| Revision as of 20:12, 16 April 2015 edit173.17.170.8 (talk) →Definitions: POV, sourced to a blog, no indication that these definitions are widely accepted← Previous edit | Revision as of 04:16, 29 April 2015 edit undo47.16.118.255 (talk) ←Replaced content with 'Mazz.'Tag: blankingNext edit → | ||
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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 ] or a person obsessed with a hobby or ] 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>{{cite web|url=http://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Geck |title=Duden | Geck | Rechtschreibung, Bedeutung, Definition, Synonyme, Herkunft |language=de |publisher=Duden.de |date=2012-10-30 |accessdate=2014-06-30}}</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. | |||
| ==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>{{cite web|url=http://reconstruction.eserver.org/061/christensen.shtml |title=Reconstruction 6.1 (Winter 2006) |publisher=Reconstruction.eserver.org |date= |accessdate=2014-06-30}}</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== | |||
| Technologically oriented geeks, in particular, now exert a powerful influence over the global economy and society. <ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/october/innovation-economic-impact-102412.html|title=Study shows Stanford alumni create nearly $3 trillion in economic impact each year|work=Stanford News|first=Jamie|last=Beckett|date=24 Oct 2012}}</ref> 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, ]<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}} | |||
| {{for|the book|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>{{cite web|url=http://uk.stylelist.com/2010/08/31/hot-or-not-myleene-klass-does-geek-chic-in-spectacles/ |title=Myleene Klass geek chic |publisher=Uk.stylelist.com |date= |accessdate=2014-06-30}}</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 |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>{{cite web|last=Lambert |first=Katie |url=http://people.howstuffworks.com/geek-chic.htm |title=How Stuff works: Geek Chic |publisher=People.howstuffworks.com |date= |accessdate=2014-06-30}}</ref> | |||
| ==See also== | |||
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| *] and ], British slang for "geek" | |||
| *] and ], Japanese slang for "geek" | |||
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| == References== | |||
| {{Reflist|30em}} | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| {{Wiktionary}} | |||
| * , an article discussing geek culture as a new kind of counter-culture. | |||
| * , an article about geek culture seen in a cultural historical perspective. | |||
| * Hoevel, Ann. "" '']''. December 2, 2010. | |||
| * , ''], October 22, 2003 | |||
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Revision as of 04:16, 29 April 2015
Mazz.