Rather than society shunning nerds, it is nerds who shun society.

I agree that many nerds often shun non-nerds, but then why do they turn around and complain that they are unpopular if it is self-inflicted? It seems that they must desire popularity at least to some degree.

I know that you are a nerd of the highest order

Why, thank you!

and I have also witnessed your confident manner with women. I am saying that this phenomenon is very unusual and difficult to fathom. How can you claim that it isn’t?

Because it’s my personal experience? I acknowledge that it’s somewhat unusual, but I don’t think it’s as unusual as most people seem to believe.

Someone who is fluent in Klingon and deeply versed in Decepticon lore is almost always a male who has little ability to converse with females.

Actually, the Klingon thing started out as a joke with a cute girl. She was a huge Star Trek fan, her best friend not so much. The three of us sat together in English class, and of course her best friend would make little inside jokes to her that left me out of the loop. Because revenge is a dish that is best served cold (Klingon proverb), I suggested to her that the two of us should learn Klingon together. Of course, I took it much farther than she did, and she only picked up a few phrases, but enough to spit them out at the (in)appropriate moments and leave her friend completely baffled. Thus, my honour was avenged.

I think I’ve explained to you earlier that girls actually love Transformers. I don’t think you believed me.

My observation is that most guys in high school have trouble talking to girls. You might as well say that “someone whose life centres around football is always a male who has little ability to converse with females”, and it’d probably be true, though in that case I suppose girls have something to be attracted to other than conversational versatility.

What I’d like to know is which girls you talked to in high school. Did you talk to them all, or just to the ones who were interested in good grades, or to those whom you found the most physically attractive? Did you ever talk to the girls who were held by the school at large to be the most attractive? If so, did you ever manage to get their phone numbers, and did they have anything interesting to say?

I wasn’t discriminatory and talked with pretty much everyone, but mostly with those with whom I had interests in common, which were not necessarily school-related. I suppose that my social network was heavily weighted towards people with above-average grades, but not because of any deliberate choice on my part. I did have some friends who didn’t do all that well in school but whom I thought were interesting people.

I did occasionally talk with girls who I guess were held “by the school at large” to be the most attractive. I didn’t treat them any differently. So if I had something in common with one of them (besides being stunningly attractive, of course), then either I got her number or she got mine. I didn’t notice any correlation between a girl’s physical attractiveness and whether she was an interesting conversationalist or not.

– davinci

I find it extraordinary that you were simultaneously nerdy and popular in high school. I’m not saying that I don’t find it credible. I know that you are a nerd of the highest order, and I have also witnessed your confident manner with women. I am saying that this phenomenon is very unusual and difficult to fathom. How can you claim that it isn’t? Someone who is fluent in Klingon and deeply versed in Decepticon lore is almost always a male who has little ability to converse with females. The character traits that lead toward robots and outer space tend to lead away from the opposite sex (or any kind of sex). I think you are perfectly aware of this and are, indeed, banking on it when you write about your exploits.

What I’d like to know is which girls you talked to in high school. Did you talk to them all, or just to the ones who were interested in good grades, or to those whom you found the most physically attractive? Did you ever talk to the girls who were held by the school at large to be the most attractive? If so, did you ever manage to get their phone numbers, and did they have anything interesting to say?