Geeks Blog

Where Geeks Rule

Does “Geek” or “Nerd” Offend?

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sheldonHave you heard of the latest hullaballoo in geekdom? Or maybe I should say nerdom. I just read this post over at Forever Geek, talking about how a professor is proposing to ban the words “geek” and “nerd.” Why? He says that their use merely helps in propagating the negative connotations that have always been associated with them. He says this despite the fact that more and more people are starting to get into the idea of “cool geeks” or “cool nerds.”

David Anderegg, professor of psychology from Bennington College, says that these terms are derogatory and liken them to racial slurs. His opinion is that even if we try to make these terms cool, it only highlights the fact that they are of a negative nature.

Now I am no professor, but my take on this is that there is NO NEED to ban “geek” or “nerd.” Turn your television on and what do you see? Music geeks dancing and singing on Glee. We have geeks – and nerds as well – making us laugh till we bust our seams on The Big Bang Theory. Even shows which are not mainly focused on geeks and nerds have at least one character that fits the description. Think Criminal Minds. I love Spencer Reid, don’t you? Penelope Garcia?

If our society is slowly – or maybe not even that slowly – opening itself to the idea of cool and fun geeks and nerds, why should be even consider banning the words? Do they offend you? I certainly am not offended!

FREE Geeky Activities That Can Make You Feel Better

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wolfram_1I had a bad day. No, I am having a bad week. Let me correct that again, I have had a bad month…maybe the first half of the year, even. Oh well, thank goodness I have some spare time and I can think of FREE things that can make me feel better. Maybe you can use them too…

Mooch a book.
This weekend, why don’t you hole yourself up in your bedroom? Borrow a good book from one of your friends. Better yet, get a free e-book somewhere and use your e-book reader (I use my PSP). You don’t even have to get dressed for the day. Just stay in and immerse yourself in a wonderful fantasy novel!

Oh, and check out this site called BookMooch. You can give and get books all you want!

Play a game.
You can do this alone or with friends. With the mood I am in, I am probably better off playing Guitar Hero by myself. Otherwise, I might end up hitting someone with my guitar (and no, I cannot afford to buy a new one). Anyway, this is a perfect blues chases. Get out your favorite video game and forget the world.

Play around with Wolfram Alpha.
Wolfram Alpha, in case you haven’t heard (shame on you!), is the newest in search engine technology. Heck, its creators do not even call it a search engine. It’s a computational something…yeah, I need to play with it a little more.

Got Tattoo?

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geek2_1490285cTattoos used to be taboo. Actually, even today, there are certain people and sectors which do not really look kindly upon the tattooed person. A vestige of negativity still remains when it comes to tattoos. You have to admit, tattoos can make a person look a little more dangerous, a little more reckless than the average. Still, tattoos are more acceptable these days than they were, say, 10 years ago.

Just as the perception of people regarding tattoos has changed over the years, the kinds of tattoos that people get have also evolved. It used to be that we saw flowers, names of loved ones, gang signs, tongues sticking out, naked women, etc. all the time. Now, we have a new “breed” of tattoos – geeky ones!

The trend is for whiz kids to lift “cool” symbols off their textbooks and diagrams and bring them to life by using them as images in tattoos. Take a look at that picture above, courtesy of The Telegraph. It’s the widely known symbol for the USB, tattooed on the arm of some guy. And the USB symbol is not the only tattoo that you would see these days! Don’t be surprised if you see guys (and gals) wearing tattoos of the equation for Pi, binary codes (probably representing something significant to the wearer), and even the Apple logo.

I think it’s brilliant, and I love the idea! I am not tattooed myself but if I were to get one, I think that I should get a geek tatt. What symbol would YOU choose?