Wednesday, May 29, 2013

THE 2013 SPELLING BEE POOL:  Forty-two spellers remain. Our rules are similar to last year's -- with two five-timers (Cundey, Keeton) and five four-timers (Remmer, Born, Hathwar, Mahankali, and Reddy) returning among the semifinalists, as well as two returning prime-timers, I'm going to restrict the use of veterans again.

So: pick two spellers, only one of whom can be one of the four- or five-timers listed above. While individual spellers can be used more than once, you cannot repeat the same pairing that someone else has already submitted. First come, first served, and you cannot choose a speller once s/he spells tomorrow afternoon. You will get one point for each word your spellers correctly spell during tomorrow's rounds of the Bee, which resumes at 2pm eastern on ESPN2. In addition, each speller will receive an additional point for reaching primetime, to account for the computer-based cutoff after tomorrow afternoon's two live rounds. Most points wins; tiebreaker will be whoever has the individual speller going the furthest.

Previous pool winners are Elicia Chamberlin in 2006 (Close/Hooks), Professor Jeff and Amy tied in 2007 (O'Dorney and Thomas/Horton), KJ in 2008 (Mishra/K Shivashankar), Cagey (K Shivashankar/Pastapur) in 2009, Bob Loblaw/Jenn tied in 2010 (Veeramani and Chemudupaty/Denniss); 2011's winner was Nupur Lala (the Roy/Ye Keystone combo); and in 2012 our winner was Bobby (Snigdha Nandipati and Arvind Mahankali).

It's my pool; I go first: I will take Arvind Mahankali again, because that's quite a streak of performances under the lights, and Gokul Venkatachalam. Your turn.

added: In order to protect the integrity of the first-come, first-served nature of the pool, please don't edit your entry. If you need to make a change, reply to your original comment.

60 comments:

  1. Genevieve10:31 PM

    Arvind and Vanya.

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  2. Adam B.10:33 PM

    I figured that'd go first. Which is why I didn't take it.

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  3. BeeFan10:35 PM

    Sriram Hathwar
    Grace Remmer

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  4. I really do think it's Arvind's year. I'll ask for Arvind and Vismaya Kharkar. If we had a third pick, I'd go for Isabel Cholbi as a dark horse.

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  5. BeeFan10:36 PM

    Sorry, that's too many x-timers, isn't it?


    Grace Remmer
    Vanya Shivashankar

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  6. Arvind Mahankali and Grace Remmer! Their effort over the years is quite admirable.

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  7. Charlotte10:36 PM

    I would like Arvind Mahankali and Ashwin Veeramani.

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  8. I want Emily Keaton and Sophia Limacher.

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  9. Sara Miller10:37 PM

    Arvind and Pranav Sivakumar

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  10. Adam B.10:39 PM

    Can't. Both are 4+ timers.

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  11. Sara Miller10:41 PM

    I already took them a few minutes ago. You still had the 2 4-timers up. :)

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  12. Adam B.10:41 PM

    I believe what happened here is you had previously entered an ineligible pair (too experienced) and then edited the post to this pair ... which I believe Sara Miller (below) had posted first. Try again?

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  13. Cat Cojocaru10:55 PM

    Can I have Grace Remmer and Arvind Mahankali? I'm not 100% sure how this pool works because I haven't done it before, sorry!!

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  14. Adam B.10:56 PM

    Nope. Can only be one person for him this is the 4th/5th trip; other speller must be less experienced.

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  15. Cat Cojocaru10:59 PM

    See edit!

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  16. Adam B.11:00 PM

    Nope. Also Sriram's 4th time.

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  17. Cat Cojocaru11:03 PM

    I really hope this last pick is okay?

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  18. Adam B.11:03 PM

    You're safe now.

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  19. BeeFan11:05 PM

    "In addition, each speller will receive an additional point for reaching
    primetime, to account for the computer-based cutoff after tomorrow
    afternoon's two live rounds"


    Computer-based cutoff. Bah. What happened to spelling until everyone but one had missed a word?


    I understand why they put in the written round (2002?). The Bee had grown and they were spelling from morning until night to whittle down the field.


    Time limits are a good thing. The "informal" time limits were too arbitrary. The first try at formal time limits was a little too complex (did we really need Abbreviated Regular Time?) but they came up with a sleeker version in 2008.



    But multiple-choice vocabulary tests and computer-based cutoffs? It sounds like they've forgotten this is supposed to be a spelling bee.

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  20. oonawong23811:06 PM

    Chetan Reddy and Vismaya Kharkar

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  21. I'll take Chetan Reddy and Piper Winkler

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  22. Adam B.11:09 PM

    They want to avoid a situation like the 2010 controversy where an afternoon round was stopped midway in order to ensure there were "enough" spellers for a two-hour primetime broadcast. I wrote about this more when the change was announced: http://throwingthings.blogspot.com/2013/04/bee-surprised-they-are-adding-two.html

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  23. Marnie11:13 PM

    Arvind and Caleb Miller

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  24. Arvind Mahankali & Sophia Limacher (I'm a homer)

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  25. Vanya
    Cundey

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  26. Arvind and Kuvam (because I'm just waiting for JJ to be like, "Who the heck is Kuvam?")

