Though this *sounds* like a good idea, in fact it's a total pipe dream, let's face it. How would you be able to get people to agree on one set of questions, given the "flame wars" between the three formats? In addition, the boxing analogy is irrelevant because while the WBC, IBF, and WBF (or whatever it is) all give titles for hitting people, ACF, NAQT, and CBI have three different types of questions, as Kemezis pointed out. If the WBC only allowed jabs, the IBF only uppercuts, or whatever, then maybe this would be applicable. Finally, I think we ought to once and for all lose the notion that quiz bowl is a legitimate "college sport," and thus cease all comparisons. I enjoy quiz bowl as much as the next person, but there's a different structure present. Since there aren't professional leagues available for quiz bowlers who have "used up their amateur status," it's either "end after four years" or "keep playing," and many people want to keep playing, which is certainly within their rights as things stand. Thus the idea of "one division and booting people out" is never going to work. Anyway, it's not like there aren't undergrads who can hold their own with grad students. Perhaps a retooling of the divisions is in order - it seems to me to be something of a punishment, as far as NAQT goes, to be thrust into Division I after barely squeaking into Div II Nationals (as our team did my freshman year). Maybe it should be Div I - grads; Div II - undergrads, except that that's more unfair to novice players and anyway I'm not convinced there are enough grad students to support that throughout the country. I guess that's what the Div I undergrad title is for. The alternative, of course, would be three divisions - grads, seniors/juniors, freshmen/sophomores. But this is probably unnecessarily fragmentary. Anyway, I'd agree in general that if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And I don't think there's anything so broke that a massive retool of the system is in order. Flax NUQB
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