So you think you're money?
We learned it's bad to pretext, backdate stock options and spread oneself thinly like peanut butter. We keep our Zune away from the flying Wii controls and we're still waiting for Vista. You know what we're talking about, right?
QUESTION 1. Circle which Silicon Valley company has not been identified in the stock options backdating scandal in which companies allegedly misrepresented the date when they issued stock options.
Adobe Systems, Altera, BEA Systems, Electronic Arts, Trident Microsystems, Zoran, Xilinx, KLA-Tencor, Electronics for Imaging, Silicon Image, Atmel, Juniper Networks, Mercury Interactive, Rambus, Power Integrations, Novellus Systems, PMC-Sierra, Redback Networks, Apple Computer, Hewlett-Packard, Verisign, CNet Networks, McAfee, Sanmina-SCI.
QUESTION 2. Greg Reyes is the former chief executive of Brocade Communications facing criminal security fraud charges for allegedly backdating stock option grants. At a court hearing he asked to keep his passport. Why?
A. Investments in Namibia with ex-CEO of Comverse Jacob "Kobi" Alexander. B. Hunting trips in the Amazon with McData execs. C. Real estate development with his father in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico D. Pumpkin-smashing events in Kazakhstan E. Wine tasting in Cuba
QUESTION 3. What kind of car did Tom Perkins drive away in when he resigned and stormed out of Hewlett-Packard's board meeting after directors confronted his friend and fellow board member George "Jay" Keyworth for allegedly leaking information to the press?
A. Aston Martin B. Toyota Prius C. Ford Minivan D. Porsche Carrera E. Mini Cooper
QUESTION 4. HP internal investigations were code-named after a Hawaiian town where former chairwoman Patricia Dunn has a vacation home. Which one?
A. Honolulu B. Lihue C. Kona D. Hilo E. Lahaina
QUESTION 5. In an e-mail exchange former HP senior counsel Kevin Hunsaker learned how investigators tracked down cell phone records by misrepresenting themselves to telephone companies. What was his response?
A. This is terrible. Stop. B. I am impressed by the legal and ethical way you are conducting this investigation. C. I shouldn't have asked. D. Interesting. Can we get e-mail records from doing the same with Internet providers?
QUESTION 6. After announcing that YouTube sold to Google for $1.6 billion, at which Peninsula restaurant did the YouTube founders record a video to thank their users?
A. Taco Bell B. Il Fornaio C. Baja Fresh D. TGI Friday's E. Buck's
QUESTION 7. Why did Larry Ellison renege on an informal pledge to donate $115 million to Harvard for creating a research center on global health?
A. The United Way drive at Oracle this year tapped me out. B. Lost interest when Larry Summers left Harvard's presidency. C. I dropped out of college twice and did fine. Academics should learn to bootstrap themselves. D. Renege? Check's in the mail.
E. Bringing live penguins on stage with me at OracleWorld opened my eyes to the dangers of global warming, corporate use of stunt animals and melting ice caps. My money's going to help the March of the Penguins.
QUESTION 8. What did investment banker Frank Quattrone say after prosecutors agreed to drop their 3-year-old case accusing him of obstructing justice amid several investigations of how his bank doled out IPO shares?
A. Ciao, baby. B. I'll sell my assets, take a vow of poverty and live in a monastery. C. I'll resume my business career. D. I'll form a foundation to help unfairly persecuted business people.
QUESTION 9. What was the Peanut Butter Manifesto?
A. An internal document by a Yahoo senior vice president that criticized Yahoo for spreading its resources too thinly, like peanut butter on a slice of bread.
B. Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz, in his famous blog, announces an improvement to Sun cafeteria food.
C. A manifesto on the wiki movement from the people who run PBWIKI (PB stands for peanut butter).
D. America Online asks holdouts still paying for their AOL e-mail accounts to stop. Would you pay for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich if we gave it away for free? No. That's what we're doing. Stop sending us your money.
QUESTION 10. What size bed did Sergey Brin request for Google's corporate jet? A. Double B. Full C. Queen D. King E. California King
QUESTION 11. Which sector has had 2006's best stock market return? Which one has had the worst?
A. Internet B. Biotech C. Computers D. Software E. Semiconductors F. Disk drives
QUESTION 12. Match the innovation/breakthrough/company with 2006's birthday. IPod, hard drive, Apple Computer, Lockheed Martin Space Systems.
A. 50 B. 50 C. 5 D. 30
QUESTION 13. Which technology journalist lost a bet that Dell would never adopt chips made by Advanced Micro Devices and had to show up at an Intel press conference hosted by CEO Paul Otellini wearing a pink bunny suit?
a. Dean Takahashi, Mercury News b. John Markoff, New York Times c. Michael Kanellos, CNet d. Charlie Demerjian, The Inquirer e. Therese Poletti, Mercury News
QUESTION 14. Who's the father-in-law of Chad Hurley, one of YouTube's co-founders?
A. Rupert Murdoch B. Defense Secretary Robert Gates C. Jim Clark D. Tom Perkins E. John Chambers
This fascinating nugget has yet to be reported in the Mercury News so don't kick yourself for not knowing.
QUESTION 15. Life-size cutouts of company founders made news by traveling the country, arriving in California, only to be rejected by their own company and bought by a competitor for $6,000. Name the founders.
A. Bill Hewlett and David Packard, HP B. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, Apple C. Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft D. Bob Noyce and Gordon Moore, Intel E. Marc Andreessen and Jim Clark, Netscape