Nerds: No Passing Fad

 Nerd. Before the turn of the millennium this word would bring forth an image of a person who was good at math, did not dress in the popular fashion, enjoyed science fiction and comic books, and was good with computers. In movies Nerds were pictured as outcasts and often picked on by more popular people. Many of these nerds found this to hold good in real life as well. But no more. In the first half of the first decade of the new century it is difficult to find the stereotypical nerd and for good reason. Nerds have not integrated into society but have in fact taken it over.

 I recall the student in the electric shop class in junior high school who fit the description above to the tee. It was in the mid eighties and everyone laughed at how this student wanted to build his own computer and was in the process of doing it. In those days computers had no hard drives to boast of and functioned off floppy diskettes (the 5 inch ones, not the 3.5) and the screen was monochrome with no icons, wallpapers, or even a Windows program. The mere idea of building a computer seemed a sheer waste of time considering how little it could do for the individual. But things have a come long way since then. This document is being written on a computer that is running the latest version of windows thanks to a nerd who got me an illegal version. If I want to upgrade my computer I seek the advice of a nerd because they know what it is I need. Should the computers or phone system at an office stop working a call is placed to a computer expert (aka nerd) to repair the problem at a hefty fee. Many household appliances are being connected to the Internet now and any car built in the last five years has some computer components that are vital for that automobile to function. In short, this society depends more on nerds now than any other group to keep our lives running smoothly.

Besides the computer manuals nerds were known to enjoy comic books, dungeons & dragons, and science fiction. Ironically games such as the Dungeons & Dragon types have seen a massive boost and are now accepted largely by the mainstream. Comic books are not only popular but also the USP behind many Hollywood TV shows and movies. X-men, Spiderman, Batman, and Men in Black (yes, that was a comic strip) are now the much touted icons of comic pages, television and the cine theatre. Star Wars movies and toys make record sells while Star Trek is on its tenth movie and fifth TV series. But the cake was taken by none other than The Matrix. This sci-fi action film is only about nerds. All the principal characters: Neo, Trinity, Morpheus were computer hackers that now hack into the biggest computer system of all. In fact the first occasion that we come face to face with Neo in The Matrix is perhaps the epitome of Nerddom – the fabled nerd asleep at his computer terminal.

“But Bill, you said nerds have taken over the world. What we see on TV and movies does not necessary turn world events”

 I agree there. And although we have may have to call on nerds to repair our computers, help us online, and keep businesses going that does not necessarily mean nerds run the world. But when he was single who was the most eligible bachelor in the world as well as also richest person around?