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For other uses, see Nerd (disambiguation).

Nerd is a term often bearing a derogatory connotation or stereotype, that refers to a person who passionately pursues intellectual activities, esoteric knowledge, or other obscure interests that are age inappropriate rather than engaging in more social or popular activities. A stereotype (from Greek: stereo + týpos = "solid impression" is a generalized perception of first impressions behaviors presumed by a group An intellectual (from the adjective meaning "involving thought and reason" is a person who tries to use his or her Intelligence and analytical thinking, Social relation can refer to a multitude of Social interactions regulated by Social norms between two or more people with each having a Social position Therefore, a nerd is often excluded from physical activity and considered a loner by peers. For the Marvel Comics series see Loners. For the CBS television series see The Loner.

Contents

Etymology

The first documented appearance of the word "nerd" is as the name of a creature in Dr. Seuss's book If I Ran the Zoo (1950), in which the narrator Gerald McGrew claims that he would collect "a Nerkle, a Nerd, and a Seersucker too" for his imaginary zoo. Theodor Seuss Geisel (ˈsɔɪs ˈɡaɪzəl March 2 1904 – September 24 1991 was an American Writer and Cartoonist, better known by his pen name If I Ran the Zoo is a children's book written by Dr Seuss in 1950. Year 1950 ( MCML) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. [1][2] The slang meaning of the term dates back to 1951, when Newsweek magazine reported on its popular use in Detroit, Michigan. Slang is the use of highly informal Words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's Dialect or Language. Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January Newsweek is an American weekly Newsmagazine published in New York City. [3] By the early 1960s, usage of the term had spread throughout the United States and even as far as Scotland. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 [4][5] Throughout this first decade, the definition—a dull person—remained constant and was, at the time, a synonym for "square" or "drip. Square used as slang may mean many things when referring to a person or it may refer to a Cigarette. " It was only later, in the 1970s, that the word took on connotations of bookishness and social ineptitude. Social Skills are a group of skills which people need to interact and communicate with others

An alternate spelling, as nurd, also began to appear in the mid-1960s or early 70s. [6] Author Philip K. Dick claims to have coined this spelling in 1973, but its first recorded use appeared in a 1965 student publication at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Philip Kindred Dick (December 16 – March 2) was an American Science fiction Novelist and Short story Writer. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, or RPI, is a Nonsectarian private Research University located in Troy, New York [7][8] Oral tradition there holds that the word is derived from "knurd" ("drunk" spelled backwards), which was used to describe people who studied rather than partied. Oral tradition, oral culture and oral lore is a way for a society to transmit history, literature, law and other Knowledges Drunkenness or inebriation is the state of being intoxicated by consumption of Alcoholic beverages to a degree that mental and physical faculties are noticeably On the other hand, the variant "gnurd" was in wide use at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology throughout the first half of the 1970s.

Other theories of the word's origin suggest that it may derive from Mortimer Snerd, Edgar Bergen's ventriloquist dummy, or the Northern Electric Research and Development labs in Ontario (now Nortel). Nortel Networks Corporation () formerly known as Northern Telecom Limited and sometimes known simply as Nortel, is a multinational Telecommunications Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Nortel Networks Corporation () formerly known as Northern Telecom Limited and sometimes known simply as Nortel, is a multinational Telecommunications The Online Etymology Dictionary speculates that the word is an alteration of the 1940s term nert (meaning "stupid or crazy person"), which is itself an alteration of "nut. The Online Etymology Dictionary is a Dictionary that describes the origins of English language words "[9]

The term was popularized in the 1970s by its heavy use in the sitcom Happy Days. This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970. Happy Days is an American Television sitcom that originally aired from 1974 to 1984 on ABC.

Characteristics

The stereotypical nerd is intelligent but socially and physically awkward. In film and television depictions, nerds are disproportionately white males with glasses, braces, acne and pants highly lift up. In Sociology, a white male is a male member of the White ethnic group which includes people of European descent Glasses, also called eyeglasses or spectacles, are frames bearing lenses worn in front of the Eyes normally for vision correction, Dental braces (also known as orthodontic braces) are a device used in Orthodontics to align teeth and their position with regard to a person's bite Acne vulgaris (commonly called acne) is a Skin disease caused by changes in the Pilosebaceous units (skin structures consisting of a Hair follicle [10][11] It has been suggested by some, such as linguist Mary Bucholtz, that being a nerd may be a state of being "hyperwhite" and rejecting African-American culture and slang that "cool" white children use. African American culture in the United States refers to the cultural contributions of African ethnic groups to the culture of the United States either as part of or distinct from African American Vernacular English ( AAVE) – also called African American English; less precisely Black English, Black Vernacular, [12] However, after the introduction of the Steve Urkel character on the television series Family Matters, nerds have been seen in all races and colors as well as more recently being a frequent young Asian male stereotype in North America. Steven Quincy Urkel (born July 25, 1976) better known as Steve Urkel (portrayed by Jaleel White) is a fictional character on the sitcom Family Matters is an American sitcom about a Middle-class family living in Chicago.

