With just seven seconds to answer each question, NYU Abu Dhabi students had to think fast at the Masdar Institute's recent "Mind Rewind" Competition. This general knowledge competition looked to enhance the relationship between universities in Abu Dhabi while fostering a spirit of competition, increasing intellectual prowess in a broad range of areas, and providing an extra-curricular activity that was intellectually stimulating. The slogan of this year's inter-university brain challenge was "Rewind & Re-watch" and topics included current affairs, sports, literature, science, and entertainment. The NYUAD team, consisting of sophomores Sumit Dahal and Craig Breckenridge and freshmen Nandita Chaturvedi and Daniel Brown, faced off against teams from the Petroleum Institute, Khalifa University, the Masdar Institute, and the Paris-Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi.
A total of 240 questions were asked throughout the tournament. Battling through a round-robin format, the NYUAD team qualified for the finals, going head to head with students from the Petroleum Institute in the final round. Thirty questions later, the NYUAD team emerged victorious as the winner of the 2013 championship.
"The three-hour-long quiz interspersed with frequent short breaks kept our adrenaline levels high while allowing us to mingle with other university students. The Masdar Mind Rewind was a fresh idea of socializing with wits," said Chaturvedi.
The competition was held in Abu Dhabi's Masdar City. Upon arrival, the team was briefed on the Masdar project and taken to the main campus via a rapid transit auto-pod, an automatic solar-powered car. The students were then taken on a tour of the city and got a chance to see the innovative green technology on display. "I particularly enjoyed seeing the unique ways in which they are creating an eco-friendly environment in Masdar City," said Brown. The university generates all of its electricity through solar power and feeds excess generated electricity into the national grid.
The team thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience. Although they returned from Masdar City as winners, the day was not just about the competition. "It was a friendly yet competitive atmosphere," said Breckenridge. "It presented us with an opportunity to interact with students from other universities in Abu Dhabi."