As a true nerd, I can attest to the fact that we like to get a little frisky with our t-shirt choices when we attend a public event. Not only do we like the humor involved but there is something to be said about wearing a shirt that someone else probably won’t understand. To the general public, you are wearing a non-sensical shirt – but within the hallowed walls of a nerd gathering, you are wearing a badge of honor proclaiming your love for all things nerdy. It was no different for all of my fellow geeks that attended the Gizmodo meetup this past weekend. Tech Loop saw a few shirts at the meetup that, in a sense, described the nerds ascent into the nether regions in five steps. Here are those five shirts for your viewing pleasure (all of which I would be proud to wear) with a special thanks to those who posed for pictures:

Stage #5: General Cleverness - The Chicken Mourns His Loss

Because of the somewhat obvious irony of this shirt, you might be able to catch a non-nerd wearing this shirt as well. It has that simple "Far Side" sense of humor. But, tech-geek or not, you are stepping into the first stages of nerdity by wearing it.

Stage #4: Star Wars Tributes - Empire was the best, man.

Being a Star Wars fan doesn't make you a nerd - this movie has been seen and loved by millions upon millions of people. Liking Star Wars only makes you one of the masses, but wearing the t-shirt? That makes you a nerd. By wearing this shirt you proclaim that you have taken the cinematic route into nerdity, and staying home on a Saturday night to watch the original trilogy back-to-back-to-back is perfectly fine with you. Ohh, and this guy isn't throwing out gang signs...that's "C-H-I" for Chitown...nerd.

Stage #3: Retro Gaming References - Who Needs Guns When You Have a Playstation Dual Shock 3?

One step up from the Star Wars fan is the nerd that proclaims his love for video games with a smirky tee designed to tell the world that the controller is mightier than the sword. This, of course, is done with graphics of controllers past to future, with familiar 8-bit 'Nintendo' lettering emblazoned across the top.This nerd's weapon of choice at the Gizmodo meetup was a Rock Band controller.

Stage #2: HTML Jokes - Real Men Show Off Their Muscles in Code

Now, once you start using HTML code on your shirt, you know that you have stepped into the realms of the ultra-geeky. This guy doesn't care if the lay person won't understand his shirt - the people at the Gizmodo meetup would, and that's all that matters.

Stage #1: DOS-based Humor - C:\DOS\RUN

This shirt is it - the crowning jewel and mother of all geek shirts, not only because it uses code to recreate an old children's poem, but because it uses fairly outdated DOS code to do so. This, ladies and gentlemen, is when you know you have become a full-blown nerd.

Are there other stages of nerdity that we missed?  Do you have a t-shirt to go with it?  Take a pic and post the link below!

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Blake Schnitkey
As a graduate in Visual Communications Technology from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, Blake was drawn into a love for technology via the biggest passion in his lif More