Dohogne knows his places; whiz kid heads to regionals

Can you name the capital of every state? Do you know what countries border Germany? What is the chief export of Albania?

Most of us are familiar with spelling bees, but the National Geographic Bee is designed to test students' knowledge of the world's places.

St. Mary Cathedral School sixth-grader Jonathan Dohogne recently won his school's bee, his natural tendency toward curiosity paying off.

Jonathan told the Southeast Missourian he had been studying geography for many years.

"My brother and my sisters were always so smart, and I wanted to be able to be in their conversations, so I just started studying maps," he said.

Jonathan has big plans for his future, saying he used to want to play professional baseball, but decided instead to contribute to society by doing something scientific. He jokes with his parents about someday winning a Nobel Prize.

"I am actually pretty good at things besides geography, like math, so when I grow up I want to be either an astrophysicist, nuclear physicist or geographical physicist -- if that's what they're called," he said.

He said he "winged" the school bee, but is stepping up his game in preparation for state-level competition, slated for April 1.

Regardless of how he places, he will be a good representative for the region.

Good luck, Jonathan!