Final answer:
Option (C), The Cisco-based data center technology discussed is the Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI), and the central component that manages the spine and leaf nodes to implement dynamic network policies is the APIC (Application Policy Infrastructure Controller).
Step-by-step explanation:
The Cisco-based data center technology that uses switches categorized as spine and leaf nodes, which dynamically implement network application policies in response to application-level requirements, is known as the Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI). The correct answer to the question is c) APIC, which stands for Application Policy Infrastructure Controller.
APIC is the central component of Cisco ACI, serving as the unified point of automation and management for the ACI fabric, policy programming, and health monitoring. APIC uses a declarative model, where the administrator defines the desired state of the system, and APIC implements the configuration on the network elements to comply with that state.
In the Cisco ACI architecture, the spine and leaf nodes work together to ensure high-speed connectivity and policy-based governance of network traffic, with APIC managing the entire infrastructure as a single entity.