Geek, Nerd, or Dork?

This is a subject I've discussed many times over, if only because all three words have applied to me at one time or another, and quite often to many of you. But Yahoo! (and I know it's starting to seem like my impetus for posting relies on them riling me up) just posted a thing in effort to discern the three. Read it, then come back here.

....

....

Done? Good. Okay, they're wrong, just so you know. Their definition of "nerd" is not far off, though I'd argue that appearance has little to do with it (the nerds I've know have been everything from the tie-wearing to the occassionally-bathing). Essentially, nerds are the kids who excel, and are especially interested, in subjects like math and science. Not only will they often get A's in the higher-level classes, but they'll spend some amount of their personal time digging into the subjects while figuring out the intricacies of computers or other current technology.

Geeks, on the other hand, does not apply to science or industry. At least, no exclusively. Geeks are simply fans of certain niche subjects. Star Trek and Star Wars fans are geeks. They don't have to have made it any further than algebra in high school, but they can tell you in great detail about the ideological difference between Batman and Superman, or why Darth Vader is the most tragic figure in modern cinema, or Sam's importance in getting the ring to Mordor (though that only counts if they can cite examples from the books, not the movies). Or they can quote every line of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

"Geek" is a hard term because really, it should apply to anyone who can rattle off sports statistics or discuss The Beatles' work at length. And yet. Yahoo! says Urban Dictionary has geeks being the guys you make fun of but later work for, but some of the biggest geeks are often the guys selling you your comic books, or working at a movie theater for the free tickets, praying for sneak previews or an early look at the trailer for the next Batman movie.

Dorks...dorks are simply socially inept. They might also be nerds or geeks, but they have no real grasp on the basics of functioning in society, and can often be found eating alone at the lunch table. They're not especially good conversationalists and have stories that are funny only to them. Think Buster Bluth from Arrested Development. Yahoo! insists dorks have an odor problem, but I don't think that necessarily applies.

So there you go. Knowledge is power.