-And do you have a favorite among those two, or does it matter?

-Probably softball.

-Okay.

Well, good luck with that, and good luck on Varsity Quiz.

Thanks, Shelby.

Here's 12th grader Bonnie.

Hi, Bonnie.

-Hi.

-Nice to see you here.

It says you enjoy listening and performing music.

So how do you perform?

Do you sing?

Do you play an instrument?

-I play the violin, and I dabbled in guitar and cello too.

-Right on.

Well, good luck with all of that, and good luck on Varsity Quiz.

Thanks, Bonnie.

Here's 11th grader Bradach.

Hi, Bradach.

-Hi.

-Nice to see you.

I have no idea what this means, but you'll have to tell me.

You wrote, "I lived in a cemetery for six years."

-Yes.

-Explain please, Bradach.

-I don't know exactly how this came to be, but when I lived up in Idaho, my family and I lived in a cemetery.

And eventually we had to move out because the city was gonna convert it.

-Okay.

That sounds very strange, but we're just gonna move on.

Bradach, thank you and good luck.

Ladies and gentlemen, that's the team from Moapa, Moapa Valley!

[applause] All right.

Next, let's meet our players from Spring Valley.

We start with 11th grader Daniel.

Hi, Daniel.

-Hey.

-I was going to be surprised if you didn't answer that chess question, because you know what you wrote here?

It says, "I play chess professionally."

-Yep.

-So how does that work?

-So about a few times a year I get out to local and-- local tournaments, and I try to compete to win some cash money.

-How's that been going?

-Pretty good.

This last one wasn't that great, but I am improving.

-If you're playing chess, that's a beautiful thing.

Good luck.

-Thank you.

-Good luck on Varsity Quiz.

Thanks, Daniel.

Here's 11th grader Michael.

Hi, Michael.

-Hello.

-Good to see you.

This says that you have been an ice skater for quite a while.

-Yep.

I started ice skating when I came here, around the age of six, and I've been doing it since, and I love it.

-You're still skating?

-Yep.

-Do you do hockey, or is this skating for fun?

-No, just skating.

-Good luck with that, and good luck on Varsity Quiz.

Thanks, Michael.

Here's 11th grader Dylan.

Hi, Dylan.

-Hello.

-Good to see you.

This says that you play on one of the sports teams at Spring Valley.

What's that?

-It's bowling.

-Excellent.

How's that going?

-It's going pretty good, and we're doing good in league.

I'm getting some high scores, and it's going great overall.

-Bowling is a real deal, man.

Good luck with that.

-Thank you.

-And good luck here on Varsity Quiz.

Here's 12th grader Lucas.

Hi, Lucas.

Good to see you.

Here's something that I don't understand, so you'll have to explain.

You said you're proud of it.

What is "taco tongue"?

-It's-- well, okay.

Watch and be blown away, but it's when you go like this.

-Oh, okay, that's a taco tongue.

-Right.

-Ladies and gentlemen, the taco tongue of Lucas and our players from Spring Valley.

Welcome.

[applause] [laughter] -All right.

Our bonus round, that's next.

Okay, the score going into Round 2: Moapa has 15 points.

Spring Valley has 50.

Anything can happen.

Before we start our bonus round, I introduce you to a couple of new players from Moapa.

We say hello to Aedan.

Hi, Aedan.

Good to have you here.

And there's Will.

Good to see you Will.

And for Spring Valley, a couple of new players.

We say hi to Angel.

Hello, Angel.

And there's Colton.

Hey, Colton.

The round is timed at 6 minutes, and that starts as I begin this question: Leon Trotsky was assassinated for his interpretation of this earlier leader's political philosophy.

Name this first Premier of the Soviet Union.

Spring Valley, Dylan: Vladimir Lenin -Correct.

Bonus questions now for Spring Valley only about Vladimir the Great.

First, Vladimir the Great's kingdom was centered in this modern-day country, which Russia began invading in 2022.

Second, Vladimir led this state, named after a modern-day capital, that was the center of East Slavic culture from the 9th to the 13th centuries.

You have 10 seconds.

[students deliberate] Captain?

-We got, first one, Ukraine; second one, Poland.

-Poland is incorrect.

Ukraine is correct.

The second one is Kievan Rus'.

So you get some bonus points, not all.

And this question now for both teams: During the War of 1812, the British tried to capture what city?

The successful defense of nearby Fort McHenry was the inspiration for Francis Scott Key's poem "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Spring Valley, Dylan: Washington, D.C. -Incorrect.

