What makes a nerd?

[luiz]

In Brazil at least "nerd" is a very common word, and it is applied to people of all ethnicities.

I really can't see what practical dressing has to do with beign white, since white folks probably developed the most extravagant clothing styles of all, and continue to do so in the present (just look at the stylists).

 

[Ayatollah So]

Here's how I think about "nerd" and other social categories. Suppose you chart the students in a high school on myriads of categories. Where they sit at lunch. What courses they're taking. What sports and clubs they're in. Etc, etc. In your many-dimensional map, I think you'll see a few clusters jump out at you. Students aren't randomly and uniformly distributed along these dimensions, they clump together in certain regions of the map. Some of the biggest clusters have names. One of them is "nerds".

There is no exact cutoff for GPA, or number of hours of sports per week, that makes someone a nerd or not. It's even hard to say the relative importance of the various dimensions. But sometimes you still know it when you see it.

As for whiteness... meh. Not exactly critical to nerdness, but not unrelated either. obligatory link

 

[Lotus49]

What is a nerd? Mary Bucholtz, a linguist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, has been working on the question for the last 12 years

Question answered.

 

[b etor]

to most people i kno, a nerd is someone who is a geek but does not look like it appearance wise. like ME!

 

[Hygro]

Question answered.

hahahahahaha

 

[CaptainF]

God I hate black racists... it's all the white man's fault indeed. You're as bad as the "good ol' boys" on a different side of the coin. Now then, nerds...

I am not a nerd... I defy classification. I used to be a nerd though. I used to be antisocial and all that. I hung out with fellow nerds. It was a racially diverse cast. We had whites, blacks, and mexicans (for some reason, none of the asians EVER wanted to hang out with us...) and they came in a wide variety of proper clothes, strange (ghetto) clothes, and jeans and a t-shirt (me).

There are many different flavors of nerd out there, man. This isn't the 80s anymore.

YES! You win.

I'd say a nerd is someone who has extensive knowledge of one specific (usually, but not necessarily, esoteric) thing.

Social awkwardness may or may not factor in.

 

[Bill3000]

Unoriginal tripe. Al Yankovic did a much better report on this.

 

[Yuri2356]

YES! You win.

I'd say a nerd is someone who has extensive knowledge of one specific (usually, but not necessarily, esoteric) thing.

Social awkwardness may or may not factor in.

I'd always marked 'Geek' as the term for one with highly focussed extensive knowledge, while 'Nerd' is more of a general love of information and thinking.

 

[Bill3000]

I'd always marked 'Geek' as the term for one with highly focussed extensive knowledge, while 'Nerd' is more of a general love of information and thinking.

Well, I've marked it more specific: Nerd is academia, geek is obsession with a particular hobby.

 

[Hygro]

The joke to me is that this very white culture here is quick to refer to a more positive description of nerd or geek, disagreeing with the article. Not that it makes you guys wrong, it's just a funny regardless.

 

[Yuri2356]

Well, I've marked it more specific: Nerd is academia, geek is obsession with a particular hobby.

That a much more direct delivery of my thoughts on the subject.

 

[drachasor]

Probably those who word their statements like a mathematical proof in writing yet completely disregard the actual mathematical rules. Or describe something as logical when actualy based on gut instinct and similar dumbassery.

Well, I think more than nerds do that kind of thing. Most people try to paint themselves as having rational beliefs (even most religion people try to argue their faith is rational -- which is absurd).

To add to perf's great description, people who think displaying extreme skeptical posturings to anything that isn't natural science amounts to being logical

Ahh, those people can be annoying.

-Drachasor

 

[Japanrocks12]

Nerd: to me, a nerdking without the king

but seriously, it's someone who has an amazing breadth of knowledge in one category. Like a beatles nerd, a monty python nerd, and even a south park nerd.

 

[rkade8583]

In case anyone cares, I sent Hygro a message regarding his racism (to my eye) as I feel my opinions are best kept on a PM basis... besides it has little to do with nerdism anyway... more about racism.

BACK TO D&D!!! RAAAWR!!!

 

[Perfection]

The Willy Wonka Candy Company

 

[Donny]

Question answered.

Couldn't agree more

 

[aneeshm]

Well "Nerd" is a western concept. Even if Asians are westernised the concept of "nerd" don't hold as much importance to them as it does to westerners (well at least i don't anyway ). So that would explain why Asian "nerds" do well with Asian girls and not with girls from other ethinicities.

Actually, solid, stable, and intelligent guys (with moderately good social skills, of course) are looked up to in Indic and Sinic societies. Not the stereotypical "nerd" of the West, yes, but people like this usually do end up clubbed with that group in the West.

 

[aneeshm]

(for some reason, none of the asians EVER wanted to hang out with us...)

Nor would I.

Asians usually avoid social losers like the plague.

 

[Kennigit]

I don't think clothing has anything to do w/ nerds. Most nerds I know, such as myself, dress casually w/ t-shirt & shorts or a bit more preppy w/ polos. Those plad pocket-proctetor shirts seem to be more redneck than nerd.

Bill and Yuri have nerds down. Nerds do not lack social skills, often do the best in life, can play sports, etc and are just general academia. Geeks are much more focused towards 1 thing, but many geeks are also nerds. I myself am a band geek, but thats just one element of my nerdiness.

Nerds also tend to enjoy things that might not be super popular but certainly doesn't make them weird. Thigns like Star Trek, Civilization, Chess, etc that are more intellectual but still normal, rather than hours and hours of fantasy roleplay games like geeks.

 

[Masquerouge]

If you posted in this thread, you're probably a nerd