The Nerds and Geeks of NYC’s “Lab Ratz”: The Stage Play!

There are times in our life wherein we encounter friends who are slightly different from the majority normal average people. These are men and women who are presently called “nerds” or “geeks” and sometimes mistaken as “genius”, or probably they could be!

Have you run into some of them? I did! He had a clean-shaven face, boy-next-door type but with thick glasses on. Some of  my teen chums viewed him as weird as his jokes were “out-of-this world”; his anti-social outlook made him boring. He was too preoccupied with books and studies which according to him quite made him a “loser” as far as relationships are concerned. But he was really bright and intelligent. In fact, he garnered the top post of the Engineering Board Examinations and is now successful.

Indeed, there are probably millions of nerds and geeks in this world particularly in our modern technological age. However, as nerds and geeks continue to evolve, a lot of interests ensue and certain issues crop up as to the difference between a nerd and a geek. The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word “geek” as someone who is “unfashionable or socially inept”. Geeks are also knowledgeable and obsessive enthusiasts, e.g. “computer geeks”. On the other hand, Oxford characterizes a “nerd” as a “foolish or contemptible person who lacks social skills or is boringly studious”. Further, a nerd is a “single-minded expert in a particular technical field and a computer nerd.”

To differentiate the two, a study was made by Burr Settles who is a data scientist, software engineer and a specialist in machine learning systems, using Twitter feeds. Settles studied and analyzed the words sourced from about more than 2 million tweets adopting mathematical equations and plotted them on a chart with a “geeky” and “nerdy’ scale. Below is the scatter graph, the result of the statistical exercise, showing a demarcation line between a geek and a nerd, highlights of which are as follows:

Geeky Words                                                    Nerdy Words
1. Interested in stuffs                            1. More on  ideas, hypothesis
2. Fans that collect stuff                        2.Practitioners that play with ideas
3. Hobbies are toys and comics             3. Hobbies are chess and Sudoku
4. Intelligence                                       4. Education and Intellectual
5. e books                                            5. Books

“Nerds” and “Geeks” became two of the buzzwords in the 21st century. Even arts enthusiasts, producers, directors, actors and actresses in independent film industry/stage play are interested in developing stage shows/plays depicting on how it is to be a nerd or a geek.

One comedy show entitled “Lab Ratz” was recently held at the heart of New York City for 3 days last January,  2015 at the American Theatre of Actors, produced by Bees and Butterflies Performing Arts, Inc. . Basically, the said funny comedy was about the 4 nerds (main characters), namely: Jackson, Rudolph, Jonathan and Lionel. These men  are very book smart, however, they lack one thing and that is common sense specifically on how to meet women. They become “sheepish” and “dorky” especially when they are with pretty and gorgeous  ladies. Because the play was such a success and that  everyone who watched loved the show,  a repeat will be scheduled sometime this  coming summer.

So, If you guys, my dear fb friends happen to be in NYC this year’s summer time, watch out for this show. It’s hilarious!  You may wish to visit their website at http://beesandbutterfliesperformingarts.com/, for more details.

By the way, the lead role was played by a friend, John B. ( the guy at the center with a tie)!  Congratulations !!!