They typically appear either to lack confidence or to be indifferent or oblivious to the negative perceptions held of them by others, with the result that they become frequent objects of scorn, ridicule, bullying, and social isolation. Bullying is the act of intentionally causing harm to others through verbal Harassment, physical Assault, or other more subtle methods of Coercion Social isolation can contribute toward many emotional behavioural and physical disorders including anxiety panic attacks eating disorders addictions substance abuse violent behaviour Some nerds show a pronounced interest in subjects which others tend to find dull or complex and difficult to comprehend, or overly mature for their age, especially topics related to science, disambiguation, mathematics and technology. Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding Mathematics is the body of Knowledge and Academic discipline that studies such concepts as Quantity, Structure, Space and Technology is a broad concept that deals with a Species ' usage and knowledge of Tools and Crafts and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt On the opposite end of the spectrum, nerds may show an interest in activities that are viewed by their peers as immature for their age, such as trading cards, comic books, or role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons and other things relating to fantasy and science fiction. A role-playing game ( RPG; often roleplaying game) is a Game in which the participants assume the roles of Fictional characters. Dungeons & Dragons (abbreviated as D&D or DnD) is a Fantasy Role-playing game (RPG originally designed by Fantasy is a Genre that uses magic and other Supernatural forms as a primary element of plot, theme, and/or setting They are also stereotyped for being obsessed with Star Trek, Star Wars, and other science fiction shows or movies. Nerds are often portrayed as unfit and either obese or very thin. Nerds are also sometimes portrayed as having symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder, such as by showing an extreme devotion to following rules. Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD is a Chronic Anxiety disorder most commonly characterized by obsessive Distressing Intrusive thoughts

Stereotypical nerd qualities have evolved in recent years, from awkwardness and social ostracism to a more widespread acceptance and sometimes even celebration of their abilities. This is largely attributable to the rise of the computer industry, which has allowed many "nerdy" people (most notably Bill Gates) to accumulate large fortunes and other measures of social prestige. A computer is a Machine that manipulates data according to a list of instructions. If you would like to experiment with Wikipedia please copy Some measure of nerdiness is widely considered desirable, because it suggests a person who is intelligent, respectful, interesting, and able to earn a large salary. This evolution has dovetailed with waning emphasis on the social awkwardness of nerds, with more attention placed on their intelligence and academic enthusiasm.

Nerds and Asperger syndrome

Many traits associated with the nerd stereotype—an unusual penchant for accumulating highly specialized or technical knowledge, impaired social ability, or occasionally poor motor coordination—are characteristics of Asperger syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. Gross motor coordination addresses the Gross motor skills walking running climbing jumping crawling lifting one's head sitting up etc Asperger syndrome (also called Asperger's syndrome, Asperger's disorder, Asperger's or AS) is the Autism spectrum disorder (ASD The autism spectrum, also called autism spectrum disorders (ASD or autism spectrum conditions (ASC with the word autistic sometimes replacing autism The existence of the nerd concept in the popular consciousness may be attributed to covariance between certain behavioral and cognitive predispositions, which at the extreme results in forms of autism. In Probability theory and Statistics, covariance is a measure of how much two variables change together (the Variance is a special case of the covariance Language development. The terminology Studies using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ), a measure of autistic tendencies, find that occupations commonly linked to the nerd stereotype are associated with elevated AQ, with the highest average AQ seen among computer scientists, mathematicians and physicists. The Autism Spectrum Quotient or AQ is a questionnaire published in 2001 by Simon Baron-Cohen and his colleagues at the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge, UK [13] Other studies have found associations between heightened AQ and prenatal testosterone exposure as well as genetic factors, suggesting a distinct genetic and developmental basis for traits associated with the nerd stereotype. Pregnancy ( Latin graviditas) is the carrying of one or more offspring known as a Fetus or Embryo, inside the Uterus of a Female Testosterone is a Steroid hormone from the Androgen group In mammals testosterone is primarily secreted in the testes of males and the Ovaries [14][15]

