Marshall Carroll

**Marshall Carroll** was a contestant on the 2012 Special.

## Background

Dr. Marshall Carroll was born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He graduated from Grant Park High School in 1980 and from the University of Winnipeg in 1984. At the University of Winnipeg, he double-majored in Chemistry and Physics and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree upon graduation. He then moved to Hamilton, Ontario, and received his Doctorate of Philosophy degree in Quantum Chemistry in 1989. He then did postdoctoral chemistry research at North Dakota State University in Fargo, North Dakota. From there, he began his high school science teaching career and has not looked back. He also teaches Chemistry at a university via telecommunication on the side.

Marshall has always been interested in parody songwriting and comedy and he comes from a long line of writers. He can do songwriting, emceeing, stand-up comedy, acting, joke-writing, and DJ'ing.

*Retrieved from CBC.ca*

In 2012, we held our first #SmartestPerson search, whittling down thousands of applicants to four lucky finalists. Among them was High School Teacher and stand up comic, Marshall Carroll.

Marshall holds a Ph.D in Quantum Chemistry and since 2012, he’s been busy teaching at Vincent Massey Collegiate, Winnipeg.

## 2012 Special

Before Marshall was summoned to the stage, a clip of him and the other contestants introducing themselves was shown. In this clip, apart from introducing himself, Marshall stated that he collects stamps as a hobby and he joked that his competitors probably haven't experienced puberty yet while he's been through it four times. He also stated that he believes that he is Canada's Smartest Person because he is well-balanced across the six intelligences and that he believes that his students learn when they get engaged and when they improvise new ideas. Marshall was the last contestant to be personally introduced by Gerry Dee as he entered the stage, after Greg Frankson, Laura Suen, and Peter Dyakowski. In the first challenge, Word Mix, Marshall got 5 acceptable words in the first round, 7 in the second round, and 6 in the final round. With a total of 18 acceptable words, Marshall tied with Laura for 2nd place and both were awarded 3 overall points.

In the second challenge, Spin a Speech, Marshall was the last contestant to give a speech and had to break up with someone in his speech. He said, "When I was in high school, I had to break up with my girlfriend. She was always making me **sausages**, but I didn’t like them. I would rather had–have fried **beaver** or an **elixir** of rum or uh–just to make out under the **evergreen** tree; that was fun. She had to have a shot of **whisky** if she would ever do that with me. Uh–We once uh–popped into her uh–grandparents’ **townhouse**. Uh–She wouldn’t go in at first, but I had a **shotgun** so it was okay after. Um–She was a real **angel**. It was **sorrow** when we had to break up, but it sort of **crystallized** in my uh–drive for the future. I was **driven** to find a new girl. It would be a **joyous** equa–eh–uh–occasion. I wouldn’t **acquiesce** to just anyone. I had to make sure she knew lots about *politics*. All–" Because 'politics' was not accepted, Marshall received a score of 13 words. Guest judge Seán Cullen commented that it was an interesting and beautiful reminiscence and that he loved it, but also stated that he was expecting Marshall to actually break up with someone in his speech rather than talk about a time that a breakup happened. Seán gave Marshall an additional 7 points for the quality of his speech. With a total of 20 points, Marshall finished in 3rd place and was awarded 2 overall points.

In the third challenge, Spaced Out, Marshall finished his '7' shape 1 minute and 27 seconds into the challenge, but failed to finish his 'T' shape within the time limit of 2 minutes and 30 seconds. As a result, Marshall finished in last place and was not awarded any overall points.

In the fourth challenge, Double Take, Marshall selected 9 out of the 15 correct items for his model. He selected the correct bag, skirt, blouse, blazer, shoes, sunglasses, necklace, bracelet, and scarf. As a result, Marshall tied with Peter for 2nd place and both were awarded 3 overall points.