Moapa, Shelby: New York -No, the city was Baltimore.

No points.

Next question for both teams.

Wilson's disease, a rare condition that can be passed on from parent to child, what's the term for this type of-- We'll go with Moapa, Bonnie: hereditary -I don't know if we can take that.

Judges, you think that one over.

Let us know.

Okay.

They will accept that.

So that is a yes, and bonus questions now for Moapa only about Wilson's disease.

First, Wilson's disease primarily results in build up in the eyes, the liver, and this general organ, whose namesake stem is composed of the midbrain, pons, and medulla oblongata.

Second, a common sign of Wilson's disease are deposits of this element on Descemet's membrane in the eye known as Kayser-Fleischer rings.

This element forms verdigris when oxidized.

You have 10 seconds.

[students deliberate] Captain?

-First answer, brain; second, iron.

-The brain is correct.

The second was copper.

So some bonus points, not all.

A question for both teams now is a calculation question, students.

Evaluate the following equation: 5+(16+2)/3.

Repeating.

Evaluate the following equation: 5 plus the quantity 16-- We'll go with Spring Valley, Dylan: 11 -Correct.

Bonus calculation questions for Spring Valley only.

First, give the prime factorization of 18xy; second, simplify the square root of 3 over the square root of 48.

I'll repeat both of them.

First, give the prime factorization of 18xy; second, simplify the square root of 3 over the square root of 48.

[students deliberate] Captain?

-First one, no answer; second one, square root of 16 over 16.

-I think that's also incorrect, unless the judges are thinking about it.

[confers with judges] Okay.

So the first one is 2 times 3 times 3 times x times y; and the second answer is one-quarter.

No bonus points.

You get original points for the original question.

Now a question for both teams.

The Mughal dynasty was a Muslim dynasty of Turkic-Mongol origin that ruled most of the northern part of what country from the early 16th to the mid-18th century?

Moapa, Bonnie: China -Incorrect.

Spring Valley, Daniel: India -Correct.

Here are bonus questions now for Spring Valley only about Indian empires.

First, this large white mausoleum built in Agra near Delhi houses the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal; second, this ruler who descended from Tamerlane founded the Mughal empire.

You have 10 seconds.

[students deliberate] -We have answers.

-Go ahead.

-First one, Taj Mahal; second one, Akbar the Great.

-Taj Mahal is correct.

The second answer, Babur.

So some bonus points, not all.

And now this question for both teams: Which long narrative poem is divided into three major sections: "Inferno," Pugatorio--" Spring Valley, Dylan: "The Divine Comedy" -Correct.

Bonus questions for Spring Valley only about "The Divine Comedy."

First, "Inferno," the first book of "The Divine Comedy," is primarily set in this possibly mythical location ruled by Satan.

Second, in "Paradiso," Dante is guided through heaven by this woman, a possible love interest.

You have 10 seconds.

[students deliberate] -We have answers.

-Go ahead.

-First one is hell; second one is Virgil.

Hell is correct.

The second one is Beatrice Portinari.

So some bonus points, not all.

This question for both teams: What compounds' strengths are related to the concentration of hydronium ions and have a pH less than 7?

Spring Valley, Daniel: acids -Yes.

Bonus questions now for Spring Valley only about science.

First, give the term for a remnant, impression, or trace of an animal or plant of a past geologic age that's been preserved in Earth's crust.

Second, which heavenly objects contain large quantities of ice along with silicate grains and other solid materials?

You have 10 seconds.

[students deliberate] Captain?

-First answer, fossil; second one is comet.

-Both are correct.

You got bonus points, and we're out of time.

Speed round coming up.

So the score going into Round 3: Moapa has 25 points.

Spring Valley has 100.

Anything can happen.

Before we start, got at least one new player and a returner.

From Moapa we say hi to Gabby.

Hi, Gabby.

Nice to have you.

Bradach is back.

Good to see you.

Spring Valley, let's see, there's a new player, Savanna.

Hi, Savanna.

And Colton is back.

Good to have you guys here.

Let's get this party started.

Name the anthropologist who studied under Franz Boas and wrote Coming of Age in Samoa.

[bell chimes, time expires] You want to look up Margaret Mead.

No points.

Next question.

Name this god who gave away his sword in order to woo Gerd, leaving him with only an antler-- And that's Spring Valley, Savanna: Freyr -Pardon me?

-Freyr.

-Yep, okay.