Nerd pride

In the 1984 film Revenge of the Nerds, starring Robert Carradine and Anthony Edwards, Carradine in particular worked to embody the nerd stereotype and, in doing so, helped create a definitive image. Revenge of the Nerds is a 1984 American comedy film starring Robert Carradine and Anthony Edwards, with Curtis Armstrong Robert Reed Carradine (born March 24, 1954) is an American Actor. This article is about the American actor For the British academic see A [16] Additionally, the storyline presaged, and may have helped inspire, the "nerd pride" that emerged in the 1990s. American Splendor regular Toby Radloff claims this was the movie that inspired him to become "The Genuine Nerd from Cleveland, Ohio. American Splendor is a series of Autobiographical Comic books and Graphic novels written by Harvey Pekar and drawn by a variety of Toby Radloff (born 12 December, 1957) is a former file clerk (he's presently a courier who has worked at the Cleveland is a City in the US state of Ohio and the County seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state "[17] In the American Splendor film, Toby's friend, American Splendor author Harvey Pekar, was less receptive to the movie, believing it to be hopelessly idealistic. Harvey Lawrence Pekar (born October 8 1939 in Cleveland Ohio; ˈpiːkɑr is an American underground comic book writer best known for his Many seem to share Radloff's view, as "nerd pride" has become more widespread in the years since. MIT professor Gerald Sussman, for example, seeks to instill pride in nerds:

“ My idea is to present an image to children that it is good to be intellectual, and not to care about the peer pressures to be anti-intellectual. Gerald Jay Sussman is the Panasonic Professor of Electrical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT I want every child to turn into a nerd - where that means someone who prefers studying and learning to competing for social dominance, which can unfortunately cause the downward spiral into social rejection.
— Gerald Sussman, quoted by Katie Hafner, The New York Times, 29 August 1993
 ”

The popular computer-news website Slashdot uses the tagline "News for nerds. Events 708 - Copper coins are minted in Japan for the first time (Traditional Japanese date: August 10, 708) Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) Slashdot, often abbreviated as /, is a technology-related news Website owned by SourceForge Inc A tagline is a variant of a branding slogan typically used in Marketing materials and Advertising. Stuff that matters. " The Charles J. Sykes quote "Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one" has been popularized on the Internet and incorrectly attributed to Bill Gates. If you would like to experiment with Wikipedia please copy [18] In Spain, Nerd Pride Day has been observed on May 25 since 2006. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Nerd Pride Day, or Geek Pride Day, is an initiative which claims the right of every person to be a Nerd or a Geek. Events 1085 - Alfonso VI of Castile takes Toledo Spain back from the Moors.

An episode from the animated series Freakazoid, titled "Nerdator", includes the use of nerds to power the mind of a Predator-like enemy, who delivers a memorable monologue on the importance of nerds:

“ . Freakazoid! is an American Animated television series, produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros . . what they lack in physical strength they make up in brain power. Who writes all the best selling books? Nerds. Who directs the top grossing Hollywood movies? Nerds. Who creates the highly advanced technology that only they can understand? . . . Nerds. And who are the people who run for the high office of the Presidency? No one but nerds. ”

The Danish reality TV show FC Zulu, known in the internationally franchised format as FC Nerds, established a format wherein a team of nerds, after two or three months of training, competes with a professional soccer team. FC Zulu is a Danish television program on TV 2 Zulu. It tells the story about 16 nerds who had never touched a football before trained in 2004 FC Nerds is a Reality television sports franchise developed by Nordisk Film. Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered

Nerdcore hip hop is a genre of hip hop music that has risen in popularity over the last few years, often expressing nerd themes with pride and humor. Nerdcore is a subgenre of Hip hop music characterized by themes and subject matter considered to be of general interest to Nerds though it can appeal to Hip hop music, also referred to as rap music, is a Music genre typically consisting of a rhythmic vocal style called rap which is accompanied with Notable artists include mc chris, MC Plus+, MC Hawking, MC Lars, and MC Frontalot. Chris Ward IV (born September 2 1975 otherwise known as mc chris, is a rapper, Voice actor, writer and Improvisational comedian born in Ken Leavitt-Lawrence, known as MC Hawking, is a Nerdcore hip hop artist who parodies Gangster rap and theoretical Physicist Andrew Robert Nielsen (born October 6 1982) is an American rapper, known by his Stage name MC Lars. Damian Hess (born December 3 1973) known by Stage name MC Frontalot, is a San Francisco Hip hop musician and self-proclaimed The term nerdcore has seen wider application to refer to webcomics (most notably Penny Arcade, User Friendly, PvP, and Megatokyo) and other media that express nerd themes without inhibition. Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are Comics Published on a Website, often exclusively providing easy access to an Penny Arcade is a Webcomic written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. User Friendly is a daily Webcomic about the staff of a small fictional Internet service provider, Columbia Internet PvP, also known as Player vs Player, is a Webcomic, written and drawn by Scott Kurtz, with around 100000 unique visitors per day Megatokyo is an English-language Webcomic created by Fred Gallagher and Rodney Caston, debuting on August 14 2000 Gallagher's style Although the idea of nerds is popular, those adapting the characteristics of nerds are not actually nerds by definition. One cannot be an authentic nerd by imitation alone; a nerd is an outsider and someone who is unable to follow trends. Popular culture is borrowing the concept and image of nerds in order to stand out as individuals. [19]

