In 10 years as a "professional" I've never heard it until the last 6 months.
I'm EE so different circles, but closer to pure SW people in those last 6 months.
Likely because it’s from an old book that few in the gen xyz have read. It’s been transformed to mean ‘understand’ and it’s pretentious to use in regular settings.
I’m a fan of the movie Kin-dza-dza it doesn’t make it acceptable for me to walk around saying ‘Ku’ to strangers.
And if you do read that old book it has a lot of overt sexism and to me it felt like some sort of incel fantasy (I really enjoy older scifi so understand times were different back then but Stranger in a Strange Land felt over the top). So now I associate that word with all the problematic aspects of the book and assume the person using it is either using the word without having read the book or didn't see a problem with the book when they did read it. Neither really makes me think highly of the person.
The book was progressive for its time, shocking to publishers for openly discussing sexuality, religion, establishment.
People reading it 60 years later and finding it sexist I think are projecting a bit of their own insecurities. Considering the book, the current dominant religious institutions on the planet, the scriptures behind those beliefs and institutions, and what’s been going on in America over the past 4 years as far as women’s rights.
>So now I associate that word with all the problematic aspects of the book and assume the person using it is either using the word without having read the book or didn't see a problem with the book when they did read it. Neither really makes me think highly of the person.
You cannot separate the book and person reading the book. Its ok to disagree, its ok to have different views.
I think it would be like a youngish person today walking around using 1980s slang. It seems pretty clear in use that it is a conscious, affected choice.