The difference between Geeks & Nerds


At the last 27Dinner in Johannesburg I got into an interesting discussion about the difference between Nerds and Geeks. Previously I had always thought the name was interchangeable but according to Kerryn Whitehead, a geologist, “The difference between nerds and geeks is technology”.

Geeks, apparently, shun daylight to spend all their time with their PCs and are worse than a kugel at a shoe sale when it comes to buying and showing off gadgets; nerds on the other hand come from the academic society and shun daylight to do research and study. I’m not quite sure what nerds would get excited about but at a glance I’m glad I’m a geek because at least we have a digital life.

I can already hear some of you groaning about me exciting “yet another religious war”, but sometimes it’s fun to draw lines in the sand and play the philosophical equivalent of touch rugby. Is there a difference between Geeks and Nerds? Would a Geek Dinner be better or worse than a Nerd Dinner? Can you be both a Geek and a Nerd or does the fact that the latest mobile device with GPS, 5 mega-pixel camera and 8GB of music never leaves your side excludes you from the one?

Your thoughts.

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August 6th, 2007
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Comment Number:
1
Written by:
Bergen Larsen
Posted on:
6 August 2007 at 9:34 am

Right. In my humblest of opinions. Yes - there is a difference between Geeks and Nerds. I must mention at this point that the difference does not lie solely in the gadget area, although this is a good way to spot a Geek.

Lets do a small comparison shall we…
Geek: Has social skills
Nerd: Lacks social skills

Geek: Loves gadgets
Nerd: Loves pocket protectors filled with pens and pencils

Geek: Usually of the more intelligent variety
Nerd: Usually last in line for a bit of a brain

Geek: Not unattractive to the opposite gender
Nerd: Usually unattractive to the opposite gender

Geek: Usually knows how to dress
Nerd: Doesn’t know how to dress

Geek: Usually has the ability to be cool, sometimes chooses not to be
Nerd: Uncool by default

So as you can see, there is a big difference between geeks and nerds, however it does not relate to just a technological fascination.

Comment Number:
2
Written by:
Craig Nicholson
Posted on:
6 August 2007 at 3:46 pm

I tend to agree with Bergen’s comments.