See also

References

  1. ^ American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition, p. This show has inspired a large number of people to create reviews of classic video games In British Slang an anorak is a person typically a man who has unfathomable interest in arcane detailed information regarded as boring by the rest of the population The Benchwarmers is a 2006 comedy Film that was released on April 7, 2006. In the Slang of the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, boffins are scientists, Engineers Fear of Girls is a series of short mockumentaries created by Dangerously Adorable Productions and written and directed by Ryan Wood The word geek is a Slang term noting individuals as "a peculiar or otherwise odd person especially one who is perceived to be overly obsessed with one or more things Nerd Pride Day, or Geek Pride Day, is an initiative which claims the right of every person to be a Nerd or a Geek. Revenge of the Nerds is a 1984 American comedy film starring Robert Carradine and Anthony Edwards, with Curtis Armstrong Events The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name " White & Nerdy' " is the second single from "Weird Al" Yankovic 's album Straight Outta Lynwood, which was released on September Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic (ˈjæŋkəvɪk born October 23 1959 is a Grammy Award winning American singer Musician, actor satirist 1212, Houghton Mifflin Co. , Boston - New York - London, 1992
  2. ^ Geisel, Theodor Seuss, If I Ran the Zoo, p. Theodor Seuss Geisel (ˈsɔɪs ˈɡaɪzəl March 2 1904 – September 24 1991 was an American Writer and Cartoonist, better known by his pen name If I Ran the Zoo is a children's book written by Dr Seuss in 1950. 47, Random House Books for Young Readers, New York, 1950
  3. ^ Newsweek (1951-10-8), p. Newsweek is an American weekly Newsmagazine published in New York City. 16
  4. ^ Gregory J. Marsh in Special Collections at the Swarthmore College library as reported in Humanist Discussion Group (1990-6-28) Vol. Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1500 students 4, No. 0235.
  5. ^ Glasgow, Scotland, Sunday Mail (1957-2-10)
  6. ^ Current Slang: A Quarterly Glossary of Slang Expressions Currently In Use (1971), Vol. V, No. 4, Spring 1971, p. 17
  7. ^ Personal Correspondence (1973-9-4) reported on the web
  8. ^ RPI Bachelor (1965), V14 #1
  9. ^ The Online Etymology Dictionary. "Nerd. " [1]
  10. ^ Lori Kendall. "OH NO! I'M A NERD!": Hegemonic Masculinity on an Online Forum. Gender Society. 14:256. (2000)
  11. ^ Ron Eglash. Race, Sex, and Nerds. Social Text. 20: 49 (2002)
  12. ^ Benjamin Nugent (July 29, 2007). Who’s a Nerd, Anyway?. New York Times Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-07-28. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1540 - Thomas Cromwell is executed at the order of Henry VIII of England on charges of Treason.
  13. ^ S. Baron-Cohen, S. Wheelwright, R. Skinner, J. Martin and E. Clubley, The Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) : Evidence from Asperger Syndrome/High Functioning Autism, Males and Females, Scientists and Mathematicians, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 31, 5-17 (2001)
  14. ^ Rebecca Knickmeyer, Simon Baron-Cohen, Briony A. Fane, Sally Wheelwright, Greta A. Mathews, Gerard S. Conway, Charles G. D. Brook and Melissa Hines. Androgens and autistic traits: A study of individuals with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Hormones and Behavior, 50, 148-153 (2006)
  15. ^ Francesca Happe, Patrick Bolton, Lee M. Butcher, et al. Genetic heterogeneity between the three components of the autism spectrum: a twin study. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 45:691 (2006)
  16. ^ Singer, Jon (2005-08-28), “Carradine hits the jackpot as Lewis Skolnick”, Lumino, <http://www.luminomagazine.com/mw/content/view/341/10/> 
  17. ^ [|Hensley, Dennis] (2003-09-02), “Revenge of the nerd: American Splendor's Toby Radloff is out and proud about his sexuality and his nerddom”, The Advocate, <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1589/is_2003_Sept_2/ai_110737685> 
  18. ^ Mikkelson, Barbara & Mikkelson, David P. (2000), Some Rules Kids Won't Learn in School, <http://www.snopes.com/language/document/liferule.asp>. Retrieved on 22 July 2007 
  19. ^ Chicago Tribune

Further reading

External links

American Scientist (ISSN 0003-0996 (not to be confused with Scientific American) is an illustrated bimonthly Magazine about Science and

Dictionary

nerd

-noun

  1. (slang, derogatory) A person who, although having good technical or scientific skills, is introspective and generally introverted.
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