In the fifth challenge, Human Calculator, Marshall got 6 correct answers in the first round, 6 in the second round, and 3 in the final round. With a total of 15 correct answers, Marshall finished in 2nd place and was awarded 3 overall points. In the sixth challenge, Logic Towers, Marshall failed to fully relocate his block tower within the time limit of 2 minutes. As a result, Marshall tied with Greg, who had a similar performance, for last place and neither was awarded any overall points. Backstage, in a confessional, Marshall introduced his friend Laurence. Laurence told Marshall that he has a decent rooting section and that they think that he is the smartest.

In the seventh challenge, Power of Persuasion, Marshall and the other contestants had to individually explain why they believed that they were Canada's Smartest Person in 30 seconds, debate with each other about what they believed was the greatest invention of all time, and individually make closing statements in 15 seconds. In the first portion of the challenge, Marshall was the first contestant to give his explanation and argued that he was Canada's Smartest Person because he is all-rounded in terms of the six intelligences, though he did so in a poetic and catchy manner. In the second portion of the challenge, Marshall was silent, but after guest judge Arlene Dickinson cut off the other contestants because she noticed that Marshall hadn't weighed in yet, he responded that the periodic table is the greatest invention of all time since it is so cheap yet categorizes everything found in nature. In the final portion of the challenge, Marshall was the last contestant to make his closing statement and said, "I have a PhD in theoretical quantum chemistry, but I left research to use multiple intelligences to teach high school students. Aside from marrying my wife, it's the smartest move I ever did." Arlene ranked Marshall in 1st place for his overall performance and Marshall was awarded 10 overall points as a result. Backstage, in a confessional, Marshall stated that he was happy that Arlene Dickinson, one of the most powerful people in the world, thought that he was the best performer.

In the eighth challenge, Lost Instrument, Marshall earned 2 points. As a result, Marshall finished in last place and was not awarded any overall points. Backstage, in a confessional, Marshall stated that he was in the middle of the pack and that viewers would have to stay tuned to see if he "wins the Stanley Cup."

In the ninth challenge, Sport Stacking, Marshall received a time of 17.11 seconds on his first attempt, a time of 11.16 seconds on his second attempt, and a time of 12.77 seconds on his third attempt. With a personal record time of 11.16 seconds, Marshall finished in last place and was not awarded any overall points. After the first nine challenges, Marshall had received a total of 21 overall points. As a result, he finished in last place and was eliminated alongside Greg, who had finished in 3rd place. Gerry prompted applause for Marshall and Greg because, despite their shared elimination, they were chosen to be finalists out of thousands of people across Canada. Backstage, in a confessional, Marshall stated that he hopes that some of his students try out for Canada's Smartest Person and that he would be happy to be their coach should it ever happen.

Throughout the tenth and final challenge, the Multiple Intelligence Obstacle Course, Marshall cheered Peter and Laura on from the audience. After the challenge ended and Peter was crowned Canada's Smartest Person, Marshall and the other finalists celebrated onstage with their loved ones and Gerry.

### Summary of Results

  WINNER  This contestant won the final challenge and the competition.
  RUNNER-UP  This contestant was the runner-up of the final challenge and the competition.
  ELIMINATED  This contestant was already eliminated from the competition.
     This contestant qualified for the final challenge due to a sufficient total score.
     This contestant was eliminated from the competition due to an insufficient total score.
     Denotes a challenge that is based on linguistic intelligence.
     Denotes a challenge that is based on physical intelligence.
     Denotes a challenge that is based on musical intelligence.
     Denotes a challenge that is based on visual intelligence.
     Denotes a challenge that is based on social intelligence.
     Denotes a challenge that is based on logical intelligence.
## References

1. ↑ https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/our-communities/souwester/Is-he-Canadas-smartest-person-142520965.html
2. ↑ http://www.winnipegjewishreview.com/article\_detail.cfm?id=2238&sec=1
3. ↑ https://www.cbc.ca/mediacentre/press-release/how-smart-are-you-canada-play-along-with-canadas-smartest-person-sunday-mar
4. ↑ http://www.marshcarroll.com/biomtc.html
5. ↑ http://www.marshcarroll.com/mcuw.JPG
6. ↑ https://www.cbc.ca/smartestperson/blog/interview-with-csp-2012-finalist-marshall-carroll
7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8ofUJ\_9e18