The 2011 InfoWorld geek IQ test

We’re back again for our annual survey of your certifiable geek cred, so dust off your pocket protector, suck face with your closest Ewok doll, and dig into your Bag of Holding to bring forth the answers to our nerdiest set of 20 questions yet. Answer enough correctly, and you may don the geek sherpa guru label, to guide the unwashed to geek heaven. Answer too many wrong, and find your inner geek flatlining.

Give yourself 5 points for every right answer.

1. Who came up with the term “big-bang theory?”

a.     Georges Lemaitre

b.     Fred Hoyle

c.     Albert Einstein

d.     Chuck Lorre

Duh, winning! The answer is (b) Fred Hoyle. Not Chuck Lorre, though the show is cool.

2. Who developed ARCNET and in what year?

a.     John McCain, 1936

b.     John Backus, 1975

c.     John Murphy, 1976

d.     John Morrison, 1985

The correct answer is (c) John Murphy, 1976. The fact that you can still find ARCNET in some dingy gnome-hole computer rooms is what amazes me (more children left behind).

3. What’s the default IPsec server for the Debian Linux distro?

a.     Pringles

b.     MyIpsecServer

c.     Rodent

d.     Racoon

The correct answer is (d) Racoon. Apparently, that’s spelled correctly. And anyone making the switch to Pringles should beware the oily IP packet discharge.

4. Which Android OS is the Kindle Fire slated to run?

a.     “Gingerbread”

b.     “Ice Cream Sandwich”

c.     “Cupcake”

d.     “Donut”

Geeks really should know the answer is (a) “Gingerbread”; and, yes, I’m getting one for Christmas, though my gut tells me to wait for the “Donut” refresh — sticky fingers and a tablet good enough to eat!

5. Who was the last-minute pilot replacement on Apollo 13?

a.     Ken Mattingly

b.     Jim Lovell

c.     John Swigert

d.     Don Mattingly

Hey, rockets are geeky, and if you picked Don Mattingly hit yourself in the head with a bat. You’re too much jock to stuff in a locker. The answer, of course, is (c) John Swigert.

6. What’s the primary function of the Domain Controller in a Windows Server 2008 network?

a.     Validate users to the network and provide the AD object catalog of Active Directory

b.     Validate users to the network and provide branch DC synchronization

c.     Validate users to the network and provide AD sync with Exchange 2007

d.     Validate users to the network and provide AD forest ranger services

If you picked (d), just click off this Web page and head over to FHM. Better yet, just take a hike. There’s no room for hacky sack in this server closet. The answer is (a) Validate users to the network and provide the AD object catalog of Active Directory.

7. Which one of these is not an acronym associated with cloud computing?

a.     PaaS

b.     SaaS

c.     IaaS

d.     GraaS

Not yet — but if the industry wanted IT to really start smoking its cloud promises, it would immediately roll out the (d) GraaS.

8. In the TV series “Heroes,” Hiro flashes forward to a catastrophic explosion in New York on what date?

a.     Jan. 14, 1966

b.     Oct. 31, 2005

c.     Feb. 14, 2007

d.     Nov. 8, 2006

If you got that one correct — (d) Nov. 8, 2006 — may you soon flash forward to your first date.

9. What does “CIDR” stand for and what is another name for it?

a.     “CIDR” stands for “Classless Inter-Domain Routing” and is sometimes known as “supernetting.”

b.     “CIDR” stands for “Class-based Internet Daemon Routing” and is sometimes known as “sub-route networking.”

c.     “CIDR” stands for “Completely Illegal Digital Recordings” and is sometimes known as “royally pissing off Sony execs.”

d.     “CIDR” stands for “Competence In Department heads is Rare” and is sometimes known as “take this job and shove it.”

The correct answer is (a) “CIDR” stands for “Classless Inter-Domain Routing,” and is sometimes known as “supernetting.”

10. Which company originally sold Dungeons & Dragons, and which company sells it now?

a.     Hasbro, Sony Entertainment

b.     TSR, Wizards of the Coast

c.     Parker Brothers, TSR

d.     TSR, Parker Brothers

If you’re over 40 and still answered this question correctly, I’m impressed. And a little sad. It’s (b) TSR, Wizards of the Coast.

11. What was the code name for Intel’s first Core i5 chip, a 45nm quard-core processor released in September 2009?

a.     Lynnfield

b.     Clarksdale

c.     Scottsdale

d.     Arrandale

Sorry, I have to do at least one of these every quiz or the editors get cranky. Correct answer: (a) Lynnfield. [Ed: Motherboard itch successfully scratched.]

12. What was the first code name for Apple’s OS X?

a.     Lynx

b.     Cougar

c.     Cheetah

d.     Puddy Tat

Rumor has it Mac OS X Puddy Tat’s implementation of Siri will be written in Lisp. But here, the answer is, of course, (c) Cheetah.

