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The Geek Shall Inherit the Earth

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the and-jennifer-garner-shall-be-our-queen dept.

erick99 writes "With so many self-proclaimed geeks here at Slashdot, this particular article concerning geeks seems fitting. The article covers the gamut from science fiction to comic books to the "mainstreaming of geeks." The author seems to conclude the it is not such a good idea that the geek may inherit the earth. But, hey, what does he know. "

6 of 336 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Somebody get a dictionary? by r4bb1t · · Score: 5, Informative

    Courtesy of UrbanDictionary.com:

    anorak
    1. Cagoul; or a hooded zip-up jacket.
    2. Trainspotters.
    3. IT people in general, computer geeks.

    Beware of couples wearing matching anoraks.
    Often spotted at LAN parties.

    I'm still trying to figure out whether or not being compared to a warm, puffy coat is a good thing.

  2. Re:Somebody get a dictionary? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    When we were kids in Britain, the lame kids who let their Mums dress them would always come to school kitted out in a parka, or anorak, with a fun-fur hood. Every single one of them. So an "anorak" is a dweeb, or a dork.

  3. origin of 'anorak' as slang by sczimme · · Score: 4, Informative

    As I understand it:

    there is a hobby called 'trainspotting' where people hang about at railway stations, noting the comings and goings of trains (e.g. the 4723 to Wembley left the station at 0914).

    since these trainspotters are often outside in inclement weather, they wear large puffy winter coats

    being geeks and having no fashion sense, they choose the same sort of large puffy coats that your mother made you wear when you were a kid. (Think of the big coat George Costanza wore in that episode of 'Seinfeld' if that helps.)

    in the UK, the puffy coat is called an anorak

    the garment became synonymous with the sad trainspotting git who wears it.

    British slang is fun. :-)

    --
    I want to drag this out as long as possible. Bring me my protractor.
  4. LOTR isn't "mainstream"??? by Kombat · · Score: 5, Informative


    People still look at me funny when I tell them I've read LOTR thrice.

    Even though its becoming more accepted, I still wouldn't call it mainstream.

    All-time worldwide box-office rankings:

    2. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
    4. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
    8. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

    Tell me again how the trilogy that dominates the top-10 all-time worldwide box office rankings isn't "mainstream?"

    Source.

    --
    Like woodworking? Build your own picture frames.
  5. Geek / Nerd / Dork classification by daddymac · · Score: 2, Informative
    I've always used this rule of thumb:
    Geeks are into computers
    Nerds are into math
    Dorks are into Dungeons and Dragons
    Of course, it's OK to be in multiple categories :)
    --
    If something I said can be interpreted two ways, and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, I meant the other one.
  6. Re:Individualism is evil? by Cowboy+Bebop · · Score: 2, Informative

    It said "individuation", not "Individualism".