NerdPride

"UWG Nerd Pride" was inspired by a similar slogan started at MIT by two EECS professors, Gerald Sussman and Hal Abelson. As Sussman puts it:

"My idea is to present an image to children that it is good to be intellectual, and not to care about the peer pressures to be anti-intellectual. I want every child to turn into a nerd - where that means someone who prefers studying and learning to competing for social dominance". (from FOLDOC) .

We couldn't agree more.

Our spirit of nerd pride also reflects the general attitude within the Department. We are serious people who are passionate about our work and about our Department and University. But, we also try to remember not to take our own personalities too seriously, and don't mind poking fun at ourselves every now and then. ;-)

Note: our research indicates that the word "Nerd" first appeared in the children's book "If I Ran the Zoo" (1950) by Dr. Seuss (Theodor Geisel).