13. Associated with DNS, what is the main purpose of SRV records?

a.     SRV records provide IP routing services.

b.     SRV provides service, record, and virtualized network information to DNS requests.

c.     SRV records are used in locating hosts that provide certain network services.

d.     The ability to forget about friggin’ DNS and take a Seriously Recreational Vacation.

Don’t we all need a vacation just a little more than a functioning DNS server? Answer: (c) SRV records are used in locating hosts that provide certain network services.

14. What’s Emoji?

a.     Windows 7’s Japanese font

b.     RIM’s last gasp in portable computing

c.     Ichiro Suzuki’s dog

d.     Japanese emoticons

Yes, the iPhone has (d) Japanese emoticons and the Windows Phone still doesn’t. Then again, what’s wrong with a good, old-fashioned ☺?

15. Related to quantum mechanics, what is the term for the observation that some physical quantities can be changed only by discrete amounts, or quanta?

a.     Multiples of Planck’s constant

b.     Divisibles of Planck’s constant

c.     Integers of Planck’s constant

d.     Sex lives of Sheldon Cooper and Leslie Winkle

Yeah, I watch that show, so what?! Answer: (a) Multiples of Planck’s constant.

16. Jscript is…

a.     Another term for JavaScript

b.     Junior BASH scripting

c.     Microsoft’s name for its JavaScript-like scripting language

d.     J.Lo’s handwriting

J.Lo’s curvy bracket syntax keeps my compiler humming, but the correct answer is (c) Microsoft’s name for its JavaScript-like scripting language.

17. What’s the worst thing you can hear your IT consultant say while he’s working on one of your servers?

a.     “There’s a hitch with Patch Tuesday. I’ll need to remediate.”

b.     “Hmm … interesting.”

c.     “RAM failure — looks like the motherboard is going.”

d.     “Can I use your bathroom? I had dodgy Mexican food for lunch, and I think there’s an epic evacuation coming.”

When IT pros think something’s (b) “Hmm … interesting,” it means there’s a problem and they have no clue what it is. Hope you’re not paying the guy by the hour. The epic evacuation is a close second, though.

18. When Kelsey Grammer appeared on “Star Trek NG,” what was his character’s name and which ship did he captain?

a.     Captain William Larkin, USS Andromeda

b.     Captain Morgan Bateson, USS Bozeman

c.     Captain Jonathan Archer, USS Enterprise 1

d.     Captain Han Solo, USS Millennium Falcon

If you got this right — (b) Captain Morgan Bateson, USS Bozeman — without the Internet, you should get a trophy. And a hooker.

19. Banyan VINES was a ____ and the acronym stood for _____.

a.     Directory Service, Validated Information for Network Extensible Services

b.     Secure DNS server, Virtual Internet Name and Encryption Service

c.     Star Wars STD medication, Venereal Immunization for Nobody but the Emperor’s Sex life

d.     Network operating system, Virtual Integrated Network Services

The correct answer is (d) Network operating system, Virtual Integrated NEtwork Services. You might also say “epic fail” and “Very Interesting Nerdware does not Equal Sales.” But is the history of network operating systems nearly as interesting as the emperor catching a case of clone clap from an Ewok? Or, dark lord forbid, Jabba the Hutt?

20. Who is most often referred to as the “father of science fiction”?

a.     Jules Verne

b.     Isaac Asimov

c.     Gene Roddenberry

d.     Glenn Beck

Glenn Beck’s “The Overton Window” may be the first book of political science “faction,” but let’s hope that genre finds its way on a journey to the center of the earth. The right answer is: (a) Jules Verne.

Add up your points, and find out how you measure up:

Score:

100: Geek sherpa guru: Guide the unwashed to geek heaven.

90: Geek acolyte: You can wear Sheldon Cooper’s T-shirts.

80: Geek initiate: Read more InfoWorld, date fewer women/men.

70: Geek dilettante: Time to commit.

60: Marketing executive: You’re probably reading the wrong pub.

50: Frat boy or cheerleader: An iPad doth not a geek make.

More InfoWorld quizzes

• The 2010 InfoWorld Geek IQ Test
• IT personality type quiz
• The InfoWorld mobile tech IQ test
• Programming IQ test: Round 2
• Apple IQ test
• Linux IQ test: Round 1
• Open source IQ test
• Windows admin IQ test
• Programming IQ test: Round 1
• The 2008 InfoWorld Geek IQ Test

This article, “The 2011 InfoWorld geek IQ test,” was originally published at InfoWorld.com. Follow the latest developments in business technology news and get a digest of the key stories each day in the InfoWorld Daily newsletter. For the latest business technology news, follow InfoWorld on Twitter.