Benjamin Recchie, AB’03 (see “Non-trivial Pursuit”), is only the most recent University alumnus to appear on Jeopardy! The Core tracked down 18 other alumni who have competed on the show.

Asked about memorable questions or categories, Mathew Safer, AB’01, recalled the thrill of victory: “I ran the category of Cheeses of the World. Alex [Trebek] commented, ‘The man knows his cheese.’” Dan Pawson, JD’06, remembered the agony of defeat: “In a moment of everlasting shame, I botched the number of articles in the Constitution.” Here’s that notorious question and eight others from Jeopardy! alumni.

What’s that Number
Articles of the US Constitution
¿uǝʌǝs sı ʇɐɥM

Word to the Chef
This French term refers to food that has been strained
and blended to a smooth consistency
¿ǝǝɹnd sı ʇɐɥM

Health & Medicine
Its formula is C₂₇H₄₆O & its name is from Greek for “solid bile”
¿loɹǝʇsǝloɥɔ sı ʇɐɥM

The Northernmost Nation
Bolivia, Ecuador, Argentina
¿ɹopɐnɔƎ sı ʇɐɥM

Primetime TV
Now in season 23, its producer says it’s the only show with
“no script, no actors, no host & no re-enactments”
¿sdoƆ sı ʇɐɥM

Top Ten Yahoo! Searches (in 2008)
“Womanizer” from her Circus album scored this pop goddess
her first chart topper in nearly a decade
¿sɹɐǝdS ʎǝuʇıɹq sı oɥM

Fun Stuff
In 1901 Alexander Graham Bell began building tetrahedral box ones
of these with the goal of fitting people
¿sǝʇıʞ ǝɹɐ ʇɐɥM

Asian Nations
Of the world’s 11 countries, whose English names start with “A”,
the only 2 whose names don’t end in “A”
¿uɐɾıɐqɹǝz∀ puɐ uɐʇsıuɐɥƃɟ∀ ǝɹɐ ʇɐɥM

First Names
A wife of King David and two of our early first ladies shared
this name derived from Hebrew for “my father’s joy”
¿lıɐƃıq∀ sı ʇɐɥM

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So you want to compete on Jeopardy!
Read more stories and advice from alumni contestants.