Search found 97 matches

by Saiem
Wed Aug 26, 2009 8:39 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: CO Lit Discussion
Replies: 49
Views: 11561

Re: CO Lit Discussion

The tossups on Gerard Manley Hopkins and Philip Larkin exemplify what I mean by bad leadin clues. In the Hopkins tossup the first two lines are about some poems he translated and the next two lines are about some incomplete dramatic works. The Larkin tossup began with clues about his novel (as did ...
by Saiem
Wed Feb 18, 2009 3:08 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Chicago Open
Replies: 67
Views: 12681

Re: Chicago Open

tetragrammatology wrote:Mike is an enjoyable, reasonable, and responsible individual who can drive (unlike so many of us). He comes highly recommended!
Mike Cheynem: would buy again!!! A+++++++
by Saiem
Fri Dec 12, 2008 1:21 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Policy and Distribution Changes for the 2009 SCTs and ICT
Replies: 20
Views: 3082

Re: Policy and Distribution Changes for the 2009 SCTs and ICT

I agree, as well, for the most part. Why, though, is the character limit only being expanded for the DI set and not the whole field?? I presume for the same reason that it's not being expanded for high school, too. Since the questions between the two divisions are easier (and sometimes very similar...
by Saiem
Thu Dec 11, 2008 9:10 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

I was very disappointed to find out that the white supremacist player actually hasn't been playing this semester, and was replaced by an indian and a token white boy. Actual scoring distribution from a tournament Jew Girl: 24 ppg Black Guy 1: 17 ppg Random Indian: 17 ppg Black Guy 2: 43 ppg Token Wh...
by Saiem
Tue Nov 25, 2008 7:21 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: ACF Winter Southeast @ UGA (1/17/09)
Replies: 37
Views: 10340

Re: ACF Winter Southeast @ UGA (1/17/09)

Pretty sure FSU will send a team.
by Saiem
Mon Nov 24, 2008 10:35 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

Yeah I don't know about stats, but this makes things interesting. I wanna see how you guys do at full strength and on longer pyramidal questions against each other.

Florida has tended away from one man teams lately, Matt is the last real powerhouse left, that can't be counted out of any tournament.
by Saiem
Mon Nov 24, 2008 11:38 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Thoughts on Delta Burke Questions?
Replies: 10
Views: 3137

Re: Thoughts on Delta Burke Questions?

I thought the set was okay, but the bonuses were indeed very easy 30s and a 10 if you had heard of what the bonus was about. I am actually quite surprised that the teams at the FSU tournament averaged below 100 points a game from teams 11 to 18. The Pensacola teams certainly had no problem with the ...
by Saiem
Sun Nov 16, 2008 12:06 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Changing the Science Distribution
Replies: 52
Views: 12197

Re: Changing the Science Distribution

Well, Chemistry is certainly important, I'm not going to argue that. Andy brought up the rather interesting point about answer space, which is certainly a legitimate concern for the expansion of the canon in that direction (at least until someone provides some evidence to the contrary, I honestly do...
by Saiem
Mon Nov 10, 2008 8:44 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: ACF Fall discussion
Replies: 133
Views: 22694

Re: ACF Fall discussion (don't read, players at U Wash. site)

Computer Science / Math More on Math/CS: [10] Identify this curve named for a female Italian mathematician, which asymptotically approaches 0 as x approaches plus or minus infinity, and which can be generated by extending all chords passing through a fixed point on the circle. ANSWER: witch of Agne...
by Saiem
Wed Nov 05, 2008 2:35 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Rickards High School Tournament (11/15/08) in Tallahassee
Replies: 0
Views: 1066

Rickards High School Tournament (11/15/08) in Tallahassee

I'm posting this on behalf of the Rickards team: Dear Brain Bowl Sponsor, Its that time again! James S. Rickards High School will be hosting its fall invitational tournament on Saturday, November 15th 2008, and we would be excited for your school to attend. The competition will be held at Rickards H...
by Saiem
Sun Nov 02, 2008 7:18 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

Probably not. I hear it is being held on the 8th. email mary laba from Rickards (look for the website, it shouldn't be too hard), or rickardsbrainbowl at gmail dot com

I'm sure they need teams to come.
by Saiem
Thu Oct 30, 2008 10:46 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: ACF Fall at UF (11-8-08)
Replies: 29
Views: 5044

Re: ACF Fall at UF (11-8-08)

Can we get an update on the field?
by Saiem
Tue Oct 14, 2008 11:44 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: EFT Discussion
Replies: 107
Views: 26373

