Have we reached ‘peak beard’? How bad is the English football team? Who invented credit cards and why? Find out the answers to all this and more at Nerd Nite London on October 15th 2014
Nerd Nite London is a monthly event where three speakers give 18-21 minute fun-yet-informative talks across all disciplines, while the audience drinks along.

Address: Nerd Nite, Paper Dress Vintage, 114-116 Curtain Road, London, EC2A 3AH
Details: Wednesday 15th October, Doors at 7.45pm. Tickets £6. Early nerd tickets £5 (limited availability).

Tickets available here: https://billetto.co.uk/nerdnitelondon-bf1b43-0cb695-6b0fc8
Drink away those autumn chills and warm your brain with another dose of Nerd Nite London knowledge. This month we have hair, beards, sport and money. Be there and be square.

Nerd #1- Candice Zen, ‘Hairstyles and beards: a social history’

From the Egyptians who were into shaving everything and Henry VIII who imposed heavy taxes on beards, through the cockroach-infested wigs of the 18th century and Kevin Keegan perms of the 1970’s, to modern day dip-dyes and retro handlebar moustaches. Candice will lift the lid on the strange world of hair and barbering, telling stories of the eccentric people in the industry and grooming habits we had and still have.

Bio: Candice is a professional barber and hairstylist. She spends her days cutting and styling hair, shaving and swapping stories and secret histories with her London clients.

Nerd #2 – Rob Minto, ‘Narratives and numbers in sport’

Sport revolves around two things: narrative, and numbers. Narrative is emotions, rivalries and legend. But we need the numbers to work out what’s actually going on. And there are some surprising results. Here are three things you probably didn’t know about sport: the Olympics is getting easier; England do well at the World Cup; and Usain Bolt is actually quite slow. OK, that last one is a little bit of a stretch, but Rob will crunch the data and challenge a few sporting assumptions.

Bio: Rob is a journalist who has worked at the Financial Times for probably too long, writing about markets, technology and other stuff. He is now writing a book on sport, which aims to be a visual tour of sporting myths, debates and data.

Nerd #3 – Chris Jones, ‘Boulders to bitcoins: A brief history of money’

It may not buy happiness, but it does make the world go round. Money. What is it and where did it come from? This talk will provide a brief, whirlwind look at the concept of money, its place in civilisation and the various historical cock-ups it’s caused along the way.

Bio: By day Chris Jones is a programmer. By night, he is batman. As well as this, Jones studied Economics at Lancaster University and LSE, and has been involved in monetary reform in the last few years.

All profits from the night go to charity. This month’s charity is Stroke Association. More information about Nerd Nite London can be found by following us on Twitter @nerdnitelondon, liking us on Facebook www.faceboook.com/nerdnitelondon or visiting www.nerdnite.london.com
Tickets: https://billetto.co.uk/nerdnitelondon-bf1b43-0cb695-92f567