The Caped Crusade - A Cheat Manual for Non-Nerds

The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture

NPR book critic Glen Weldon explains how Batman--the bad ass detective; the campy TV sensation; the grim heart of the urban night--is at his core a nerd. For almost 80 years now Batman has swung from dark to light and back again, throughout it all embodying the values his readers (and viewers) project onto him, but Batman is undeniably a nerd replete with gadgets, obsession, and a complete lack of superpowers (unless you count all Bruce Wayne's money). Hardcore Batman geeks will already be familiar with the facts Weldon weaves into his narrative, but the way he builds on these facts to construct a particularly nerdy view of Batman offers us a fresh and enjoyable perspective of the Caped Crusader. I think, however that this book is even more valuable for non-nerds who could use some help understanding the Dark Knight's nerd appeal. If you've got a nerd friend who's seriously into Batman, you need to pick up The Caped Crusade. This is your new cheat manual. It's your "admit one" ticket to deep conversations on the finer aspects of Batman, Robin, The Joker, and the role comic books play in popular culture.

A Safe Space to Practice Social Skills

I hesitate to call this a Real Life Nerds post, because the Redditors who started this may not be nerds.

A group of users in the SocialSkills subreddit have started an online practice space using Skype and Discord where people can just practice talking with other people. It's an opportunity to practice conversation and social skills with real people in a completely anonymous environment where you can work 1-on-1 or in groups of three or more. There is no judgment, no high stakes, just a safe place to practice talking.

Here is the original Reddit thread.

 
This is meant to be a safe space for anyone to practice and make mistakes with other people who get it. Whether you're socially awkward, shy, learning to converse in a non-native language, or just want to talk with other people, take a look.

Another Redditor suggested hanging out in r/CasualConversation, which is a similar idea but it's all in text. Talk about any casual topic you want without worrying about someone judging you.

What Videogames Taught Me About Frustration

Life is frustrating with a regularity that makes dietary fiber manufacturers jealous.

However, video games take frustration to a torturous level that makes me believe game designers are actually in league with the devil. Sometimes I ask myself why I keep playing (why anyone keeps playing) and I think part of the answer is that diabolically frustrating games put life into perspective, but there’s more to it than a simply setting a higher tolerance threshold--it could be worse, we could trapped in an undersea laboratory overrun with escaped subjects from the sentient jellyfish experiments--I think that games actually teach us how to deal with frustration.

For comparison, I present two scenarios: a clutch or kick moment in Rainbow Six vs catching that water-loving Slowpoke in Pokémon GO.

Nerdism: Clutch or Kick

Shirasagi Dojo - David Gegen Goliath

 "Clutch or kick" probably makes at least a little sense to most people. You’ve likely heard something along the lines of, “she’s a clutch player,” meaning that she does well under pressure. The kick part is what confuses some people, but don’t worry, it has nothing to do with literal kicking, and these days no one intends to follow through on the kick part anyway. If someone looks you in the eyes and says, “clutch or kick,” here’s the background and what’s expected of you.

The phrase purportedly originates with the game Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) a team-oriented first person shooter game where each person is either part of the terrorist or counter-terrorist team and has objectives to complete. Each round is won by either completing the objective or killing all the opposing players. The phrase is likely a carryover from previous multiplayer first person shooter games, possibly earlier Counter Strike games, but CS:GO was the game that made the phrase ubiquitous among gamers of the early 2010s.

In gaming terms, the phrase is used when the last member of a team must face overwhelming odds to win the game by defeating all the other opponents in the last few seconds. Consider this scenario: all but one member of the counter terrorist group has been mown down by rifle fire, there are 3 terrorists guarding the bomb and 58 seconds left before it detonates and destroys the stadium. The lone counter terrorist might just give up under the circumstances, but over her headpiece she hears the voice of one of her dead teammates shout, “clutch or kick.” She knows she can’t disarm the bomb under fire, she must push in on the objective and mercilessly eliminate all the hostiles. That’s the clutch. Her motivation to accomplish this? If she fails, the team will kick her from the server and allow someone else to take her spot.

The reality is that the team probably won’t kick her, unless they’re playing a few unimportant casual rounds and feel like being jerks, but the phrase still inspires a try-hard mentality. 

Outside the gaming world, if you’re told clutch or kick then you’re facing a high-pressure situation where you’re the last hope for success. You have to close the last sale of the month, weld the seam no one else can reach, or convince the vending machine to release the cinnamon bun. Just take a breath, nod, and go to work. If you make the clutch, you’ll be a hero.

For extra nerd cred, once you’ve made it back with the win, ask your teammate how exactly he planned to kick you if you didn’t get the clutch.

Real Life Nerds Found the Loch Ness Monster

Sonar scan revealing Nessie

People have been hunting the Loch Ness monster for centuries. Some, like Steve Feltham, George Edwards, and Dr. Robert Rines have dedicated their lives to searching for Nessie. Even Google Street View got in on the action. But everyone's come back empty handed...until 2016.

That's right, earlier this year the UK division of Kongsberg Maritime used an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to discover the elusive Nessie.