Re: EFT Discussion

Fred Morlan wrote:
grapesmoker wrote:Damn you, basketball overrepresetnation!
EFT's got a Basketball Jones.
I really don't mind a basketball overrepresenation cause I would argue it is underrepresented overall, compared to other sports.
by Saiem
Tue Oct 14, 2008 11:32 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: EFT Discussion
Replies: 107
Views: 26373

Re: EFT Discussion

My thoughts on this set are generally good. Having had to read this set on October 4, there were errors that got taken care of. EFT was a pretty solid set overall, that Charles Barkley question was pretty cool. The trailblazers tossup... me and Billy agreed that the clue ordering wasn't the best... ...
by Saiem
Sat Oct 11, 2008 10:41 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

There was a tournament at Chiles on the 27th. Fl. High, Rickards, Lincoln, and Maclay were the top 4 teams if I recall correctly. Florida High dominated Rickards, and I want to say that Lincoln beat Maclay, but I could be pretty wrong about that. It is also important to note that Rickards beat Linco...
by Saiem
Mon Aug 25, 2008 4:17 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: What got you into Quizbowl?
Replies: 90
Views: 19019

Re: What got you into Quizbowl?

theMoMA wrote:
And The Sprite of Capitalism wrote:
rmgeokid wrote:I'm just uber-competitive and not athletic.
I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people have that answer.
Speak for yourself, I'm an Olympic-caliber table tennis player.
He is on the 'roids. It shows.
by Saiem
Sat Aug 23, 2008 8:39 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Possible tournament at Clemson?
Replies: 15
Views: 3028

Re: Possible tournament at Clemson?

December 6 is the ACC Championship (football...) which Clemson will most likely be in. With Clemson being a huge football school and us not having won a conference title since 1991, the town will be going crazy. Also, I will probably be in Tampa at the football game. December 13 is during exams or ...
by Saiem
Sat Aug 23, 2008 3:32 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Possible tournament at Clemson?
Replies: 15
Views: 3028

Re: Possible tournament at Clemson?

Yeah, personally, if I had to choose between a Harvard T-Party mirror and Penn Bowl, I'd have to choose Penn Bowl. If it can happen in December, I'll try and get a team to go from FSU.
by Saiem
Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:35 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Global Announcement: ACF Fall 2008, 11/8
Replies: 47
Views: 33065

Re: Global Announcement: ACF Fall 2008, 11/8

I think UF is at least considering hosting ACF Fall, but they are waiting for the semester to start and meet about it.
by Saiem
Mon Aug 11, 2008 12:30 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: PGA Championship
Replies: 23
Views: 3817

Re: PGA Championship

out of curiosity, who all plays golf in QB?

EDIT: also, yeah, golf channel = awesome
by Saiem
Thu Aug 07, 2008 4:15 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Gauging Interest: Fantasy Quizbowl League
Replies: 35
Views: 8511

Re: Gauging Interest: Fantasy Quizbowl League

I'll certainly play, I think. The thing we have to remember is, fantasy football or quizbowl does not often reflect who is the best player. Just because the Patriots are playing the Dolphins, doesn't mean that the stats should be normalized to reflect the difficulty of who they were playing against....
by Saiem
Mon Aug 04, 2008 4:51 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: MO myth tournament postponed
Replies: 10
Views: 2189

Re: MO myth tournament postponed

That's up to Jeremy, though I think the concerns about Friday night events being too hard to get to might play a factor here. We might just host the first-ever Minnesota Quizbowl Basketball Scrimmage on Friday night, for anyone who gets here early. Can I get a hell yeah? I'd totally be down with pl...
by Saiem
Fri Jul 11, 2008 5:43 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

I think there is only one member of the JV team that is going to be on the A team.

I'm probably overrating the Rickards team, though. Uhh, South Fork is done for at least a year or two. They lost their best 3 players at least.
by Saiem
Fri Jul 11, 2008 4:42 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: buzzer hesitancy/reluctance/cowardice(?)
Replies: 23
Views: 3377

Re: buzzer hesitancy/reluctance/cowardice(?)

I had to experiment with a lot of this stuff this year, as I was basically a 1-man team with a very timid supporting cast. One thing that I've found helps (seriously) is: When you finish a packet of tossups, you'll usually have 2-10 bonuses left over. Run these bonuses part-by-part, one after the o...
by Saiem
Fri Jul 11, 2008 8:47 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

We are always willing to lay the smack down on some young whippersnappers :wink: . If you guys drive up the night before, we can play then, during the lunch break, or even after the tourney is over. Though I imagine and hope to see you at all the tournaments that the great Borglum is going to be put...
by Saiem
Thu Jul 10, 2008 11:11 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

Nice to see you on the boards, Matt. I'm even more pleased that you all are finally coming to a good tournament. I will finally have to stop poking you all with my metaphorical stick about not coming to non-NAQT tournaments. I think at a house-written tourney, you'll only see significant competition...
by Saiem
Fri Jul 04, 2008 10:26 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Thumb Strength?
Replies: 25
Views: 6085

Re: Thumb Strength?

