“Fake” Geek Girls

A few days ago, an article went up on Forbes.com entitled “Dear Fake Geek Girls: Please Go Away” by Tara “Tiger” Brown. It addresses the so-called problem of girls posing as geeks or nerds in order to gain attention from the male-dominated geek community.

“Girls who genuinely like their hobby or interest and document what they are doing to help others, not garner attention, are true geeks. The ones who think about how to get attention and then work on a project in order to maximize their klout, are exhibitionists.”

It seems to be in a woman’s nature, and sometimes even men, to attack or label other women when they approach “their” territory. Their presence is somehow a threat to their own geekiness or nerdiness. I partially agree with the above quote in that, yes, if you are passionate about something and someone else shows an interest, share your passion with them. Teach them, take them under your wing and share your knowledge! Do not label them and push them away just because you think they’re doing it for attention. One of my favorite people and main inspirations is Yaya Han. For those of you not in the cosplay scene, she is one of the most prominent and talented cosplayers out there right now. She makes all her costumes, props, and even runs her own cosplay accessories and prop store. Her passion is evident in how much time and effort she puts into her costumes and into interacting with her fans.

And what does she do with this passion and knowledge? She shares it! On her website, you can find descriptions on how she makes her costumes. Need cosplaying or crafting advice? Reply to her on Twitter or even message her on Facebook, she’s very in-touch with her fans and is happy to help.

It’s people like Yaya that help the nerd community grow by constantly inspiring and introducing new people who may have never been exposed to these things. Long-time nerds and geeks need to realize that some of these “fake” geek girls that are showing a sudden interest in the things we’ve liked for years probably did not have the privilege of growing up surrounded by the very things we love. They didn’t have a computer programmer dad who showed them how to build computers in elementary school or taught them how to fix software errors so they could do it while he was at work or a step mother who sat them down one summer and made them watch Star Trek: The Next Generation, Voyager, and DS9 and made little diagrams to test their knowledge of who was part of the crew in each series. Also, a lot of these girls are young. Growing up in the internet age, they have this exposure that they might not have gotten otherwise from their parents or their friends. So what if they proclaim a love of Batman after only seeing Batman Begins or The Dark Knight or has a sudden love of Iron Man because of Robert Downey Jr? Our jobs, as knowledgeable nerds is to say, “Hey, if you like those guys, you should check out these comics or watch these shows that came on before you born.” Not write them off because they are only “doing it for attention” or “jumping on the bandwagon” of nerdom.

Another article, written by Susanna Polo on TheMarySue.com agrees with me on this:

“The proper response to someone who says they like comics and has only read Scott Pilgrim is to recommend some more comics for them. The proper response to someone who appears to be faking enthusiasm is to ignore them and not project their actions on an entire gender or community. The proper response to someone who appears to want to be a part of your community is to welcome them in. End of story.”

She also addresses the fact that much of this “geek girl shaming” that is occurring is fairly misogynistic. “Girls can’t possibly like nerdy things as much as I do because…they’re a girl! They just want the attention!” Now that being a nerd is acceptable and even looked up to, many of these guys (and girls) who were bullied for being so, although very sad and unfortunate, want to poop on anyone who is actually gaining in life from claiming to be a nerd or geek.

It seems, however, that more girls are doing the name-calling than guys. I made a post on Facebook addressing this topic recently and one of the comments I got (from a guy) was that, fake or not, geek girls are still hot. That’s just it. Girls can claim to be a geek all they want and guys will notice because, let’s face it, guys like to look at attractive girls. However, if they don’t have the knowledge to back up this claim and are just “faking it”, these guys are going to know. You can’t fake passion, a real geek will recognize a real geek. So, in reality “fake” geek girls are not a threat nor will they ever be. It’s the girls who have a genuine interest in geeky culture that will not only gain, but keep the attention of true nerds, whether getting attention was intentional or not. The posers will be left behind and forgotten because donning a pair of glasses and a Batman shirt is not enough.

