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“We used to not be able to stand the fact that we were in orchestra,” says Weiss, who’s been playing the violin since fourth grade and proudly wore the shirt to her high school this year. “Finally, we realized that’s where all our friends are and that’s where we have the most fun.

“So why not just say we’re dorks?”

There was a time when teens who tried something like that would have been asking for some serious goofing. But today being smart and sensitive, even a little socially awkward, is often considered cool — and the signs are everywhere.

“The O.C.,” a TV show popular with teens, has Seth, a comic-book loving nerd played by actor Adam Brody. Bands such as Weezer also feed off the dork image, complete with horn-rimmed glasses and a song about being OK with not fitting the Beverly Hills mold. “Napoleon Dynamite” has a fan club; its Web site claims 150,000 members.

And, increasingly, people are parading around in shirts that say “Dork Pride!” among other things. Such items have gotten so popular that CafePress.com, an online merchandiser, has created a special category for shirts and other items celebrating geeks, dorks and nerds.