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  27. BeeFan11:26 PM

    Yes, I figured it was something like that.


    So they'd rather be eliminated by not missing a word at all than by missing prime time because they're from Alaska rather than Wyoming?


    The number of spellers eliminated in a round is unpredictable. That's the nature of spelling bees. I knew back in 2006 that expecting 12 or nearly exactly so every year was unrealistic.


    I really think a split round is the lesser evil (for all the heat it generated in 2010) if the exact number is really so crucial.


    If you remember, when they DID get to the 2010 finals, the spellers were missing words so fast they had to put in commercial breaks after every speller to stretch it out to fill the two hours. It would have worked out better with 15-16 spellers. But that, too, was not predictable.

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  28. Devin McCullen11:26 PM

    Grace Remmer & Aditya Rao (representing Jersey even if he qualified in Pennsy)

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  29. CrashDancer11:33 PM

    I call Emily Keaton and Vismaya Kharkar!!! I know Emily has never had a very strong showing, but I met her back in 2009 when she was in fourth grade and really little, right outside the round 1 test, and Ive been hoping that she would do well ever since. And she's one of only three people, I think (her, Rachael, and Sriram) who were there in 2009, my first year. Then Vismaya is just awesome. I talk to her a lot.

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  30. I would like to change my entry to Vanya and Pranav.

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  31. Adam B.11:35 PM

    Well, they will have gotten words wrong -- just not on live tv, and it'll be the same words their fellow competitors spelled correctly. There is something which feels fair about that, even if it's less satisfying (a) for viewers or (b) for those who believe that the microphone, not a computer, is the only real test of a speller's mettle.

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  32. Grace Remmer, and hometown girl (really her school is about three minutes from me) Hannah Citsay.

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  33. Dave S.12:22 AM

    Grace Remmer and Piper Winkler.

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  34. Arvind Mahankali
    Isabel Cholbi

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  35. Marsha12:43 AM

    Darn Emily beat me to my preferred pair.

    So I'll take Arvind and Piper from Illinoiis!

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  36. Bobby2:40 AM

    As defending champion, there's a lot of pressure here. I'll take Sriram Hathwar and Pranav Sivakumar. It's gonna be awesome watching Sriram v. Arvind go right after each other, a rivalry that's been going on since 2009! (Dunno what Sriram was doing last year instead of the Bee, but IMO he's just as good and experienced as Arvind)

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  37. Sonia4:10 AM

    Emily Keaton and Vanya!! (I knew them both my year and they were wonderful and amazing and I hope they go as far as they possibly can)

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  38. Jenn.4:31 AM

    I hope I'm not too late to grab Cundey and Abiad. (5-timer from Georgia, plus our Chicagoan). I'm in another tine zone, but still want to participate....

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  39. Adam C.6:56 AM

    I'll take Vanya and Vismaya. Probably won't get to follow along live very much today, but I'll be here in spirit.

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  40. StvMg8:48 AM

    Grace Remmer and Gokul Venkatachalam

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  41. I'm picking Isabel Cholbi b/c she's a baseball fan and Gokul Venkatachalam as the token Missourian. It's a very scientific method.

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  42. bristlesage9:24 AM

    Alia Abiad and Vismaya Kharkar, please!

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  43. It breaks my heart that the Jamaicans are gone.

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  44. shonda rhimes9:40 AM

    I'd Arvind and Vanya. Is that taken yet?

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  45. shonda rhimes9:41 AM

    Of course -- first thing taken. Sigh.

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  46. shonda rhimes9:48 AM

    Vanya and Rachael. Although, I am calling it right now: Arvind is winning this thing. But maybe my girls will pull through!

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  47. Christy in Philly10:43 AM

    I'm gonna go with Arvind and Hannah Citsay who is from the town my sister lives in. I think that's an available pair. The comments are showing up in a wacky order.

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  48. Arvind & Gokul, if that's available. If not then eff it, I'm taking Vanya & Gokul, veterans be damned.

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  49. Adam B.11:35 AM

    I have Arvind & Gokul. V&G is fine.

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  50. I'll take Arvind Mahankali and Anuk Dayaprema.

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  51. Vanya Shivashankur
    Sriram Hathwar

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  52. Maret Orliss12:20 PM

    Grace Remmer and Isabel Cholbi.

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  53. not sure if it's too late...been busy studying for finals. but if not I'll go w/ Arvind and Nikitha Chandran

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  54. Jacob Devine2:12 PM

    I'm a couple minutes late, but no one has picked Pranav and Grace yet, right? That's me.

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  55. Jacob Devine2:13 PM

    (Pranav and Arvind would have been my first choice though.)

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  56. Adam C.3:47 PM

    Strong rooting interest here for Nikitha, who won the hometown Bee I could never conquer.

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  57. anonymous4:05 PM

    You competed in the 2009? :D who are you :)

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  58. anonymous4:06 PM

    Sonia Schlesinger??? :D

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