Revenge of the Nerds: They run the companies while the Luddites scramble. (Focus: Tech Journal).

He got beat up in junior high and high school. His glasses were taped at the bridge not because he thought it looked cool but because he caught right hook to the nose. A calculator was always at hand, and friends were few and far between.

Slide rule? Got it. Pocket protector? A whole shoe box full under the bed at home. Mechanical pencils? Yep.

He was carrying his book bags on both shoulders before that was cool. He had to because his chemistry and physics books were too heavy for his meek physique. He stole away to read forbidden magazines -- Physics Today, Scientific American and Quantum.

He was a nerd, and everyone knew it.

But oh, how times change.

Today, nerds run multimillion-dollar companies, drive fancy cars and have all the latest high-tech gadgets. They laugh at the former football players and cheerleaders who have junior college degrees, live with their parents and come to them for …