Brain Game (North Carolina)
Encyclopedia
Brain Game is a weekly quizbowl
-type show for high school students that airs on WRAL-TV
in Raleigh
, North Carolina
. The program debuted in 1997. It currently airs at 11:30 am on Saturdays, and the current host is former WRAL traffic reporter Mark Roberts. Early programs were hosted by WRAL weathercaster Greg Fishel
.
Prior to fall 2008, the teams with the nine best scores advanced to a playoff of three semifinal games, with the winners advancing to a championship game. Teams could advance to the semifinals without winning their regular season games - only the score accumulated during the regular season game determined the playoff teams.
In the fall of 2008, the rules were changed so that the winners of each game would automatically advance to the playoffs. The best non-winning high score qualified a team as a "wild card" in the playoffs.
from the Charlotte
area now competes regularly.
Quizbowl
Quiz bowl is a family of games of questions and answers on all topics of human knowledge that is commonly played by students enrolled in high school or college, although some participants begin in middle or even elementary school...
-type show for high school students that airs on WRAL-TV
WRAL-TV
WRAL-TV, virtual channel 5 , is a television station in Raleigh, North Carolina. WRAL-TV has been the flagship station of Capitol Broadcasting Company since its inception, and is currently the CBS affiliate for the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill/Fayetteville area, known collectively as the Triangle...
in Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. The program debuted in 1997. It currently airs at 11:30 am on Saturdays, and the current host is former WRAL traffic reporter Mark Roberts. Early programs were hosted by WRAL weathercaster Greg Fishel
Greg Fishel
Greg Fishel is a meteorologist for WRAL-TV in Raleigh, North Carolina. He received his B.S. in Meteorology from Pennsylvania State University in 1979. He has been at WRAL since 1981, and became the station's chief meteorologist in 1989.Fishel was the first certified broadcast meteorologist in the...
.
Rules
Each Brain Game show is contested by three teams of three players each. Teams may buzz in and attempt to answer at any time while the question is being read. Team members may confer with one another prior to answering. Academic-based questions in the games come from the standard North Carolina curriculum for ninth and tenth graders.Prior to fall 2008, the teams with the nine best scores advanced to a playoff of three semifinal games, with the winners advancing to a championship game. Teams could advance to the semifinals without winning their regular season games - only the score accumulated during the regular season game determined the playoff teams.
In the fall of 2008, the rules were changed so that the winners of each game would automatically advance to the playoffs. The best non-winning high score qualified a team as a "wild card" in the playoffs.
Differences from most quizbowl games
Brain Game is significantly different from most quizbowl formats in several ways:- Brain Game allows three players to compete at a time, whereas most formats permit four players
- Regardless of who buzzes in on a team, anyone on the team may answer the question
- Three teams compete at a time, whereas most formats have two teams compete at a time
- Some questions are accompanied by an audio or visual clue by means of a screen located on the set
Format and Segments
Brain Game shows consist of the following segments:- Pop-Up Culture
- 10 questions about pop culture, worth twenty points up or down
- Headliners
- 10 questions about current events, worth twenty points up or down
- Word Power
- teams buzz in to fill in a crossword puzzle based on clues, worth twenty points up or down
- Arts and Crafts
- ten questions about art, culture, literature, and music, worth twenty points up or down
- Name Game
- each team gets thirty seconds to answer five questions (directed to one team at a time), worth ten points up or down. If a team gets all five questions correct, they receive a twenty point bonus
- Crunching Numbers
- ten math questions, worth twenty points up or down
- Rocket Science
- ten questions about science, worth twenty points up or down
- Globetrotting
- ten questions about an area of the world that varies from show to show, worth twenty points up or down
- America Coast to Coast
- ten questions about an area of America that varies from show to show, worth twenty points up or down
- Note that the players know beforehand what areas of the world and of the United States will be covered in the Globetrotting and America Coast to Coast rounds.
Participants and Winners
Most teams that participate in Brain Game come from the WRAL-TV viewing area, though Jay M. Robinson High SchoolJay M. Robinson High School
Jay M. Robinson High School, often referred to as Robinson or JRob by students, is a comprehensive public high school located in Concord, North Carolina. It is the fifth high school of the Cabarrus County Schools system, opening its doors in August 2001, the county's first new high school since 1966...
from the Charlotte
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
area now competes regularly.
Recent Champions
The schedule switched from semesters to school years beginning in 2009-2010 season.| Season | Winner | Location |
| Fall 2004 | Enloe Enloe High School The William G. Enloe GT/IB Center for the Humanities, Sciences, and the Arts, more commonly called Enloe High School , is a Wake County public magnet, Gifted & Talented, and International Baccalaureate high school located in east Raleigh, North Carolina. The school is named after William Gillmore... |
Raleigh |
| Spring 2005 | Leesville Road Leesville Road High School Leesville Road High School , which opened its doors in 1993, is a comprehensive public high school in Wake County located at 8409 Leesville Road, Raleigh, North Carolina. It has 2,425 enrolled students... |
Raleigh |
| Fall 2005 | Terry Sanford Terry Sanford High School Terry Sanford High School is a public high school in Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States. It is named after Terry Sanford, who was a North Carolina state senator, Governor of North Carolina and a United States Senator... |
Fayetteville |
| Spring 2006 | Terry Sanford | Fayetteville |
| Fall 2006 | Grimsley Grimsley High School Grimsley Senior High School is a public high school in Greensboro, North Carolina. Formerly known as "Greensboro Senior High School," It is part of the Guilford County Schools system. The school has an enrollment of around 2,000 students in grades 9-12... |
Greensboro |
| Spring 2007 | Person | Roxboro |
| Fall 2007 | Raleigh Charter Raleigh Charter High School Raleigh Charter High School is a free, independent public school chartered by the North Carolina State Board of Education.-History:In the summer of 1998, some parents of 8th graders at The Magellan Charter School decided to establish a new charter high school so that their students could continue... |
Raleigh |
| Spring 2008 | Raleigh Charter | Raleigh |
| Fall 2008 | Enloe | Raleigh |
| Spring 2009 | Grimsley | Greensboro |
| Spring 2010 | Enloe | Raleigh |
| Spring 2011 | School of Science and Math | Durham |