A Nerd, Are You?

Just a few days back, in a conversation with one of my friends, I was told to make sure that my child does not turn out to be a nerd and this implied in a certain way that it’s not a good thing to be a nerd. It shocked me to an extent … Though I forgot to ask what they inferred by the word “nerd”. Nudged by an unsavory feeling of being held responsible for something that I did not understand, led me to conduct a quick research on the subject. Take a look at the deductions after referring to various sources.

Me no Dexter or Professor Flint....

Nerdy Quotient Unraveled

Here are two different meanings of the word Nerd (as per Cambridge Dictionary) –

1. a person, especially a man, who is not attractive and is awkward or socially embarrassing

2. a person who is extremely interested in one subject, especially computers, and knows a lot

of facts about it

While the first definition would make me worry, the second one would make me proud by all means.

Benjamin Nugent, an American writer, best known for the book American Nerd: The Story of My People and Good Kids used this line in his book “I will take a serious approach to a subject usually treated lightly, which is a Nerdy thing to do”. It says a lot and it undoubtedly gave me a sense of relief … After all it’s not such a bad thing you see…

Take this quiz below to discover your nerdy quotient

Click here- http://www.nerdtests.com/mq/uttake.php?id=270614

The next question on my mind was “what are the odds of my child becoming a NERD?”…so I investigated the symptoms of a nerd. Take a look:

· They like to play computer games and are obsessed with them

· They love to play board games like chess, dragon n dungeon etc.

· They can’t live without their books for more than a couple of days

· They make a note of everything they see and feel

Not every nerd would have all or either one of the characteristics mentioned above. They may just possess a few of those or none at all. What really makes them a nerd is their overtly passionate attitude towards one particular subject that they always want to excel in.

This sounds like a positive trait…Doesn’t it? Further research tells me that the topmost guys in the field of IT have been tagged as nerds and are rich as hell. To top the chart is Bill Gates, who needs no introduction and following him are Larry Ellison (Founder of Oracle), Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook), Lary Page and Sergey Brin (co-founders of Google), Michael Dell (Dell Computers), etc., and the list goes on.

After looking at the Nerds Chartbusters, I wish I was a bit nerdy too…

Well, people always get confused between a nerd and a geek. The words are almost synonymous with each other according to most dictionaries with very little difference in their meanings. To make it simpler, a nerd has a deeper understanding of subjects they are interested in while geeks lack that.

Warning: Please do not use the word “Nerd” as a compliment…

Disclaimer: The blogger of this post is not responsible in any way for the aftereffects if you ignore the warning mentioned above. This is purely written to enhance your knowledge on the subject.

So here's to a nerdy ending, Cheers!