Study Finds Americans Don't Know Tech Acronyms

Los Angeles Times:
  • 77% of respondents could not identify what SEO means. SEO stands for “Search-Engine Optimization”
  • 27% identified “gigabyte” as an insect commonly found in South America. A gigabyte is a measurement unit for the storage capacity of an electronic device.
  • 42% said they believed a “motherboard” was “the deck of a cruise ship.” A motherboard is usually a circuit board that holds many of the key components of a computer.
  • 23% thought an “MP3” was a “Star Wars” robot. It is actually an audio file.
  • 18% identified “Blu-ray” as a marine animal. It is a disc format typically used to store high-definition videos.
  • 15% said they believed “software” is comfortable clothing. Software is a general term for computer programs.
  • 12% said “USB” is the acronym for a European country. In fact, USB is a type of connector.

It’s hard to tell whether these surveys are at all reliable, but they are nonetheless hilarious.