Mercer Student Preps For U.S. Event in May
By Sandhya Somashekhar
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Partha Narasimhan has always surprised his parents. At 2, he was able to recite Shakespeare, they said. At 4, he read Stephen Hawking's "A Brief History of Time." Early on, he abandoned cartoons for the History Channel and the Learning Channel.
But the Mercer Middle School sixth-grader surprised no one -- not even himself -- when he took first place March 30 at the Virginia finals of the 2007 National Geographic Bee competition, at Old Dominion University in Norfolk.
By harnessing his expansive memory and passion for all things geographic, he beat 99 other bright fourth- through eighth-graders from across the state to earn a place at the national competition next month.
"It feels great," said Partha, 12, of South Riding. "I was feeling very confident the whole time."
Another Loudoun County student, Tatiana Lozano of Simpson Middle School in Leesburg, placed third in the Virginia competition, behind a student from Richmond.
But only Partha rose to the national bee, which takes place at the National Geographic Society headquarters in the District on May 22 and 23. It pits 55 young geography whizzes from across the nation against one another in subjects such as Earth science, economics and current events, with the winner receiving a $25,000 scholarship.
The gut-wrenching final round, moderated by "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek, will air May 23 on the National Geographic Channel.
The question that Partha answered successfully to earn himself a place in the nationals was one whose answer he has known since he was 9, he said: In what East Asian city is the Jin Mao tower?
Partha grinned, his parents recalled, as he confidently scribbled down the correct answer -- Shanghai -- during the final round of the competition.
Partha's victory was perhaps more emotional for his parents, who have watched with awe as Partha has grown from a child with social difficulties into a remarkably talented young man.
From kindergarten through third grade, Partha was in special-education classes, said his father, Suresh Narasimhan. In the fourth grade, the year he was transferred to the mainstream class at Hutchison Farm Elementary School, he qualified for the state geography bee.
"We had a parade for him around the school," said Sue Intili, his fourth-grade teacher. "Everyone was cheering: 'Partha, Partha!' "
Although Partha did not place among the top contestants that year, his parents saw an opportunity to "structure his brilliance into something we can all be proud of," his father said.
Partha's mother, S. K. Narasimhan, began studying rigorously with him, she said. For hours at a time, he would sit at the table, his face cupped in his hands, as she fired questions at him. This year, they studied together for an hour a day on weekdays and three hours a day on weekends, and even more as the competition approached.
Occasionally, Partha said, he sneaks off to play video and computer games with his 8-year-old brother, Sudarshan.
"Man, I need to play a little," Partha said.
But even his game-playing reflects his devotion to history, science and geography. His favorite computer game at the moment is Civilization IV, in which a player takes on the role of one of the great civilizations and tries to build an empire. His favorite movie is "An Inconvenient Truth," Al Gore's documentary about global warming.
Although he enjoys geography and the many subjects it encompasses, Partha said the coming weeks will be grueling. He plans to continue to study daily with his mother, and aims to place among the top 20 finalists.
His parents, however, have their sights set higher. His father predicts top 10, while his mother said he may well capture first place.
"It's definitely doable," she said.
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