Having played certamen for several years, I can tell you that it has a little to do with priming the buzzer, but more about being able to predict words. If you know an important piece of information is coming up (i.e. a title), and you're confident you can pick it up at that title, just get the firs...
by Saiem
Fri Jul 04, 2008 5:30 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

I think you underestimate how good Matt is, but thats to be expected. On a house-written tournament, I fully expect him to break 120 ppg, and average 20 ppb. Even on NAQT, he'll probably get like 100ppg and 20 ppb. I think you should be a little more offended at me ranking Rickards higher than Pensa...
by Saiem
Thu Jul 03, 2008 5:37 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida '08-'09
Replies: 25
Views: 6759

Re: Florida '08-'09

I kind of already talked about this in the last thread but here is the text of it: Well, our last tournament was quite a while back, so I thought I would reflect real quick. Final Rankings 1. South Fork 2. Pensacola 3. Ransom Everglades 4. Rickards 5. Florida High 6. Chiles 7. Hardee 8. Eastside 9. ...
by Saiem
Sat Jun 28, 2008 5:02 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Annct: 10/18 MO Saturday Night Lit Tournament: An Encounter
Replies: 65
Views: 21127

Re: Annct: 10/18 MO Saturday Night Lit Tournament: An Encounter

I plan on playing this. I would also like some nice coat-tails, if thats cool with someone.
by Saiem
Tue Jun 10, 2008 11:23 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Player name pronunciation
Replies: 52
Views: 15864

Re: Player name pronunciation

Saiem (rhymes with time) Gilani (Gill-Ah-Nee)
by Saiem
Fri May 30, 2008 7:59 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: PACE NSC Prediction Contest!
Replies: 84
Views: 12522

Re: PACE NSC Prediction Contest!

Top 12 playoff teams: MLK, TJ A, Dorman A, Hunter, Charter A, Maggie Walker A, Whitman, Chattahoochee, DCC, RM A NKC, State College Undefeated: TJ, Dorman, Charter, Whitman, RM A, NKC 4: MLK 3: TJ A 2: Whitman 1: Dorman Consolation Bracket Winner: Dorman B Consolation Bracket Runner Up: Stuyveysant ...
by Saiem
Tue May 27, 2008 12:47 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: 2008 HSNCT Post Tourney Discussion - TJ Wins!
Replies: 128
Views: 16807

Re: 2008 HSNCT Post Tourney Discussion - TJ Wins!

Not to out them or anything, but Hoover was definitely at the PACE style invitational event in Pensacola. Good guys, good academic knowledge. That was probably one of the best high school tournaments I've played. The distro may have been skewed towards more SS type of material, but it was really ful...
by Saiem
Sun May 18, 2008 9:28 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida 2007-08
Replies: 23
Views: 9786

Re: Florida 2007-08

Well, our last tournament was quite a while back, so I thought I would reflect real quick. Final Rankings 1. South Fork 2. Pensacola 3. Ransom Everglades 4. Rickards 5. Florida High 6. Chiles 7. Hardee 8. Eastside 9. Lincoln 10. Like anyone, mostly because I've started to forget who is good, and I h...
by Saiem
Thu May 15, 2008 10:18 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Spring 07 and spring 08 NSC-format invitational questions
Replies: 12
Views: 2481

Re: Spring 07 and spring 08 NSC-format invitational questions

On a related side note, I may try to convince my school to host a PACE-style tournament if there are going to be another couple of Invitational sets being produced next fall.

If you could pass along that information to [email protected]
that'd be excellent.
by Saiem
Thu May 15, 2008 10:14 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Senior Destinations 2008
Replies: 103
Views: 23010

Re: Senior Destinations 2008

Man. What the old spice donkey kong pen olive eye drop. Suddenly MIT doesn't think Palmer is smart enough for them? "No, I'm sorry, we have too many Blue MOPpers saturated here, try another university" Blue MOP essentially means he is in the top 12-24 math kids in the nation... last year. ...
by Saiem
Sun May 11, 2008 12:18 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Freshmen
Replies: 41
Views: 5773

Re: Freshmen

I think what Charlie says rings the most true with my experience. As a freshman, we started off with a tryout test that just tested your basic knowledge, followed by a buzzer test, where you played against all newcomers (not just freshmen). That was a tie-breaker for team selection if it was close. ...
by Saiem
Fri May 09, 2008 7:11 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Repeating Questions
Replies: 13
Views: 2767

Re: Repeating Questions

What about incompetent mumbling? Or overly fast reading in an untimed match. I've been accused of both of these, though I have become much better about the latter. I think questions are written so densely and often poorly, that it is hard to know where you should actually put emphasis or rest. It ge...
by Saiem
Thu Apr 03, 2008 10:32 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Bad Negs--we miss you!
Replies: 182
Views: 39372

Re: Bad Negs--we miss you!

