How Well Do You Know Classic Science Fiction?

Daniel Lefferts Nov 21, 2013

In honor of the 50th anniversary of Aldous Huxley’s passing, we’re commemorating his novel “Brave New World,” along with nine other landmarks of speculative fiction, with this classic science fiction quiz. Test your knowledge with the questions below, then click the link at the bottom of the page to see the answers and find out whether your score means you’re an expert or if you need to study up.

1. The War of the Worlds

In H.G. Wells’ classic novel, “The War of the Worlds,” Earth is invaded by inhabitants of which planet?
(a) Mercury
(b) Jupiter
(c) Mars
(d) Venus
(e) Saturn
2. Stranger in a Strange Land

Author Robert A. Heinlein coined which widely-used piece of sci-fi slang in “Stranger in a Strange Land”?
(a) decker
(b) corpsicle
(c) grok
(d) droid
3. Dune (40th Anniversary Edition)

In Frank Herbert’s Hugo Award-winning novel, “Dune,” the desert planet Arrakis is the only source of which valuable “spice”?
(a) nutmeg
(b) star anise
(c) paprika
(d) indigo soil
(e) melange
4. The Left Hand of Darkness

In author Ursula K. Le Guin’s novel, “The Left Hand of Darkness,” how often do the sexless, androgynous humans on the planet Hain experience sexual urges?
(a) once a month
(b) once a week
(c) once a day
(d) once a year
5. Brave New World

Aldous Huxley’s futuristic story, “Brave New World,” takes place in 2450 A.F. “A.F.” stands for:
(a) Avant Fall
(b) After Flood
(c) After Ford
(d) After Food
(e) After Fire
6. Childhood’s End

In which way do the Overlords of Arthur C. Clarke’s “Childhood’s End” NOT interfere with human affairs?
(a) ending the space race
(b) outlawing bullfighting in Spain
(c) intervening with apartheid in South Africa
(d) causing the extinction of all insect species
7. The Time Machine

When the protagonist of “The Time Machine” by H.G. Wells travels forward to 802,701 A.D., he encounters ape-like creatures who live underground and only come out at night-time, called:
(a) Morlocks
(b) Orangulas
(c) Chimpires
(d) Homonitwits
(e) Lilliputians
8. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

In the future of Philip K. Dick’s novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?”, possessing which of these grants you the highest status?
(a) android animals
(b) live animals
(c) a feed
(d) empathy
9. The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

In the comic sci-fi classic “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams, why do the Vogons want to destroy Earth?
(a) Earth is their biggest intergalactic competitor.
(b) Earth’s atmosphere is poisonous to the Vogons.
(c) They want to move into Earth’s spot in the solar system.
(d) They want to create a “hyperspace bypass” and Earth is in the way.
(e) They think it’s ugly.
10. The Sirens of Titan

In author Kurt Vonnegut’s “The Sirens of Titan,” Malachi Constant causes his own downfall by claiming that he obtained success through:
(a) divine favor
(b) Pokémon
(c) the chrono-synclastic infundibulum
(d) robots
Got your answers? Click here to find out how you did.