In a hotel in New Orleans...

The room is deathly quiet. Everyone in it knows exactly what is at stake. The NSA has quietly assembled this group of highly-intelligent linguists, all trained to study and look for hidden words for hours on end. This drama is playing out right now. This no game.

Okay, maybe it is.

No, not that NSA. Try this NSA.

The National Scrabble Association reports that the 2004 National Scrabble Championship is taking place from July 31st to August 5th in New Orleans, LA. Over 800 players compete to become the top two contenders. Over $92,000 in prizes will be awarded this year to players in six divisions, including $25,000 to the winner of the televised best-of-five finals match.