The next time you encounter a girl (or guy!) who says they love something that about which you are very passionate, don’t call them out or test their knowledge to measure their legitimacy. Share what you know, recommend other books/comics/TV shows/movies that may pertain to their interests. Embrace them. Maybe then we can all get along~

- Christina “girastina” Garlisch -

Posted by Was? :U 2 April 12 Permalink

Retro Arcade Review: DJ BOY

A humorous Retrospect Review of the 1989 Arcade Classic beat’em up, DJ Boy. Reviewed by FLitz

GAME: DJ BOY
DVELOPER: Kaneko
YEAR(s): 1989 - 1990
1-2 Players

DJ Boy, a classic arcade game that doesn’t take its self too seriously. Developed by Kankeo, co-published by Sammy. A home version was released on the Sega Genesis, with a plot added involving a rollerskating fight race and the kidnapping of DJ Boy’s girlfriend, Maria. There were added power ups and in game changes due to racial sensitivity issues of the games arcade counter part. The arcade version revolves around two Hip-Hop homies, Bob and Tom (Players 1 and 2). They’re radio is stolen and they chase the hoodlums down to get it back.


Enjoy the RAR review of DJ Boy.


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http://www.youtube.com/user/TheNerdiestKids

Posted by Nerd Boy Wonder 12 September Permalink

Defining Nerd

Nerd. The one word that is used to define a subculture and as an offensive slang term against anyone who isn’t part of the mainstream. As much as many hoped the “high school” mentality would leave as soon as we left, human nature takes into effect and our naked ape brains feel to the need to label things into perfect little boxes Leo “Ladykiller” Camacho of Radnerd.com posted an awesometastic article that explained the difference between nerds and geeks and also explained the class like structure of the nerd subculture. By the way, I’m a level 10 Gamer/level 12 Standard Comic Book Nerd with a cloak of +5 Internetz. Do I know what the hell I just said? Not a clue. Oh back to what I was saying…

Leo’s article did a great job explaining the Nerd subculture hierarchy but kick started my own brain and had me think: How do you define nerd? Mainstream societies definition and concept of the term nerd stems from ridicule and negativity.

Nerd–noun Slang.
1. a stupid, irritating, ineffectual, or unattractive person.
2. an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with a nonsocial hobby or pursuit: a computer nerd.

Nerd is a term often bearing a derogatory connotation or stereotype, that refers to a person who passionately pursues intellectual activities, esoteric knowledge, or other obscure interests rather than engaging in more social or popular activities. Therefore, a nerd is often excluded from physical activity and considered a loner by peers or will tend to associate with like-minded people.

The given definitions make nerds out to be socially inept, overly obsessive, and fugly people. Things like this want me to kick society in the taint. Regardless of leaving high school mentality behind after graduation, it seems the mainstream is stuck there.

You would think why a group, site, or subculture would want to associate themselves with a word with such disapproval by the “norm?” Well 1) Subcultures or Counter Cultures stem from NOT accepting, participating, or agreeing with attitudes or opinions from the mainstream society during their time. 2) Words can only be given power if you allow them to be. Instead of allowing the social norm to label and present their interpretation of what a nerd is the nerd subculture instead has taken the word and used it as a way for empowerment. When nerds are asked on what a nerd is they don’t necessarily match up:

Someone who is really zeroed in on tech, gaming, music, movies, and various media, also a hacker.

Anybody who feels so passionately about something that it consumes the majority of their free time.

I define nerd as anyone with pursued interest in science or fantasy, or a person who studies mostly in free time and consistently gets exceptional grades in academics.

Well, what I believe a nerd means, or what my definition of the word is a person with above average intelligence that also has knowledge on many things that are not mainstream to society, pursuits that are esoteric, where a few sects appreciate these activities.

Nerds are smart at one thing or another i think.

And for participating these lucky contestants win a brand new unicorn!!!! Okay, seriously these are just examples from pulled within the NK community of various definitions of what a Nerd is amongst the nerd community. As you can tell they don’t exactly match up and have an obvious link to mainstreams interpretation of the word.
Even Leo’s explanation between the differences of Nerd and Geek although extremely insightful of the common archetypes, still has major ties to the mainstream interpretation. I’m not saying mainstream’s definition is incorrect or bad but there is a disagreement with the definition in the nerd community and we cannot clearly come up with a definition that can be fully agreed on.

