Like legitimately look retarded

This one guy eats horribly

12/16/2008 11:43:10 AM

i too have noticed a weird trend of supersmart phd guys with terrible table manners at work.

12/16/2008 11:43:49 AM

they use up all their brain resources being smart, can't worry about things like eating properly.

12/16/2008 11:44:04 AM

[Edited on December 16, 2008 at 11:45 AM. Reason : bah, nevermind]

12/16/2008 11:44:34 AM

they have some variation of Autism?

science is built on the shoulders of socially retarded giants

you should know this, having gone to NCSU

12/16/2008 11:46:38 AM

Maybe they should include a course on etiquette and dressing and all that before you get your PhD?

12/16/2008 11:49:40 AM

they cant be bothered by that

they are conceptualizing

12/16/2008 11:50:42 AM

Quote :

"science is built on the shoulders of socially retarded giants "

This is true. All the people I know who are patent holders are incredibly awkward and dress like they own a copy of The Complete and Utter Nerd's Guide to Fashion. It's just so stereotypical and so correct.

12/16/2008 11:57:19 AM

Quote :

"science is built on the shoulders of socially retarded giants"

there has never been a more accurate statement

12/16/2008 12:07:44 PM

Quote :

"science is built on the shoulders of socially retarded giants you should know this, having gone to NCSU"

12/16/2008 12:09:02 PM

it makes sense, it takes a lot of brain power to understand the complexities of social interaction, if you divert all that to science and math you can do some amazing things, but you end up wearing sweatpants year round, trying to make up your own card games and get people to play them with you, and spending the rare opportunities you get to talk with girls asking them what it's like to have a period or telling them about your new sorting algorithm.

12/16/2008 12:15:01 PM

MY ALGORITHMS

LET ME SHOW YOU THEM

12/16/2008 12:17:22 PM

girls dig algorithms.

12/16/2008 12:20:24 PM

we have more patent holders than doctors. its all about application.

12/16/2008 12:22:42 PM

you can't sell theories at walmart. $$

12/16/2008 12:24:39 PM

12/16/2008 12:29:09 PM

You have two kinds of PhDs, one thinks he a gift to earth and is all knowing, and if you don't have the same education level apparently you are stupid and know nothing. The other one works 70 hours a week, doesn't care about what people are or what they think. The thing that they both have in common is that their work is ALL they do, which is sad and great at the same time. Some PhDs might don't have social skills and need something to occupy their minds to give them an outlet to express themselves. Anyway, we all are slaves of the system.

12/16/2008 12:35:39 PM

the military-industrial-university system

12/16/2008 12:39:17 PM

Quote :

"it makes sense, it takes a lot of brain power to understand the complexities of social interaction, if you divert all that to science and math you can do some amazing things, but you end up wearing sweatpants year round, trying to make up your own card games and get people to play them with you, and spending the rare opportunities you get to talk with girls asking them what it's like to have a period or telling them about your new sorting algorithm."

I don't think that makes any sense whatsoever.

I've always thought that it just takes a different type of mind to be intelligent in different areas of academia. I did really well in high levels of English and basically any classes where it required an inordinate amount of reading and memorization...as well as analytical skills. And I did well in the basic math classes that were required of me, but my head would spontaneously combust if I attempted some of the math classes that my engineer roommates were in. But they couldn't write a 5-page basic english paper to save their lives. Then there are the people that are into poetry...and people into science/lab stuff, etc.

I think it takes the same amount of "brain power" to perform very well in each one of those areas...but a lot of those other "experts" aren't socially awkward.

12/16/2008 12:58:11 PM

^ a agree with the dude that you quotes

and it's been my theory for autistic abilities as well...

12/16/2008 12:59:23 PM

obviously when i said "brain power" i was using a simplification, not trying to be accurate. By my explanation still holds up since some people are more gifted than others and can manage both types of intelligence.

12/16/2008 1:00:35 PM

I don't know....I just know too many people who are brilliant but also "Mr./Mrs. Popular."

I think you're mostly born with the social skills or you're not not. Some can be developed and a lot does have to do with your "environment"...but I don't think you're socially inept just because you spend all your time figuring out equations and formulas on graph paper.

12/16/2008 1:05:36 PM

Man there are a lot of grammatical errors in this thread

The title too, but I don't like to just put an S after an abbr.

