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| someone who sits on there butt fixing wikipedia edits all day | |||
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| ] on a car parked at ] (although note that the last two digits have been transposed).]] | |||
| The word '''geek''' is a ] term originally used to describe ] or non-mainstream people; in current use, the word typically connotes an expert or enthusiast or a person obsessed with a hobby or intellectual pursuit, with a general pejorative meaning of a "peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp one who is perceived to be overly intellectual".<ref name="merriam-webster">{{cite web|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/geek|title=Geek|date=|accessdate=2007-10-12|work=Dictionary.com-Merriam-Webster entry}}</ref> | |||
| Although often considered as a pejorative, the term is also used self-referentially without malice or as a source of pride. Its meaning has evolved to connote "someone who is interested in a subject (usually intellectual or complex) for its own sake". | |||
| ==Etymology== | |||
| This word comes from ] ''geek'' or ''geck'' (meaning a "fool" or "]"; from ] ''Geck''). "Geck" is a standard term in modern German and means "fool" or "fop."<ref>http://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Geck</ref> The root also survives in the ] and ] ] ''gek'' ("crazy"), as well as some ], and in the ] word ''Gickeleshut'' ("]'s hat"; used during carnival).<ref name="merriam-webster"/> In 18th century ], ''Gecken'' were freaks on display in some ]es. In 19th century North America, the term ''geek'' referred to a performer in a ] in a circus or ] ]s (see also ]).<ref name="Online-Etymology-Dictionary">{{cite web|url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=geek|title=Geek|date=|accessdate=2013-05-03|work=Online Etymology Dictionary}}</ref> The 1976 edition of the '']'' included only the definition regarding ]s. Wrestler ] originated the term ''pencil-neck geek''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x12d9wa_classy-freddie-blassie-sings-pencil-neck-geek_music|title=Classy Freddie Blassie sings Pencil Neck Geek|accessdate=4 Apr 2014}}</ref> | |||
| The ] ]s of the term carry a slightly different meaning of ''making a fool out of someone else''. This is evident in the ] ''gäcka'' in ] and the phrase ''drive gæk med'' in ], both of which mean ''to outsmart'' or ''to fool'', as in the Swedish expression ''att gäcka rättvisan'' ("to cunningly escape justice"). ], the ] of sending anonymous ] letters called '']'' is intended to puzzle or tease the recipient. | |||
| In English, the word appears in the modern sense of a science, math or technology enthusiast<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/G/geek.html|title=geek|accessdate=4 Apr 2014}}</ref> in ]'s 1952 short story '']''.{{efn|The use of the word in this story is not definitive as referring to a tech geek; in the entire story it appears once: "The poor geek!", referring to the presumed "liquidation" of a Soviet mathematician; this usage could be seen as equivalent to a British phrase such as "poor sod", and not at all referring to the deceased's technical prowess. {{cite book |last=Heinlein |first=Robert |date=1959 |title=The Menace From Earth |location=Hicksville, NY |publisher=Gnome Press |page=46}}}} | |||
| ==Definitions== | |||
| The definition of geek has changed considerably over time, and there is no longer a definitive meaning. The term ] has a similar, practically synonymous meaning as geek, but many choose to identify different connotations among these two terms, although the differences are disputed. In a 2007 interview on '']'', ] said the difference between nerds and geeks is "geeks get it done" or "ggid"<ref></ref> ] defined a geek as "a bright young man turned inward, poorly socialized, who felt so little kinship with his own planet that he routinely traveled to the ones invented by his favorite authors, who thought of that secret, dreamy place his computer took him to as cyberspace—somewhere exciting, a place more real than his own life, a land he could conquer, not a drab teenager's room in his parents' house".<ref></ref> | |||
| There are many categories of geeks, such as: science geeks, math geeks (] geeks, in ]), computer geeks, history geeks, gaming geeks, etc.{{citation needed|date=August 2013}} | |||
| ==Impact== | |||
| Technology oriented geeks, in particular, now exert a powerful influence over the global economy and society. Whereas previous generations of geeks tended to operate in research departments, laboratories and support functions, now they increasingly occupy senior corporate positions, and wield considerable commercial and political influence. When U.S. President ] met with Facebook’s ] and the CEOs of the world’s largest technology firms at a private dinner in Woodside, California on 17 February 2011, '']'' ran a story titled "The world’s most powerful man meets President Obama".<ref>The world’s most powerful man meets President Obama. Dan Amira. 18 February 2011. New York Magazine. | |||
