2011-11-19
Explanation
This comic presents a graph comparing "Life Satisfaction" (y-axis) versus "Age" (x-axis) for two groups: "Most People" (in red) and "Nerds" (in blue). The red curve for most people shows satisfaction starting moderately high in childhood, dipping somewhat in the teenage years, peaking in the 20s-30s range, and then gently declining into old age. The blue curve for nerds tells a very different story: satisfaction plummets during childhood and adolescence (bottoming out around the teenage years), stays very low through early adulthood, but then begins an exponential rise starting around age 40, eventually soaring far above the curve for most people.
The joke captures a widely held nerd fantasy (and partial truth): that the qualities which make nerds miserable in their youth -- intellectual intensity, social awkwardness, niche interests -- eventually become assets later in life. While popular kids peak in their 20s, nerds supposedly come into their own in middle age when career success, financial stability, and cultural shifts toward valuing technical expertise begin to pay dividends. The exponential growth of the nerd curve in later years is an exaggeration played for comedic effect, suggesting nerds ultimately achieve a level of life satisfaction that vastly exceeds everyone else'''s.
The votey panel extends the joke with a separate graph labeled "Extroverted Nerds," showing a curve that rises sharply and plateaus at a high level almost immediately. The implication is that if you combine nerd interests with social skills, you skip the miserable early years entirely and go straight to high life satisfaction -- the best of both worlds.