Tension is heavy in the air as the moderator poses the next question in a calm and steady tone. As soon as Sophomore Ryan Lee hears the question, he swiftly buzzes in as if by pure reflex and provides the correct answer, earning appreciative glances from his Science Bowl teammates.
This game, which sounds like “Jeopardy,” is an inter-school competition known as Science Bowl–often shadowed by Science Olympiad. There are two types of questions in this competition: toss ups and bonuses, both of which can come in multiple choice and short answer formats. Toss up questions are timed at four seconds, and bonus questions, timed at 10 seconds, are only available after toss ups are answered correctly. With the broad range of subjects the Science Bowl covers, the pressure is on.
“However, there isn’t a lot of pressure if you’re willing to study,” Lee said. “Studying for Science Bowl actually gives me an opportunity to learn about all kinds of sciences, and I usually don’t get the chance to do that.”
Each Science Bowl team has four members and one alternate. In order to advance to the national competition, a team must win both its regional competition and the state competition that follows.
To prepare for the annual regional Science Bowl, the group practices in Room 106 on Tuesdays during RAMS, lunch and after school until 4 p.m. The competition team, or A Team, also has the occasional weekend practice.
“Going to Science Bowl practice isn’t much of a chore,” Sophomore Celena Chen said. “In fact, Tuesday’s weekly practices are the highlight of my week.”
Chen, Lee and Juniors Benjamin Gray, Cindy Chen and Meishan Liang make up the A Team. Gray is also the manager and captain of the Science Bowl.
“Compared to last year when Science Bowl was really one-sided, everyone was a part of the team,” Gray said. “There was a really good team aspect this year.”
Despite coming out on top during their official practice rounds at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Jan. 15, the A Team did not make it past the Los Angeles County regional competition on Feb. 1. They won two out of five rounds in their bracket, going against teams from Santa Monica, Woodbridge, Huntington Beach, Diamond Bar and Glen A. Wilson High School. One of the matches they lost was by a margin of 10 points, all due to the opposing team answering a bonus question. However, they are far from discouraged.
“JPL was really great,” Cindy Chen said. “The competition was more for experience; after that we really want to improve and study more.”
Since there are no seniors on the team this year, the members have another year to expand their knowledge and study to become a better team. While they can work on their weak points, problems come from Science Bowl’s small membership.
“After the juniors leave, there won’t be much to the team,” Celena Chen said. “We have some freshmen with us, but we definitely need more members to carry on the legacy.”
Without more members, the A Team does not have enough people to practice with and a B team cannot be properly formed. New members are welcomed and can attend normal practices, which restart next month. Just remember: Science Bowl is not Science Olympiad.
“Science Bowl is crazy,” Gray said. “You should join.”
TCHS School Newspaper