Little louder next time, Savanna, but we've got you.

Next question.

Name this Belgian detective, created by Agatha Christie, who appears in Murder on the Orient Express.

[bell chimes, time expires] Oh, you gotta learn Hercule Poirot.

Next question.

What events originate from an epicenter, are measured with a Richter scale?

Moapa, Gabby: earthquakes -That's right.

Next question.

In what Arabian country did the Lusail Stadium host the 2022-- And that's Spring Valley, Dylan: Qatar -Yes.

Next question.

What systems are studied by scholars like Noam Chomsky and governed by grammar?

[bell chimes, time expires] Looking for written or spoken languages.

Next question is a calculation question.

We don't repeat in the third round, so listen up.

Solve the following equation for M: 4M + 3 = 13 - M. Spring Valley, Dylan: M = 2 -Yes.

Name this technology with quicker speeds than its predecessor LTE, whose name is an abbreviation of "fifth generation."

Spring Valley, Savanna: 5G -That's correct.

What husband Aspasia of Miletus moved the treasury of the Delian League to Athens?

[bell chimes, time expires] Just Pericles.

Next question.

What state contains the popular vacation destinations of Hilton Head Island and Myrtle Beach, respectively-- Spring Valley, Dylan: South Carolina -Yes.

Next question.

Commands in this language contain the FROM and SELECT keywords to return data from tables.

What language known by a three-letter acronym-- That's Spring Valley, Michael: SQL -Correct.

Next.

Diddy is the sidekick of what Great Ape who appears in Nintendo games?

Spring Valley, Michael: Donkey Kong -Yeah.

Everybody knows that.

Next question.

What form of transportation had a transcontinental type and was used by steam locomotives?

Spring Valley, Colton: railroad -That's right.

Operation Vijay reclaimed Goa from Portugal in what modern-day country, which was once primarily administered with the British from Calcutta?

Spring Valley, Dylan: India -Yes, sir.

Frederic Remington's Bronco Buster depicts what animal being ridden by a cowboy?

Spring Valley, Colton: horse -Yeah.

Many mythical transformations of mortals into animals and plants are described in what narrative poem by the Roman writer Ovid?

[bell chimes, time expires] "Metamorphoses."

Next question.

Name the founder of the musical group Silk Road Project.

He's a Chinese-American cellist.

[bell chimes, time expires] Oh, look up Yo-Yo Ma.

Next question.

What ruler, who legendarily built pyramids from human skulls, governed from Samarkand in the 14th century?

[bell chimes, time expires] Tamerlane.

Next question.

What Republican, who represented Florida's 1st district before resigning last year, filed a resolution to oust the then-Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy?

That's Spring Valley, Colton: Matt Gaetz -Yes.

The Giants Otus and Ephialtes stacked these structures on top of each other-- Spring Valley, Savanna: mountains -That's right.

Next question.

Dave and Central Cee are artists from what country that borrowed American-- Spring Valley, Dylan: the United Kingdom -That's right.

Next.

This former Chicago Bull had numerous tantrums in practice with both Minnesota and Philadelphia.

What basketball player led the Miami Heat to losses in the 2020 and 2023 NBA Championships?

Spring Valley, Colton: Jimmy Butler -That's right.

The burning of books and burying of scholars occurred during the reign of which monarch who was buried with the Terracotta Army in Xi'an and unified China under his namesake dynasty?

Moapa, Gabby: Genghis Khan -No.

Spring Valley, Michael: Jeng -Pardon me?

-Jeng.

-No.

We're looking for Qin Shi Huang.

Next question.

Name this NFL position, the subject of a Rich Eisen campaign stating, "They're people too," who often attempt "coffin corners" on 4th downs.

[bell chimes, time expires] Punters.

Next question.

These entities' radiated energy approaches infinity at low wavelengths, according to the Rayleigh-Jeans law in the ultraviolet catastrophe.

So what entities absorb electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths?

Spring Valley, Dylan: visible light -That's incorrect.

We were looking for "black bodies," and we're out of time.

Let's find out who won.

[crashing sound] Final score tonight: Moapa, 30 points, to Spring Valley's 170.

Could we have a round of applause for both teams, an excellent match.

[applause] Our thanks to Moapa for coming all the way down here to Las Vegas, and congrats to Spring Valley for the win.

So Spring Valley will be taking on Mojave for the Blue League Championship.

We hope you'll tune in for another exciting night of Varsity Quiz right here on Vegas PBS.

♪♪♪