Bad. NAQT.
by Saiem
Thu Apr 03, 2008 10:28 am
Forum: College area archives
Topic: Minnesota Undergrad Tournament discussion
Replies: 37
Views: 12242

Re: Minnesota Undergrad Tournament discussion

All I know is that I didn't get any science questions. The math questions were pretty solid though.

EDIT: Apparently Chris Borglum doesn't know what science is appropriate? His words, not mine.
by Saiem
Wed Apr 02, 2008 5:47 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Prediction: Florida's Commissioner's Academic Challenge
Replies: 7
Views: 2182

Re: Prediction: Florida's Commissioner's Academic Challenge

Leon is looking pretty okay this year. 3 from Rickards, 1 from Leon, 1 from Lincoln, 1 from Chiles

Allan Long
Saiem Gilani
Emily Moline
Jeremy Katz
Tissa Khosla
Rasheedat Zakare
by Saiem
Mon Mar 31, 2008 11:37 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Florida tournaments
Replies: 19
Views: 4049

Re: Florida tournaments

Was anyone else pretty disappointed with that NAQT set? I have a feeling some of that had to do with a little bit of UF editing, but I could be wrong. I would be pretty interested in having a different set at the FSU tounament.
by Saiem
Sun Mar 30, 2008 3:28 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: NAQT Subject Distribution
Replies: 38
Views: 14017

Re: NAQT Subject Distribution

Fine Arts really have less of a distribution than current events and an equivalent amount as Geography? I would argue that at the past few NAQT tournaments I've been to, the Fine Arts are much less represented than both of those categories by about a factor of 2 to 1. I don't see how this could be c...
by Saiem
Tue Mar 25, 2008 5:44 am
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Yes, it's another thread about math
Replies: 102
Views: 28379

Re: Yes, it's another thread about math

On a slight tangent: Do people prefer "computational" tossups or bonuses?

I think I would like having a few more math bonuses. I'd be okay with 1 math tossup (whether it be computational or theory) per round, if there were some math bonuses.
by Saiem
Mon Mar 24, 2008 7:18 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Yes, it's another thread about math
Replies: 102
Views: 28379

Re: Yes, it's another thread about math

You guys act like this is magic. Gosh, I wonder how he got that so fast. I bet he knows alot about the subject area. Computational ability is directly related to the amount of practice you put into actually doing math. You can know alot about math, but be very slow on the computation because you don...
by Saiem
Mon Mar 24, 2008 6:53 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: FSU HS Tournament on April 5th in Tallahassee, Florida
Replies: 7
Views: 1917

Re: FSU HS Tournament on April 5th in Tallahassee, Florida

We will be there Billy. With 2 teams. and 1 buzzer.
by Saiem
Sun Mar 23, 2008 5:46 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: ANNOUNCEMENT: Sun 'n Fun IX @ USF -- 5/10/2008 (Date Change)
Replies: 33
Views: 13798

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: Sun 'n Fun IX @ USF -- 5/10/2008 (Date Change)

Maybe that came out a little more petulant than I expected, but I was just wondering how it will affect attendance. I want to get something for my experience, rather than having to play Billy, Chris Borglum, and UF for a few rounds and get like two tossups. If its going to be a small tournament and ...
by Saiem
Sun Mar 23, 2008 4:23 pm
Forum: College area archives
Topic: ANNOUNCEMENT: Sun 'n Fun IX @ USF -- 5/10/2008 (Date Change)
Replies: 33
Views: 13798

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: Sun 'n Fun IX @ USF -- 5/10/2008 (Date Change)

Are you serious about the whole "greater than ACF Regionals" level difficulty? Who all would be interested in playing something like that in our area?
by Saiem
Sun Mar 16, 2008 8:03 pm
Forum: High school area archives
Topic: Yes, it's another thread about math
Replies: 102
Views: 28379

Re: Yes, it's another thread about math

Just a quick note: I think that the speed of a question being read has far more effect than the actual subject matter. I don't have too many statistics to support it, but I personally read a couple rounds at our fall tournament, where there was 1 math tossup being read in each round (I don't know if...