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| Stephen Alexander Fitchett | |||
| '''''Nerd''''' has two connotations, neither of which is very flattering. | |||
| The word was first used in ]'s book ''If I Ran the Zoo'', published in ]. Another theory of the word's origin is that it is a version of ], the name of Edgar Bergen's ventriliquist dummy. Yet another theory is that it comes from '']'' where the employees wore pocket protectors with the acronym N.E.R.D. It was adopted in the mid-] to describe a stereotypical intelligent social recluse, one who usually is the butt of others' ]s. | |||
| Today, nerds are often thought of as people who are intelligent, yet socially awkward. The ] ''nerd image'' as seen in the ] and ]s is a young man wearing thick black glasses (preferably broken and taped up with electrical tape), pocket protectors and dress shirts or clothes that are in general too formal for the circumstances in which they are worn. Nerds generally express an above-normal interest in ]s, ] in general, and academic subjects. | |||
| Those labelled as nerds in high school are often ridiculed and bullied by more "popular," or more socially adept ]s. However, Bill Gates quotes: "Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one." | |||
| The second has been co-opted by computing ]. Whereas nerds view themselves as technically competent and socially able, geeks are only technically competent. | |||
| There are some regional differences in the use of the words "nerd" and "geek". It appears that on the North American East coast the word "nerd" is preferred to "geek", and the meaning of the words is switched (see ]'s page on ). | |||
| Some self-proclaimed "nerds" use the term to describe any person who is deeply interested in ], technology and/or ]. | |||
| ] | |||
| ==Examples of the stereotype in the media== | |||
| * Marilyn, '']'' | |||
| * The Brain, '']'' | |||
| * Velma, '']'' | |||
| * P.B., '']'' | |||
| * Daria, '']'', '']'' | |||
| * Willow, '']'' (less so toward the end of the series) | |||
| * Willy DeWitt, '']'' | |||
| * Gadget, '']'' | |||
| * Dexter, '']'' | |||
| * Egon, '']'' | |||
| * Sailor Mercury, '']'' | |||
| * Mr. Spock, '']'' (Fascinating.) | |||
| * Lucca, '']'' | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| * "]" | |||
| * ] | |||
| * ] | |||
| ---- | |||
| ==Alternative meaning== | |||
| '''Nerds''' are small bits of ] sold in small boxes. | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
Revision as of 02:32, 1 June 2004
Stephen Alexander Fitchett