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WZTV FOX 17 - Top Stories
A local brainiac is on a mission to win the title of the biggest nerd in the country.
25-year-old Brandon Moore is an eccentric PhD student at Vanderbilt University on a national TV show called "King of the Nerds."
When he's not analyzing data or competing in a nationally televised nerd-off, you might find him rapping at a Nashville karaoke bar.
Moore's latest research revolves around understanding how the human eye turns light into images in the brain, but he has a history of less than orthodox projects.
"I tried setting up a camera with a computer to see if it could identify the gender of a person walking into my room with me," Moore said.
If he walked in with a male, it would do nothing, but if he walked in with a female, the system would dim the lights and play romantic music.
Of course experiments don't always go as planned.
"Often times when some of my guy buddies would come in it would dim the lights," Moore said. "That wasn't exactly expected so that was very short lived."
The last few years have seen nerdiness skyrocket in pop culture.
From hit shows like "The Big Bang Theory" to pro athletes like LeBron James even giving press conferences in full nerd attire, the once maligned moniker is now a popular pronoun.
But Moore says to be a real nerd, takes a whole lot more than just wearing the uniform.
"You may lose sleep, forget to bathe or something while conducting data analysis or something like that but you do it because you love it," Moore said. "And that's really at the core of what being a nerd is."
Moore says aside from winning the competition, he hopes his research will lay the foundation to someday help cure blindness.
"King of the Nerds" airs Thursday nights on TBS.
25-year-old Brandon Moore is an eccentric PhD student at Vanderbilt University on a national TV show called "King of the Nerds."
When he's not analyzing data or competing in a nationally televised nerd-off, you might find him rapping at a Nashville karaoke bar.
Moore's latest research revolves around understanding how the human eye turns light into images in the brain, but he has a history of less than orthodox projects.
"I tried setting up a camera with a computer to see if it could identify the gender of a person walking into my room with me," Moore said.
If he walked in with a male, it would do nothing, but if he walked in with a female, the system would dim the lights and play romantic music.
Of course experiments don't always go as planned.
"Often times when some of my guy buddies would come in it would dim the lights," Moore said. "That wasn't exactly expected so that was very short lived."
The last few years have seen nerdiness skyrocket in pop culture.
From hit shows like "The Big Bang Theory" to pro athletes like LeBron James even giving press conferences in full nerd attire, the once maligned moniker is now a popular pronoun.
But Moore says to be a real nerd, takes a whole lot more than just wearing the uniform.
"You may lose sleep, forget to bathe or something while conducting data analysis or something like that but you do it because you love it," Moore said. "And that's really at the core of what being a nerd is."
Moore says aside from winning the competition, he hopes his research will lay the foundation to someday help cure blindness.
"King of the Nerds" airs Thursday nights on TBS.
Thursday, January 17 2013, 01:48 PM CST
Tennessee News
Afghan pilots learn air assault tactics from 101st
May 19, 2013 16:48 GMT
By KRISTIN M. HALL Associated Press
BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan (AP) -- With Afghan troops increasingly leading combat operations on the ground, the Afghan Air Force's fledgling helicopter fleet based in Kabul has learned new techniques to support them from the air.
The U.S. Army's 101st Combat Aviation Brigade started a new training program at Bagram Air Field for Afghan helicopter pilots to learn how to perform air assault missions, which they have started to use in combat operations.
101st Combat Aviation Brigade Commander Col. Paul Bontrager said the Afghans need to be weaned off American aviation during the drawdown of U.S. forces this year.
The ability of Afghan helicopters to quickly drop soldiers into combat is a new and critical role.
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