Nerd Culture Over the Years - Podcast #22

The way society views and treats "nerds" today is far different from how society, and individuals, treated them in the past. Boomer X was involved in many "nerd" activities in the past growing up when the internet didn't exist, television reception was spotty and limited to a couple of channels, the radio was overrun with advertising with just enough music to keep entertainment starved listeners from turning off in disgust. While there were far fewer laws controlling individual behavior in the past, social rules that were spoken and unspoken were far more effective at ensuring individuals tried to conform to expected behaviors and interests, otherwise be an outcast and socially ignored or persecuted and bullied. Those who didn't care much about the opinions of others and were simply interested in a subject or activity for its own sake, or were deemed unpopular and lacked social interaction as a result, became nerds in order to fulfill their minds and keep themselves occupied.

Bullying behavior was common in the 1970s and 1980s, and even expected or slightly encouraged by teachers at the time on those who refused to conform to common thoughts and activities. It required strong will and a lack of regard for other's opinions to actively pursue uncommon or unknown subjects and activities especially to become very proficient and knowledgeable in individual and little known pursuits.

Millennial Z has acknowledged that sitting for hours in front of a computer each day to "hone the skill" of becoming a better gamer is certainly a nerd activity, but also commented that working out in a disciplined manner to create noticeable change in the body and improve physical performance is also nerd like even though it truly improves your quality of life by doing so in a number of ways. Working out was especially nerd like in Boomer X's time as unless it was associated with team sport or the military others saw it as pointless and time wasting behavior that isolated the individual despite obvious improvements in physical and mental ability over time.

In fact, Boomer X has witnessed his nerd activities of the past such as "Dungeons & Dragons" gaming, martial arts practice, strongman and weightlifting workouts, comic books and other interests that very few people were participating in 30 to 40 years ago explode into mainstream acceptance and interest today making many contemporary people celebrities and others simple rich while he had to conform and make a living through other professional knowledge and skills due to the lack of interest by others at the time.

Millennial Z and Boomer X further discuss current nerd like activity and how much more civil and accepting society and people in general have become outside of political and religious circles and well as what the future of nerds may bring at the same time attempting to define today's nerds.

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