Also, PhD is a thing not a person

12/16/2008 1:20:35 PM

Quote :

"This is true. All the people I know who are patent holders are incredibly awkward and dress like they own a copy of The Complete and Utter Nerd's Guide to Fashion. It's just so stereotypical and so correct."

hey fuck you buddy i hold three patents

12/16/2008 1:25:35 PM

yeah i was at a "patent holder" christmas party last night

and i must say, it was pretty far from socially awkward

12/16/2008 1:26:46 PM

^^

12/16/2008 1:56:37 PM

even with a phd i think im pretty normal

Quote :

"You have two kinds of PhDs, one thinks he a gift to earth and is all knowing, and if you don't have the same education level apparently you are stupid and know nothing. The other one works 70 hours a week, doesn't care about what people are or what they think. The thing that they both have in common is that their work is ALL they do, which is sad"

it didn't take a phd for me to know im a gift to this earth and i work only between 40-45 hours a week. i love my work when im actually at work. i very rarely ever bring any work home.

im not socially challenged, either. perhaps im just an outlier

12/16/2008 2:05:58 PM

I didn't know you held patents, ben

you should patent a way to keep ex-gfs from leaving nasty notes on facebook

not trying to pry, but wtf

12/16/2008 2:07:31 PM

haha yeah

i saw that this morning and was all wtf was that myself

so i erased it

12/16/2008 2:09:35 PM

you had an x- leave a nasty gram on your fb wall??

12/16/2008 2:12:44 PM

maybe you don't hang out with your ex because she is your ex and the past is the past, huh?

I don't know

12/16/2008 2:15:08 PM

haha

(e)x minus

yeah it ain't the hater wall so i took it down

12/16/2008 2:18:32 PM

Quote :

"You have two kinds of PhDs, one thinks he a gift to earth and is all knowing, and if you don't have the same education level apparently you are stupid and know nothing."

rotfl

thread of the year

12/16/2008 3:34:51 PM

steven hawking overwrote his motor control with physics equations

[Edited on December 16, 2008 at 3:37 PM. Reason : segfault]

12/16/2008 3:37:25 PM

I know lots of people pursuing doctorates that lead rather normal lives.

However, every PhD or PhD candidate that I know is at least a little quirky.

But working as much as required for that stuff it's inevitable to lose at least a bit of your sanity towards the process...

12/16/2008 3:57:59 PM

Try spending 20 hours a day, 6 days a week cloistered with books and/or lab equipment and see how your social graces are affected. It's true, not everyone is affected to such an extent that they can't get along, but most become at least a bit odd.

Also remember that these are people whose main interests - whose entire lives - are devoted to the things that bore most of you in school.

I'm a PhD candidate raised by a PhD & an MD and I approved this message.

12/16/2008 4:04:43 PM

pilgrim what are you patents for ?

you dont have to go into detail

just file them under 'shit that I would care about' and/or 'shit that I wouldn't'

12/16/2008 4:07:10 PM

i dont know about all that. i stay pretty tied up, not because of school. but i still get pretty cut off sometimes. and i know many other people who stay tied up. but when we get out, we still know how to talk.

i will admit that i'm not up on the current fads, but thats never been an issue before

12/16/2008 4:08:35 PM

There's also the socialization factor - most of the people you know who have similar schedules are other nerds.

12/16/2008 4:10:25 PM

this other guy in R&D

his head is fucking huge, its on par with a WNBA sized basketball

i always sat behind him in large conference meetings in case i nodded off

12/16/2008 5:05:52 PM

Quote :

"You have two kinds of PhDs, one thinks he a gift to earth and is all knowing, and if you don't have the same education level apparently you are stupid and know nothing. The other one works 70 hours a week, doesn't care about what people are or what they think. The thing that they both have in common is that their work is ALL they do, which is sad and great at the same time. Some PhDs might don't have social skills and need something to occupy their minds to give them an outlet to express themselves. Anyway, we all are slaves of the system. "

are you sure thats it? those are the only 2 kinds of PhDs? maybe you should get out more

12/16/2008 5:09:38 PM

i was also going to say.... auuuuutistic!

12/16/2008 5:11:28 PM

you people are mean


PhDs are cool, i mean if they talk to me on a regular basis than they gotta be pretty damn down to earth

12/16/2008 5:14:02 PM

its not mean, its an observation

im sure they wouldnt trade their accomplishments and $$ for normalcy, they're all happily married i believe

12/16/2008 5:15:49 PM

i think the only PhDs that are consistent with your observations are them god damn indians runnin round campus

12/16/2008 5:17:00 PM

FCUKCKDSKD

[Edited on December 16, 2008 at 5:17 PM. Reason : d]

12/16/2008 5:17:37 PM

when keeping it real...goes wrong

12/16/2008 5:18:06 PM

Quote :

"i was also going to say.... auuuuutistic!"

derp derp hyuck hyuck

12/16/2008 5:22:56 PM

Quote :

"However, every PhD or PhD candidate that I know is at least a little quirky."

Quirky in the sense that I like to lick a girl's butthole?

12/17/2008 6:29:57 PM

set em up

12/17/2008 6:51:14 PM