Why Nerds are Unpopular

Very interesting and, I think, insightful. The idea had occurred to me that nerds are unpopular because they are too busy with, well, more interesting stuff to play the games that need to be played in order to be part of the social A-list. Paul Graham looks much more deeply into this.

Perhaps the most important thing to take away from this is this: If you have kids of your own, remember how hellish it was, remember what you went through, and what your children might be going through now. Talk to them about it, tell them what it was like for you at school, tell them that it really isn't like that in the world outside school.

Also, bear in mind that they might be on the other side of the fence - they might be the ones giving other children a hard time. If they are, that doesn't make them bad people - most children do this to some extent. But if you can point out to them the error of their ways, you'll be saving them some guilt in later life.

Via Tao of the Machine