Pulse: Chatter: Five Questions for: David Walter

How did you prepare for the competition?
I had a couple of almanacs — I was more worried about breadth than depth. I focused on lots of lists, like capitals, composers and presidents.

No issues of Philadelphia?
I felt I was pretty good with all the local stuff, so no.

Alex Trebek. Dish.
He really is as smart as he sounds. When there was a question on a ruling, he would give his opinion during commercial breaks.

How much of your $75,000 are the folks at Princeton, where you’ll be heading this fall, going to get their hands on?
A very high percentage.

Final question: Who would win in a fight — a bear or a shark?
A shark. Sharks have really big teeth and go for the jugular.