Blue Eyes

Nerds and Geeks: Telling the Difference

Rhett POV

We're working on a new music video to add to our epic rap battle series. Since we have the original epic rap battle and an epic rap battle of manliness, Link and I thought it would be fun to do an epic rap battle of nerdiness.

As Link and I start researching, we notice that there are a lot of things that relate to nerd vs geek and spotting the difference between the two.

"Hey, Link why don't we just do a nerd vs geek rap battle?"

"That sounds interesting. I'm up for it."

"We have to do a lot of research to make sure everything we say is accurate."

"Let's get to it."

Well this is interesting. Back in the early 1900s, when traveling carnivals were popular, there was a performer called the "geek." His job was to perform bizarre and disgusting acts for the amusement of the locals. Notably, this included biting the heads off live chickens.

I know for a fact that geeks of today don't bite off the heads of live chickens. A geek is somebody who is just generally very knowledgeable about a particular topic. Some may even say obsessed with it.
Being a geek gained popularity when computer programmers and other technical people called themselves geeks. It has become more mainstream since then. There are all different kinds of geeks. There are wine geeks, car geeks, and Lord of the Rings geeks. However, geeks are generally very social. If you were talking to a geek, you wouldn't know it unless they told you about their obsession. That is very interesting.

Link POV

Time to do some research. I start looking online to see what I can find. Well this is interesting. The word nerd originally came from a Dr. Seuss book If I Ran The Zoo. Apparently nerd is synonymous with seersucker and merkle, so you could call them that too.... funny.

In general, a nerd is defined as an irritating, unattractive person who may be brilliant but focuses on academics rather than social pursuits. Okay. So then what's the difference between a nerd and a geek? Let me see what I can find.

I see a whole list of differences between a nerd and a geek. A nerd has extreme interest or fascination in academics. They are very introverted and socially inept. Nerds have very diverse, and sometimes impractical skills due to broad interests such as games, movies, science, computers, and other related topics. Other interests could possibly be Battlestar Galactica, Live action roll playing, virtual realities such as secondlife, physics, chess, fantasy/sci-fi, and computer programming. The most likely career choice for a nerd may result in a rocket scientist, a reclusive professor, a computer programmer, an engineer- wait an engineer! Does that mean I'm a nerd? Or am I a geek? And what about Rhett? I have to talk to him later about this. Anyway, other jobs include IT professionals, inventors, or....working at a video store? I've never heard of that being a nerdy job. Interesting.... So what about a geek?

Hmmmmm.... Let me see.... a geek is an early adopter. Geeks are people with a specific niche interest or lifestyle that they have become an expert on. Their knowledge can range from mundane to "living encyclopedia" status. Geeks can be pretentious and long-winded. They have a tendency to wear ironic t-shirts. Their interests may include gaming, film, collecting, gadgets and technology, computing, coding, hacking, techno music, screen printing and other similar things. Geeks are very interested in technology, mostly apple and the products that company produces.

Ooooo this is interesting. Jobs that a geek most likely would have include web design or development, IT professional, or marketer. They may also include graphic design, game designer or game developer. Some may be baristas at an Indie coffee shop while others may want to be an entrepreneur and maybe start their own business. They also could work in a record store or be a bartender. Geeks have a variety of career choices. I never knew that. Oh here's something interesting. In the case of romance and love, geeks can marry non-geeks or geeks. However, nerds only marry nerds. It's the natural state of the universe. Hmmm... Makes sense.

Rhett POV

I found some charts and statistics to show Link later. One of them says that 87% of people prefer the word geek over nerd. Interesting..... It also says that 17% of Americans identify as geeks. Huh... Apparently 65% of video game designers identify as geeks and 50% of technology engineers identify as geeks as well. According to this article, 37% of bloggers identify as geeks. Wow.... 66% of millennials think geek is a compliment. 45% of people think geeks are early adopters and 31% of people thing geeks have a higher chance of being successful.

"Hey Link! Come look at this!"

He swivels his chair and reads what's on my laptop. "Oh wow Rhett. That's really interesting."

"Yeah."

"I never knew there were so many differences between geeks and nerds."

"Neither did I."

"I always knew they were different. I just didn't know how different. Hey what does that chart say in the corner?"

"Oh just all of the labels and things that are different when talking about nerds and geeks."

"I never knew a cellist was nerdy."

"Me either. I always thought it was geeky."

"Yeah. Band geek is running through my brain. Not band nerd. Hahaha!"

I roll my eyes and sigh. I just laugh at Link who yawns. "I think we're done for today. Time to go home."

"Really? Already?"

"Yes Link. Come on, I'm driving."

"Okay."

We then lock up the studio and get in my car and head home. Once I drop off Link at home, I head home myself. Jessie greets me with a hug and a kiss at the door and my boys tackle my legs. Once I peel Shepard and Locke off of my legs, we all sit down on the couch and watch TV. I wonder when Link will introduce us to his mysterious little girl I saw peeking out the window when I dropped him off tonight.