Omphaloskepsis- literally “navel gazing”, being so wrapped up in yourself that you forget about the world around you
Ex: We all know a few academic types who have been engaged in omphaloskepsis since the moment they received their first golden star on a Mesopotamian society quiz in 5th grade social studies. That shiny symbol of intellectual prowess enabled them to look past their shortcomings on the recess field and the piss stains on their husky khakis, instilling them with delusional self-worth and inflating their egos to the same size as their towering flashcard piles. These folks grew up with their heads so far up their own asses that they’re now using poo as mascara. Maybe it’s Maybelline? Nah, it’s for sure the latrine. Don’t even bother trying to drop knowledge around these people, they’ll correct you in such a pedantic fashion that it’ll have you scouring WebMD for the symptoms of Mild Cognitive Impairment or Major Global Retardation (*not an actual diagnosis at the time of publishing). Elite universities around the globe are littered with these haughty braniacs, the human products of social awkwardness multiplied by associations with neck-bearded sycophant yes-men who suck on their toes when they shout out a jeopardy answer before the contestants buzz in. At least in high school there existed the great equalizer—The Student Vs. Staff Basketball Game— which offered kids the chance to shake & bake snooty English teachers and to stuff their nuts in the faces of crabby math instructors on thunderous, boom-shakalaka style dunks. In college and beyond, these academic a-holes do whatever is in their power to avoid spots of potential embarrassment, but ironically fail to address the chronic patheticism draped around their torsos in the form of argyle sweater vests. The imposing defenses they have mounted to protect their egos are able to withstand the emasculating practice of having to outsource for every yard or housework task. They sit at their home office desks with their noses buried deep in abstruse works on the evolutionary significance of yodeling in human sexual selection (shows potential mates that one will provide schnitzel in cold winter months) as burly contractors come and go as they please, often disappearing with their wives for extended periods of time.