A little light reading for your day off. 😉 No, seriously—an interesting little excerpt from Paul Graham’s book Hackers and Painters: Big Ideas from the Computer Age, on Wired’s web site. Here’s a taste:
The main reason nerds are unpopular is that they have other things to think about. Their attention is drawn to books or the natural world, not fashions and parties. They’re like someone trying to play soccer while balancing a glass of water on his head. Other players who can focus their whole attention on the game beat them effortlessly and wonder why they seem so incapable.
Nerds would find their unpopularity more bearable if it merely caused them to be ignored. Unfortunately, to be unpopular in school is to be actively persecuted.…
Go ahead, read the whole thing.