As there is no Super Awesometastic Guild of Nerd Law to explode out the the ass of a unicorn to hand out definitions and laws over the Nerd Community like Moses, I have to take things in my own hands. Out of all the positive and negative definitions they share common qualities that can be broken down. Simplification is key and to help define what nerd is here is a list of the common themes or qualities that run throughout each definition:

• Individuality
• Creativity
• Knowledge
• Passion

Individuality- Social inept? More like not following the crowd. The common high school mindset only showcases most peoples ignorance. Individuality is key trait of being a nerd for the simple fact we like to do the things we want regardless of what the majority or norm prefer at the time. Nerds are often able to step outside of the box whether they are aware or unaware of what people think. By extension, as a subculture, nerds do not have a defined style of clothing, music, or philosophy. Yes, there may be genres and types of entertainment associated with being a nerd, but those things don’t define being an individual or nerd. At the same time there are accepted ideas in the mainstream that are not associated with being a nerd that many nerds do associate themselves with and vice versa. Mainstream has been accepting of some entertainment ideas that are associated with “nerd culture.” In terms of individuality, a nerd tends to be someone who marches to the beat of their own drum. It just so happens other people are starting to march to the same beat.

Creativity-Comic books, Video Games, Anime, Sci-Fi. You want to know the secret why they are associated with Nerd culture? Lean in (If you leaned in closer thinking you could hear the secret whispered into your ear you deserved to be smacked upside your head). Those sources of entertainment directly are influenced by creativity and by association, imagination. The entertainment industries (Music, Video Games, Movies, TV, Comics) all come down to our use of imagination and our ability to create. Hollywood has taken note of our love and creativity by now exploring and at times exploiting (Fox and Wolverine anyone?) the ideas we hold dear. Yet entertainment isn’t the only place where nerds blow a load on. Science and technology is also are associated with being a nerd. Someone had to conceptualize the computer. It was someones idea to make a rocket go to space. Modern technology is based on someone simply asking “what if?”

Knowledge- All people are knowledgeable but when it comes to nerds and knowledge, it often becomes borderline obsessive. Our knowing of what many see as useless info is associated with what we love. In comparison, our knowledge of what comic Wolverine debuted in is similar to someone in the mainstream knowing whether or not Kim Kardashian likes white or dark meat (hint: she loves the chocolate). At the same time knowledge also expands on the intellectual front. From entertainment to sciences’ a nerd wants to excel in order to further their interest and involvement with the subjects they adore as well as make a mark on history. Most of the time the same people that are ridiculed for not being in the “it” crowd in high school do end up being renowned in the industries they work in (Joss Whedon, Stan Lee, Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs just to name a few.) Just because the mainstream doesn’t see the subjects that are commonly found here at NK as nerdy doesn’t mean they can’t be. You know those Sports fantasy leagues that have sports fans know stats of their favorite players? Jock D&D. Knowing a lion’s penis is barbed or that a rabbit has to eat it’s own feces in order to complete its digestion cycle may seem odd, but knowing odd random facts eventually play into the intelligence nerds have to offer.

Passion- The glue that holds everything together. If all the qualities of a nerd were a person, passion would be the heart of an obese big mac lover being chased down by a rabid pack of dogs. A heart attack away, passion is a lynch pin to the other qualities that make up being a nerd. Passion is the gasoline as creativity and knowledge are the match that creates the fire that is individuality. Oh I know I just blew up your mind. While passion may be universal and applied to anyone with goals or dreams, but when it comes to nerds it is the one thing that gets mistaken for obsession. Fact is the nerd culture and industries involved are doing things they are doing because they love them. This love and drive to move in a progressive direction ends up creating things that change and influence the world around us. Cell phones, ipods, and computers are just some of the practical and every day things that derived from “nerd passion.” Even the entertainment industry has succumbed to “nerd passion” with focussing on super heroes, sci-fi or supernatural genres in the media.

In the end, I don’t believe nerds are defined by what mainstream society associates us with. While nerd culture embraces the labelling and does associate with specific genres, like all humans start to piss on territory and claim things. Humans like to take ownership and label things so we can wrap our minds around them. One thing is clear though, as nerds label themselves as a subculture and begin to go hand and hand with specific outlets it allows for the inclusive and often negative connections found within and without “nerdom.” When it comes down to it though, anyone can be a nerd. As long as you are passionate about a subject, are creative and knowledgeable, you will be seen as an individual and not fall into the pack. Whether it be music, sports, celebrities, technology, science, games, cartoons or comics it doesn’t matter. Here is my submission for definition of what a nerd is:

Nerd - A passionate individual who through creativity and knowledge influence society outside of the mainstream norm.

Now for your opinion! What do you guys think a nerd is? How do you guys define nerd?

Posted by Nerd Boy Wonder 17 July Permalink