'Nerd Nite' Rolls Into Austin on Thursday

If your ideal social event combines drinking alcohol and acquiring obscure knowledge, then Nerd Nite is for you.

Austin's first Nerd Nite is scheduled for 7 pm Thursday at Opal Divine's Freehouse (700 West 6th St.) and will feature a University of Texas epidemiologist discussing Ebola rates among gorillas, as well as an enthusiastic chronicler of post-Soviet Belarusian society.

Organizers are hoping the event, which originated in Boston and gained additional exposure in New York, could become a monthly occurrence.

"Nerd Nite is really about having a passion for the obscure," explained co-creator JC Dwyer. "We serve as an outlet for people who, by profession or compulsion, have become experts on topics that no one else cares about. We give them a couple beers, and encourage them to share that passion."