Paillion, Vermacht, and Babism, O My!

I was gonna write a long post that wondered aloud why so many East Indians were in the spelling bee, but I just did a Google search and found an East Indian who had already blogged about the matter. He even interviewed past winners and listed some fairly interesting statistics.

I think it's a good read. You can find it here if you're interested.

What amazes me is how the contestants can figure out how to spell the word just by using the word origins and the definition. That to me is ten times more impressive than merely using rote memorization.

I was in a county spelling bee in elementary school. I didn't win it- before you ask, I can't remember what word I missed. I knew how it felt to lose, however, so I can empathize with the kids who lost.

It was nice to actually see competitors actually driven by little more than glory. It made professional sports, in my opinion, look like a joke. These kids had drive, energy, personalities, and heart. Their rich adult counterparts could learn a thing or two from these kids.