| http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2011/02/the_worlds_most_powerful_man_m.html</ref> At the time, Zuckerberg’s company had grown to over one billion users. | |||
| According to ] the rise of the geek represents a new phase of human evolution. In his book, ''Unnatural Selection: why the geeks will inherit the earth'',<ref>Unnatural Selection by Mark Roeder. | |||
| http://www.harpercollins.com.au/books/Unnatural-Selection-Why-Geeks-Will-Inherit-Earth-Mark-Roeder/?isbn=9781743095683</ref> he suggests that "the high-tech environment of the ] favours people with geek-like traits, many of whom are on the ], ], or ]. Previously, such people may have been at a disadvantage, but now their unique cognitive traits enable some of them to resonate with the new technological ] and become very successful." | |||
| '']'' magazine observed, on 2 June 2012, "Those square pegs (geeks) may not have an easy time in school. They may be mocked by jocks and ignored at parties. But these days no serious organisation can prosper without them."<ref>In praise of misfits. Economist. 2 June 2012. http://www.economist.com/node/21556230</ref> | |||
| ==Geek chic== | |||
| {{anchor|Geek chic}} | |||
| "Geek chic", also the title of a ], refers to a minor fashion trend that arose in the mid 2000s in which young individuals adopted stereotypically "geeky" fashions, such as oversized black ], ]/], and ]. The glasses—sometimes worn with non-prescription lenses or ]—quickly became the defining aspect of the trend, with the media identifying various celebrities as "trying geek" or "going geek" for wearing such glasses, such as ],<ref>{{cite news|title=Geeky Becks' specs appeal|url=http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3135201/Geeky-Becks-specs-appeal.html#ixzz2MKyQ8coR|accessdate=March 1, 2013|newspaper=]|date=September 12, 2010}}</ref> ],<ref>{{cite news|title=Nice glasses! Justin Timberlake is bringing geek chic back at the Social Network premiere|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1315143/Justin-Timberlake-bringing-geek-chic-Social-Network-premiere.html|accessdate=March 1, 2013|newspaper=]|date=September 25, 2010}}</ref> and ].<ref></ref> Meanwhile, in the sports world, many ] players wore "geek glasses" during ], drawing comparisons to ].<ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2V0330Drfkk&feature=plcp |title=Whacky NBA Playoff Fashion! |publisher=YouTube |date= |accessdate=2012-06-26}}</ref><ref name="wsj-nba">{{cite web|last=Cacciola |first=Scott |url=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303822204577466402604980564.html?mod=WSJ_article_MoreIn_TheA-Hed |title=NBA Finals: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Other Fashion Plates of the NBA Make Specs of Themselves – WSJ.com |publisher=Online.wsj.com |date=2012-06-14 |accessdate=2012-06-26}}</ref> | |||
| As many of the other identifying characteristics of the trend, such as clip-on suspenders worn with short-sleeved shirts, were unsuitable for the business environment into which young adherents were entering, the trend quickly died out. However, heightened media awareness of the ] subculture, which had simultaneously embraced thick-rimmed glasses, led to a conflation of hipster aesthetics with "geek chic." As a result, the media and social commentators continued erroneously referring to hipsters as "geek chic" after the trend had faded. The term is now nominally used in the world of ], where it is similarly erroneously applied to both hipsters as well as ].<ref name=week>{{cite web|last=Fassel |first=Preston |url=http://www.opticianshandbook.com/geek-chic-was-last-week-understanding-the-retro-craze.aspx |title=Geek Chic Was Last Week: Understanding the Retro Craze |publisher=The Optician's Handbook |date= |accessdate=2012-12-31}}</ref> | |||
| ===Self-application=== | |||
| In the wake of the fashion trend, the term "geek chic" was appropriated by some self-identified "geeks" to refer to a new, socially acceptable role in a technologically advanced society.<ref></ref> | |||
| ==See also== | |||
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| *] and ], British slang for "geek" | |||
| *] and ], Japanese slang for "geek" | |||
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| ==Notes== | |||
| {{notes}} | |||
| == References== | |||
| {{Reflist|30em}} | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| {{Wiktionary}} | |||
| * , an article discussing geek culture as a new kind of counter-culture. | |||
| * Hoevel, Ann. "" '']''. December 2, 2010. | |||
| * , ''], October 22, 2003 | |||
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Revision as of 15:39, 30 April 2014
someone who sits on there butt fixing wikipedia edits all day