9.18.2010

Embrace Your Inner Geek

I want to share something that I found quite a while ago and enjoy very much. I encourage you to try it out. Its fun and doesn't take too long. Its a geek test at http://www.innergeek.us/geek-test.html. Don't worry, its not a test of knowledge or anything like that. Its just a list of Geeky things people do that you mark off to determine just how much of a geek you are. Some of the things on the list will not surprise you at all, while others are just things you may do an not even notice it.

Post Your Score as a comment!

My score: 32.84133%
My Classification: Total Geek
I don't think I scored too badly. There are a lot of crazy things on that list. That being said, I am still not totally happy with my score. The classifications are listed at the bottom of the geek test: Geekish Tendencies, Geek, Total Geek, Major Geek, Super Geek, Extreme Geek, Geek God, Dysfunctional Geek. I would like to be more in the Geek God category, or at least an Extreme Geek.

Awesomely enough, the Geek test provides a list of topics to blog about, while educating myself and you about different aspects of Geekdom.

I'll start today with the very first question on the test: I have programmed a calculator in math class.
In the 10th grade, Math was my very favorite class. My friend Jacob and I were the only students in the class that could stay awake in out 7:30 am class, and apparently the only two students that understood what numbers are. Anyway, I did really well with math on my own, but decided to purchase a TI-89 calculator to 'spice things up'. Now, the TI-89 calculator is different than most graphing calculators. Most people think that it will just do all the math for you. That isn't really true... I always learned how to do the math without the calculator before I learned how to do it on my 89. I guess the idea that the calculator will do everything for you came from the fact that you can Program it to do ANYTHING you want.

I read the entire manual (another item on the Geek Test list!) and learned how to do absolutely everything. In class, after I learned the concepts, Jacob and I were done with assignments before the 15 minute daily lecture was over, then POW, we'd start up one of several games I had downloaded or programmed on my TI 89. That calculator could run Final Fantasy, Chess (even with awesome AI) and 3D mazes. I made a few battleship games and word games, nothing too fancy.

Code Sample:
Graphic() 
Prgm 
Clrdraw 
FnOff 
Setgraph "Axes","Off" 
RplcPic ts Loop For B,1,4 For E,158,1,-1 
StoPic d,0,1,E,77 
RplcPic d,0,0 RplcPic #({"O1","TS","O2","TS"}[B]),0,E 
If Getkey()=264 
Goto Out 
Endfor 
Endfor 
Endloop 
lbl Out 
Clrdraw 
Setgraph "Axes","On" 
DispHome 
FnOn 
Endprgm
The language I used to program is BASIC. The program I most enjoyed using and writing was one that solved the Quadratic equation. That really sped up my assignments. I had lots of fun with my TI 89, but for obvious reasons it was never allowed on tests. Thank goodness I actually knew the math too :)

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