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[Jsisto]

Only one way to know for sure what is and isn’t considered cool these days. I’m going undercover…

 

[Kraz]

Yeah but being uncool became cool.

Decades ago.

Some of the implication seemed to be about the transition to adulthood.



Persistent anti-intellectualism made being knowledgeable on any subject something that others felt awkward about which Carl Sagan turned around.

 

[Hari Seldon]

Nerd culture is not cool and never will be. Making huge money is cool.

 

[Kraz]

Nerd culture is not cool and never will be. Making huge money is cool.

Is that from Ready Player One?

 

[Raven117]

Yeah but being uncool became cool.

BEING uncool did not become cool. Liking previously "uncool" things became cool.

 

[Enjay]

Nerds aren't cool. They're still madd annoying and unlikeable people they've simply become the overwhelming majority and then made their natural predator the bully was made socially unacceptable.

 

[poppabk]

BEING uncool did not become cool. Liking previously "uncool" things became cool.

'Cool' is an ephemeral thing - but one thread that is consistent is not giving or appearing to not give a fuck about something.
Not being cool makes you uncool, but not giving a fuck about being cool makes you cool.

 

[wondermega]

I remember at the turn of the century (well now THERE is a way to sound old!) we were driving cross-country and stopped at my roomate's little sister's dorm in Virginia Tech. I saw an iMac in her room with an AOL Buddy List that was longer than any I'd ever seen. It suddenly dawned on me that all things that had traditionally been considered ultra-nerdy was just "how normal people were now."

 

[bitbydeath]

I think the evolution of emos is more interesting.

 

[ForAcademicPurposes]

Eerm yeah I must have missed this page of history lmao

 

[Raven117]

'Cool' is an ephemeral thing - but one thread that is consistent is not giving or appearing to not give a fuck about something.
Not being cool makes you uncool, but not giving a fuck about being cool makes you cool.

Now we are talking! I agree, what things are "cool" is ephemeral.

Not giving a fuck doesn't ALWAYS make you cool. It tends to be necessary to in fact BE cool.

But one individual being "cool" is different than a group of people (like "nerds") being cool.

To my first point, we don't have proper working definitions to legitimately have this argument in any real way. I will say that I do think its a good thing that general concept of "cool" has expanded to accept traditionally "nerd" things.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

I was referring more to their role in popular culture, and meditate on what caused so many pop culture generators to follow the nerdy leader...

Their role in popular culture is still being people to laugh at while they struggle to reach a resemblance of social acceptability. If they even make the effort, that is. Most pop movies featuring an ounce of sci-fi tech have a stereotypical nerd somewhere sooner or later. And if this person gets laid it’s just for comedy, or because something utterly impossible happens. Sheldon Cooper winning a Nobel prize doesn’t make him any less of an irredeemable jerk.

 

[Superkewl]

They're not...they're referred to as incels nowadays.

 

[Badlucktroll]

 

[Ionian]

Computer nerds make more money, fact. Refrerence: Google, Facebook, Pintrest. I know women who work in each and they make more than I ever did. 7k bonus? Kinda nice. Based on sales obviously. Another girl started working for Google in her first office job, bought a house worth half a million with her bonus alone from the included stock, not even her pay.

Has 2 kids, nerds fuck. Did not expect to see her tit when she was breastfeeding though. Think I refused a beer and left soon after, was talking to her husband who is a Physics professor for a major college. Too awkward.

 

[Tschumi]

I'm glad this thread has taken off but it's pretty funny that it is almost entirely about 'well they're not cool nyeh'

fair enough i guess but ehh

 

[highrider]

It’s still a lamentable label, nerd is not something I would ever reach for. It’s more an indication of a weakening society. It’s socially acceptable.

 

[highrider]

Yeah but being uncool became cool.

Maybe on game forums but not in the real world. It’s only ‘ cool ‘ when you make big money, even then you’re still a doofus to society at large ( Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos.. )