Introduction to QuizbowlDouglas County High School 2014-2015 Season

What is Quizbowl?

Quizbowl in a Nutshell● "It's kind of like Jeopardy! but with teams"

Image from Wikipedia

Tossups● About 4 sentences long, in paragraph form● Clue progression from hardest to easiest● Any player can answer by buzzing in● Try to answer correctly before the other team does● No conferral with your team during a tossup● One buzz per team max● Worth 10 points for a correct answer● Penalty of -5 points for an incorrect answer before

the end of the tossup

Tossups

This man formulated ten eponymous field equations, and with Satyendra Bose he names a phase of matter where every particle is in the lowest quantum state, their “condensate.” Time dilation and the twin paradox are two consequences of a theory created by this man, probably most well known for his proposition of mass-energy equivalence. For 10 points, name this Nobel laureate, most famous for his theories of relativity and the formula E equals m c squared.ANSWER: Albert Einstein

(2010 Fall Novice Tournament, Round 1)

TossupsThe plan for this city was designed by the French architect Pierre L'Enfant. The Anacostia River flows across the eastern side of this city, whose Orange and Blue metro lines pass through Foggy Bottom. This city is encircled by a "Beltway" that crosses Montgomery County, Maryland and then enters Virginia. For 10 points, the Lincoln Memorial is found in what national capital on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia?ANSWER: Washington, DC [prompt on District of Columbia before read]

(2012 Collaborative Middle School Tournament, Round 3)

Tossups -- Pyramidality

Bonuses● 3 related questions ("bonus parts"), each 1-2

sentences long● Each bonus has hard, medium, and easy parts● Only the team that correctly answered the previous

tossup can answer the bonus● Discussion with your team is encouraged ● Give your final answer without buzzing in● 10 points for each correctly answered bonus part,

no penalty for incorrect answers

BonusesThis man began his career drawing political cartoons during the Korean War, and wrote the Johnny Cash song, “A Boy Named Sue. For 10 points each:[10] Name this versatile author whose poetry anthologies include Falling Up and A Light in the Attic.ANSWER: Shel(don Allan) Silverstein[10] This first children’s anthology by Silverstein features poems about Jimmy Jet, who turns into a television, and Joey, who threw a stone at the sun.ANSWER: Where the Sidewalk Ends[10] Silverstein’s best-selling book is this picture book about a large plant that fulfills the needs of a boy as he passes through life’s stages.ANSWER: The Giving Tree

(2012 Collaborative Middle School Tournament, Round 3)

The Tossup-Bonus Cycle

A round consists of 20 tossup-bonus cycles

Tossup is readBuzz after tossup is over

Buzz before tossup is over

Correct answer

Incorrect answer

Incorrect answer

-5 pointsYour team is locked out

0 pointsYour team is locked out

10 pointsYour team gets a bonus

Bonus for the other team if they get the tossup

0, 10, 20, or 30 points on the bonus

Tossup is finished for the other team

How do I get better at Quizbowl?

Play a Lot of Questions!

● Read packets to yourself or your teammates● Practice material is readily available online● Clues and answers repeat themselves, so playing a lot of

questions is a good way to learn frequently-used clues and answers("the quizbowl canon")

● GO TO TOURNAMENTS!● Take notes as you play and study them later● Try playing harder questions (college level) to learn harder

clues

Read a Lot

● Classic works of literature● Textbooks● Anthologies of literature and mythology● Lists of information -- Helpful in the short run

(quizlet, sporcle)● Internet!

Lots of good suggestions on the QB forums:"Books 'for Quizbowl'", "Alternatives to Wikipedia"

Write Questions

● Writing questions is a good way to remember clues and learn about things in greater depth

● Write questions for your teammates to practice on, just for practice, or for a set

● Tossups -- Pyramidality● Bonuses -- Hard, medium, and easy● Avoid lists, stock clues, and transparency● Use uniquely identifying clues in lead-ins

Listen for the "Pronouns"● this man, this woman, this author, this composer,

this ruler, this deity, etc.● this work, this piece, this painting, this song● this polity, this nation, this empire● this construct, this concept● this phenomenon, this effect● this equation, this process, this quantity● this event, this conflict, this battle, this period

Contextual Clues

● Narrow down the answer space as you hear more clues"'When his country attacked France...' He's probably not

French."● Chronology

"This question on a battle mentioned Stonewall Jackson, which means it must be before Chancellorsville."● Languages and names

"This question mentions a lot of Japanese-sounding names."● General content

"They're talking a lot about alcoholism"

Quizbowl Jargon

● titular = "appearing in the title"

"The protagonist of this fairy tale wears the titular colorful item of clothing to visit her grandmother."● eponymous = "namesake"

"His eponymous law describes the behavior of springs"● doubly-eponymous = "named after two people"

"This doubly-eponymous definition of acids and bases"

Advanced Techniques -- "Fraud" & Lateral Thinking

● "Frauding" is inferring information about the answer through means other than "real knowledge"

● Proper nouns can give information about the language or country

● Awkward use of non-gender-specific pronouns suggests the answer is a woman

● Eliminating possibilities based on answers from previous rounds

● Deducing the subcategory based on what hasn't come up yet in the round.

Playing on a Team -- Specialize or Generalize

● Big three (usually 20% each): Literature, Science, History

● Other categories: Art and Music, Religion/Mythology/Philosophy ("RMP"), Social Science, Geography, Current Events, Pop Culture ("Trash")

● Advantages of one generalist: Less inefficiency through overlap, less risk of missing players, don't have to count on unmotivated teammates

● Advantages of multiple specialists: Deeper knowledge, can consider multiple possible answers simultaneously, more time to study, can build a longer-lasting program

How do I get involved?

HSQuizbowl Forumshttp://www.hsquizbowl.org/forums/index.php

Quizbowl Organizations

● NAQT -- Writes questions and hosts national championships at MS, HS, and college levels

● PACE -- Hosts a smaller (seen as more elite?) HS national championship

● HSAPQ -- Writes high school questions● ACF -- Organizes college tournaments● States with active statewide quizbowl

organizations: Illinois, Missouri, Texas, Georgia

National Tournaments

● NAQT Middle School National Championship Tournament (MSNCT)● NAQT High School National Championship Tournament (HSNCT)● PACE National Scholastic Championship (NSC)● HSAPQ National All-Star Academic Tournament (NASAT)● National History Bowl (NHB) -- History only

● HSQuizbowl Forumshttp://www.hsquizbowl.org/forums/index.php

● QBWikihttp://www.qbwiki.com/wiki/Main_Page

● Protobowlhttp://protobowl.com● Quizbowl DBhttp://quizbowldb.com/● Freelance Quizbowl University

http://www.pace-nsc.org/?cat=3

Internet Resources

Packet Archives

● Quizbowl Packetshttp://www.quizbowlpackets.com/

● Stanford Archivehttp://quizbowl.stanford.edu/archive/

● HSAPQ Packetshttp://www.hsapq.com/samples● College Packet Archive

http://collegiate.quizbowlpackets.com/● ACF DBhttp://carloangiuli.com/acfdb/

Quizbowl-SpecificOnline Study Materials

● ACE Quizbowl Camps Study Materialshttp://acequizbowlcamp.com/improve/

● NAQT You Gotta Know Listshttp://naqt.com/YouGottaKnow/

● Stanford Culture Guideshttp://ai.stanford.edu/~csewell/culture/

● Freelance Quizbowl University Study Guideshttp://www.pace-nsc.org/?cat=24

EXPECTATIONS