Just in case there are students out there who have somehow avoided the last couple of years of moderately popular cinema and television, let me tell you about Zooey Deschanel. From her seemingly anti-cheer attitude in Elf to her quirky, relatable and frank display of character in New Girl, Deschanel has carved herself a niche as the woman who says what all of us quiet social critics are thinking.

This forthright approach to previously demonized personality qualities (e.g., recognition of either female sexual behavior or “nerdy” things such as Star Wars) has gained a fair amount of clout in our shifting culture. This has led to the more recent slew of ads and pictures all centered on one central theme: Nerdy is the new sexy.

While I have a hard time denying such a claim (Emma Watson went to Brown, you say?), I feel this new movement needs a significant amount of correction. First off, to those who think up these pictures of women in thick-rimmed glasses biting a Super Nintendo controller that isn’t plugged in – you’re not accurately depicting a female gamer. Your inaccuracies are neither sexy nor effective; they’re just plain insulting to both the woman in the picture as well as your intended audience – we can tell when F-Zero is not properly functioning.

Which brings me to my next grievance – the intended audience. I recently saw a screenshot of a Facebook status where someone claims he’s playing video games and is, therefore, such a nerd. A friend then asks this person if he’s excited for E3, the biggest video game conference in the United States. After a humorous exchange – from the perspective of an outsider – the original “nerd” politely requests that his friend stop commenting on his status, as the “nerd” has neither heard of E3 nor does he find the concept particularly interesting.

Since it is clear the intended audience of this new trend is not gamers of either gender, I tried to figure out the target demographic. Then it hit me: In the musical The Music Man, the classic portrayal of the sexy librarian plays a pivotal role in the character arc of the protagonist. Alternative culture, then, seems to be the flavor of the month just as there has always been the archetypal sexy librarian.

Again, I take some issues here. First, by definition, alternative culture must appeal to the minority. I can’t comment for my entire generation, but it’s fair to say there has been a real shift toward the former “underground” of music and fashion. It’s overused, but the stock phrase, “you’ve probably never heard of it,” the hipster battle cry and an attempt to carve out your own area of expertise, is all too familiar in the academic world.

We’re seeing a radical shift in what society views as attractive. I paraphrase radio personality Diane Rehm, who says our generation is demanding more from our politicians and taking more time to be critical of media sources. In the 21st century, knowledge is power, and the ability to hunt down some wild boar for prehistoric bacon is becoming less of a determinant in choosing a mate.

Like many with more brains than brawn, more personality than pop knowledge, I couldn’t be happier. Having a sexy geek in the media is like taking out a personal ad without having to pay for it (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I’m looking at you, as are many others). What I’m not happy about is the number of, if I may be so Holden Caulfield, phony fan boys and girls at the concert for an artist previously unburdened with fair-weather fans.

Even though I can’t have my cake and GLaD-ly eat it too, I will say we are blessed to live in an age where knowledge is the new front page – for now.

Erik Shell is a sophomore classical languages and literatures and history major. He can be reached at opinion@umdbk.com.