Any nerd worth his life-size poster of Gillian Anderson will happily confess to a more than passing interest in science. It goes with the territory: Be a geek, like science.

Yet it isn't just a passing fondness for lab coats, microscopes, and potentiometers, true geeks have a passion for whatever facet of science he or she chooses. Some get a kick out of electronics (Steve Wozniak), some find ecstasy in astronomy (Carl Sagan), some get off on getting down with numbers (Albert Einstein). These are über-geeks, they love science because they love science. Pure and simple. They have somehow managed to make their passion the focus of their lives, which separates them from mere mortals.

The rest of us run-of-the-mill geeks poke at science, but it is not our life's work. We're busy holding down bill-paying jobs and making little geeks, and when we can we see what the übers are up to, maybe dabble a bit ourselves, just to keep our hands wet with science.

Whatever your scientific interest, you'll be happy to know that you can get your geek on while commuting to and from your 9 to 5 by subscribing to the New York Times Science Times podcasts.

Want to know what the über-geeks are doing to help the world's less fortunate? Check out Episode 1: Tools for Better Living. Wondering what's up with the beaver population in NY State? Episode 8: The Beaver's Return might be what you're looking for.

Claudia Driefus (no relation to Richard) finds out what makes good eggs turn rotten

I downloaded Episode 7:  Good, Bad and Ugly, in which Dr. Philip Zimbardo, author of the new book "The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil."discusses with NY Times Science Editor, Claudia Dreifus, the reasons why some good people, in certain situations, can turn downright nasty. It's an interesting 8 minutes, a bit dry, but informative enough to satisfy my geekish craving for knowledge.

Fortunately, other episodes are not as dry as this one, so put on your thinkin' beanie, put up your TI-93 Plus, break out the iPod, grab a Red Bull, and get to downloading.

While you're at it you might want to turn that beanie around to the side that says "Wine Connoisseur Wannabe" and go fetch several episodes of Wine Library TV where host, Gary Vaynerchuk, steps you through some of the technical aspects of wine, wine tasting, wine making, and wine in general. Gary's an energetic soul and seems to love what he's doing (a wine geek perhaps?). And what's not to love? He gets to sample wines and tell us about it, and he does so without one jot of pretension. 

You go Gary!

Gary Vaynerchuk clues us in on the wine world (he's not constipated, he just looks that way)

I'll admit I know nothing of wine, but I've always wanted to learn, which is why Wine Library TV is such a nice find. So, clean your palate, grab a corkscrew, and let Gary tell you what's hot and what's not out in the vineyards.

OK, now you can take the beanie off and turn your I.Q.-ometer down below 100, it's time for another reality show. This one's about a group of lesbian surfer babes. Curl Girls is a new show on Logo.

This show is no different than its straight siblings, which isn't saying much. Someone gets bent out of joint because someone has done something to someone else. Voices are raised, tears fly amidst bikinis and lots of well tanned skin. There are some racy moments, some soul baring, and some chest baring, which may be worth the price of admission for some. (Yes, the censors have blotted out anything too revealing).

So if you're into that sort of thing this show might be for you. I can watch hot women do just about anything, but even that can get tiresome after a few weeks minutes. Your mileage may vary.

Anyway, the first episode of Curl Girls is there for you to download on the iTunes store.

There more free downloads at the iTunes Store, here's what's listed: