Teen with Asperger's to compete in National Geographic Bee

From The Chicago Tribune:

At night, 13-year-old Anton Karpovich curls up with a good atlas.

"Geography gives me a way to get away from the world," said Anton, who has Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism.

On April 9, he didn't want to get away. Anton, an eighth-grader from Walter R. Sundling Middle School in Palatine, won the state qualifier for the National Geographic Bee.

Anton bested 103 other students to get to the final round at the Field Museum.

"I studied very little if at all this year," he said. "Today was just my lucky day, I guess."

In previous years' attempts, it was a different story. On his first try, in fourth grade, he qualified for the state Geography Bee but quit on the day of the competition. He stayed home instead.

"The pressure was so much," he said.

Last year he made it to the state preliminary round.

Before the final round Friday, Anton paced in front of the stage. "I was a little nervous, but I knew I could do it."

The final question: "Rotorua is a famous city known for its thermal pools that attract tourists to what country?"

His competitor answered Turkey. Anton said New Zealand.

Anton received a $100 check, an atlas and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. for the national competition in May. There he'll vie for a $25,000 college scholarship and a trip to the Galapagos Islands.

Anton said a teacher introduced him to geography when he was in fourth grade.

"I just loved the way the maps looked," he said.

Anton also enjoys reading, math, tracking hurricanes and studying the stars. He wants to be a mathematician when he grows up.

He said he'll study harder for the national contest.

"I might dive into a couple more atlases and read a few more books," he said. "Maybe I'll get lucky again."