Why are nerds commonly stereotyped as wearing glasses?

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Just what does being a nerd have to do with having problems your vision?

Contacts are banned in many chemistry labs.

Staring at screens a lot can cause eye problems

Laser surgeries are dangerous for mountain folk.

_________________
"Standing on a well-chilled cinder, we see the fading of the suns, and try to recall the vanished brilliance of the origin of the worlds."
-Georges Lemaitre
"I fly through hyperspace, in my green computer interface"
-Gem Tos

Years ago I read that there might really be a link to nearsightedness and a high IQ. Smart people tend to read more, so they get eyestrain, for example.

But I don't know. If intelligent people are nearsighted, then there should be a lot of people going around holding their newspapers at arms' length and still squinting.

I just though of something else. Nerds are less concerned about fitting in so they're more likely not to bother getting contacts or laser surgery sense they're less concerned about the stigma of wearing glasses.

A: Some of us *like* glasses and can't stand the idea of a) someone ablating or slicing our corneas or, b) intentionally putting a potential contaminant in our eyes every day. Maybe we just don't have enough vanity to outweigh the risks? Besides, many of the cornea reshaping procedures can potentially ruin your eyes for stargazing, apparently due to scattering, and why would we spend tens of hours building a telescope and then not be able to use it? In all seriousness, for me it's because the alternatives are either too complicated, risky, unsure yet permanent, or just too much trouble. Glasses are simple and reliable. So, our vision imperfections are more visible than non-nerds. Some of us don't particularly find that offensive.

Also, they are awesome as flirting props.

(Yes, that last bit was *totally* a joke. Then again maybe they are...I have no idea... )

Actually the last one is partly true, provided I remember not to flirt blind for any longer than five seconds.

_________________
"Standing on a well-chilled cinder, we see the fading of the suns, and try to recall the vanished brilliance of the origin of the worlds."
-Georges Lemaitre
"I fly through hyperspace, in my green computer interface"
-Gem Tos

I once remember a discussion where nerds=bookworms. Those who are very fond of reading small print often require corrective lenses based on eyestrain resulting from their prolonged reading. Very seldom have I seen someone who frequently enjoys books not use glasses at least for reading purposes. Even a fiction hater such as myself usually carries some store-bought "invisible" specs for taking out into dark eateries where I need help deciphering their menus, as well as fine detail on smaller display screens. FWIW, I've never been perceived as a "nerd", but a "dork" instead.

Wearing mine while performing as a "Blue Meanie" from "Yellow Submarine" as a required part of the costume...

Nerds are less likely to care what others think of them.

I acctually read somewhere (cannot find it at the moment, I'll edit the post and link to it if I find it in the meantime) that excessive reading afects your eyesight. So it makes sense that a lot of bookworms out there would need glasses.

I doubt that reading causes eye problems. It seems more likely that most people don't really notice they have vision problems until they learn to read.

It's not exactly reading close, but lack of looking far away, as one would do if outdoors often.

I've done research on this. There is a strong like between doing "close work" and nearsightedness. Close work can be anything where one spends a lot of time looking at something up close, such as reading, drawing, writing, being on the computer, making models, etc. The eye remains focused on the close things for too long.

The connection is with those that do a lot of close work in childhood. There is also a link between time spent outdoors in childhood and nearsightedness. The eye needs varied focus, so being outdoors, it will focus on things quite far and then things up close, which is what it's supposed to do.

Cultures that don't place an emphasis on education have less nearsightedness. If they are spending most time outside, doing things like hunting, farming, whatever, they have more opportunities for the eye to focus on things at different distances.

In cultures where children spend a lot of time studying, such as in many east Asian counties, the incidence of nearsightedness has gone up with the rise in education. Most children in these areas are nearsighted. If they are spending 6-7 days a week studying, and little time outdoors, the eye will not develop normally.

Also, reading while wearing glasses for myopia makes it worse. Only reading glasses should be used for reading, if one needs them.

Glasses are now a lot more fashionable than they once were, so stereotypical "nerd" glasses are usually broken and taped up, either because the nerd doesn't take good care of them, or because the school bully broke them.

Another stereotype about nerds is that their noses are always runny and/or congested, or they have all kinds of allergies, like Arnold's friend Paul in the Wonder Years. I don't know why. Maybe it's because if you're allergic to everything that grows you're stuck inside a lot more, so you spend much of your free time reading or watching educational programs on TV.

I have a pair of reading glasses because I have trouble reading signs and text on TV from far away, but I hardly ever wear them. Maybe I should when I go grocery shopping because I have to squint to read the signs over the shopping aisles.