

17% of Americans consider themselves Geeks - asanwal
http://www.geekwire.com/2011/geek-pride-day-geek-flag-fly-charts

======
Hello_Nurse
I'm really sick of hot girls in maxim, playboy, etc calling themselves
'geeks'. Just cause you've seen Star Wars honey, doesn't make a geek. I truly
believe these girls are just trying to sneak into that demographic and gain
more (followers, fans) attention.

~~~
jhamburger
In my experience for a man, calling yourself a geek is sort of a reluctant
self-deprecating admission whereas for women it's actually a hidden brag, code
for "I have interests that go beyond gossip magazines and reality shows"

~~~
andrewvc
Yeah, but I've heard it so much it's lost all value. Nerds aren't just people
who are hugely passionate about something, they've also payed a price for it
in the form of missing out in 'normal' social integration.

Nerd/Geek are exclusionary terms, you can cherish the upsides all you want,
but without the downsides they're meaningless and lose all their power.

~~~
bluekeybox
> you can cherish the upsides all you want, but without the downsides they're
> meaningless...

So you mean my mad coding skills are not enough; that I also must be
borderline obese, never wash my hair, and don't know how to act around women?
I have a problem with your statement.

~~~
jhamburger
Having a balanced life is better, I don't think many would disagree with that.
He's saying that having a balanced life prevents you from being a geek,
however.

------
jamesbkel
The main issue with this is there doesn't appear to be a definition of "geek"
(aside from that Venn diagram). It's entirely based of respondent
_connotation_ of "geek".

In fact, the "Changing Definition of Geek" section makes this abundantly
clear. It asks NOTHING about what the definition is. What it does ask is if
it's positive/negative to be a geek and if it's a more common phenomena to be
a geek now than in the past.

I think it would be better phrased: "Changing Connotation of Geek".

------
wccrawford
Geek will soon be a generic term that means someone is into something techie.
Once that happens, a new word will be coined for true geeks, and people will
start insulting them with it.

It used to be, that would bother me. Now? I don't care. I like what I like,
and I get along with others who like it.

------
itg
"Geek culture" has become just as shallow and brain-dead as all the other
stuff it used to make fun of. Play video games and wear thick rimmed black
glasses? Well apparently you're a geek now!

------
Void_
76% of all statistics are made up.

------
Sodaware
What's the litmus test for being a "real" geek?

