Who were the sexiest geeks of 2010? Depends on what you mean by the words sexy and geek.

Those terms mean nothing and everything at the same time. They're linguistic signifiers stuffed with commodification and infested by interpretation. They can be used to stereotype and sell whatever to whomever.

To get the conversation started in Wired.com's Sexy Geeks 2010 competition, we've spotlighted the geeks that galvanized culture so convincingly this year that they became sex symbols, whether they wanted to or not. We're talking people like Patton Oswalt, who put a bullet through the head of "geek culture" marketing — for Wired, no less! — which is why he, and his gun, made our list.

Eyeball our list of top contenders for the Sexy Geek 2010 title, then nominate your own favorites and vote below.

Above:

Patton Oswalt

This was a busy year for the always-productive Patton Oswalt, who starred in the deranged toon Robotomy and the schizodrama The United States of Tara while writing a Firefly comic and his first book, Zombie Spaceship Wasteland (out Jan. 4, 2011). His annihilation of geek culture — in the excellently named Wired essay "Wake Up Geek Culture, Time to Die" — turned this one-time frat boy into a sex symbol for those who are seriously tired of stereotyping tropes and transparent jargon. —Scott Thill

Photo: Chris Buck/Wired