The Countdown Reflection - S5-E24
Factual error: There is not a snowball's chance of Howard becoming an astronaut. He suffers from cardiac arrhythmia, something about which he is completely open. "Transient" or not this is easily detectable by a simple electrocardiogram, which is a fundamental part of the many medical examinations a potential astronaut will have to pass. He wouldn't even be allowed to start basic training. Note also that during his basic training he shows signs of severe stress and trauma which would inevitably trigger a cardiac episode. Even if it didn't the fact that he was falling apart at the seams would have him removed from the programme for his own good.
Factual error: Raj and Sheldon are watching TV in Raj's apartment and we hear music playing. Sheldon asks if the woman on TV was Aishwarya Rai to which Raj says yes and then they argue about her and Madhuri Dixit. The song playing was from the Bollywood movie Kaho Na Pyar Hai, but neither of them are in the movie - the lead actress was Ameesha Patel. (00:14:50)
The Flaming Spittoon Acquisition - S5-E10
Factual error: Sheldon and Amy have agreed to call each other "boyfriend" and "girlfriend." Sheldon suggests she should peruse the new relationship agreement while he sets up his notary stamp. As an agreement, both parties would sign. As a Notary, Sheldon would know that he could not notarize his own signature.
The Beta Test Initiation - S5-E14
Factual error: Penny picks up a hand gun, pulls back the slide to ensure the chamber is empty (which would discharge any round in the chamber too) and then releases it, leaving it closed. She then loads a magazine into the butt of the weapon and hands it to Leonard. He starts to smooch her and shoots himself in the foot. The gun could not have fired, because Penny would have to pull the slide all the way back and then release it again to load the first bullet. There couldn't have already been a bullet in the chamber, as the whole reason Penny pulled the slide back in the first place was to check just that.
The Hot Troll Deviation - S4-E4
Factual error: During the final scene of this episode, Sheldon steps out of his office wearing a gas mask and engages Leonard in conversation where he then states he is making hydrogen sulphide gas (more commonly known as H2S). Leonard correctly identifies this as highly flammable. However, this gas is far more dangerous and is harmful to the human body at as low a concentration as 20 parts per million (ppm), can cause permanent damage at 100ppm and is fatal after two breaths at 500ppm. So for Raj (and his bird) to be completely unharmed in a high concentration of H2S (noted by the fire) is impossible.
The 2003 Approximation - S9-E4
Factual error: Sheldon tries to pretend that it is 2003, before he met Leonard. But in the episode The 21 Second Excitation S4 E8 it was stated Leonard and Sheldon waited in line for 14 hours to see the midnight premiere of Star Trek: Nemesis. Star Trek: Nemesis premiered on the 9th of December 2002.
Factual error: Sheldon says the movie Gremlins "baffles" him in regards to the instructions being very clear."Don't feed the gremlins after midnight." However, this instruction is only for caring of a Mogwai, not gremlins (the gremlins are formed by Mogwais eating after midnight). Sheldon, of all characters, would not mistake Mogwais for Gremlins and he would know the exact wording of the instructions.
The Vengeance Formulation - S3-E9
Factual error: Sheldon's voice becomes squeaky when helium is pumped into his office. But if the room contained enough helium to make his voice squeaky just by breathing, Sheldon would actually be suffocating due to lack of oxygen, the lighter helium having displaced the heavier oxygen. You can do it with a balloon because you can breathe normal air between huffs, but if you're in a room full of helium, you won't last long before passing out and asphyxiating.
The Vengeance Formulation - S3-E9
Factual error: In order to get vengeance on Kripke, Sheldon mixes a solution of hydrogen peroxide, saturated potassium iodide and liquid soap, creating a large foam blob. This is easy to replicate, and what you will get (and look carefully, it is what Sheldon gets) is a huge, aerated foam mass consisting almost completely of bubbles. It is barely heavier than air, and if dropped from a ceiling as we see later in the episode it would float harmlessly about the place. Whatever it is that drops on Kripke and his visitors later, it isn't the foam mixture we see earlier - it looks like some sort of custard mix.
Factual error: The main apartment in the show is located in Pasadena, Calif. When looking out the window in the background, mountains are shown in the distance and far away. In reality, Pasadena lies right underneath the long mountain range so the mountains would be up close, not far away.
Suggested correction: Not true. I lived in Pasadena for years and in some areas, the mountains do look further away. The view from the San Pasqual apartments, you can barely see the mountains.
The Nerdvana Annihilation - S1-E14
Factual error: The time machine in this episode is supposedly the same one used in the H.G. Wells movie, but there are mistakes in the controls that would have been obvious to the characters: 1. When Leonard first gets into the machine he talks about traveling into the past and says something like "I'm setting the date to..." That is the method used to operate the Wayback Machine in the Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoon, but not the time machine in the H.G. Wells movie. Rod Taylor could not set the desired date on the controls, he simply used the lever to move forward and backward through time and the date display updated automatically to show the current date. 2. In the movie the default position of the lever was at a 45 degree angle. Pushing the lever forward moved the machine into the future, pulling back on the lever moved the machine into the past. In the TV show the default position of the lever is vertical and Leonard pulls the lever backwards to move forward into the future - opposite of the movie.
The Pancake Batter Anomaly - S1-E11
Factual error: Leonard's myopia is greatly exaggerated in this episode. Even with high myopia he should still be able to navigate his apartment without aid especially after living there for seven years. (00:17:40)
The Cushion Saturation - S2-E16
Factual error: Leslie Winkle takes shelter with Howard in the middle of a paintball game. Her gun has no hopper for paintballs and thus no ammo, so it's useless, despite her apparently using it outside seconds earlier. This isn't a model with an internal magazine - the port to attach the missing hopper is plainly visible.
Factual error: Every time we see Leonard's laser lab the door is open and he is able, if the story requires it, to fire the laser. As evidenced by the several safety notices visible and the scripted requirements for characters to put on safety goggles it should not be possible to activate the laser while the lab door is open - it would be interlocked, meaning the laser wouldn't function unless the door is closed.
The Contractual Obligation Implementation - S6-E18
Factual error: At the end of the episode, the girls are at Disneyland in costume as Disney Princesses. Adults at Disneyland are not permitted to wear character costumes because of the risk of them masquerading as Cast Members, so they certainly would not have been dressed that way at Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique.
The Mommy Observation - S7-E18
Factual error: Based on the length of Bernadette's skirt and the place she's standing, Stuart could never see under it.
The Hot Troll Deviation - S4-E4
Factual error: Howard's claim that characters in World of Warcraft can engage in sexual activities is wrong, also while there is a Bridge of Souls currently in the game, there is no way to get under it.
Suggested correction: I can only assume you have never played on a RP server? ERP is a big thing, some players even make gold from it.
Factual error: Sheldon has a rigid schedule. Halo Night is known to be on Wednesday night. Penny sleeps on the couch in Sheldon and Leonard's apartment. The following morning, Sheldon cannot watch Doctor Who on BBC America because Penny is sleeping on his spot on the couch. He states that he has been watching Doctor Who every Saturday at 6:15 a.m. The following morning should be Thursday.
The Large Hadron Collision - S3-E15
Factual error: At the very end of the show, Leonard and Raj arrive at the hotel, which is supposed to be in Geneva, Switzerland, to visit CERN. If you look out the "hotel" window, it looks like they're half way up Matterhorn, but in Geneva there are no big/rocky mountains anywhere near the city itself.
The Fetal Kick Catalyst - S10-E6
Factual error: When Raj, Howard and Bernadette are in the car, Raj puts on Batman the Animated Series to distract Howard from his back pain. Howard says "I'm in too much pain to watch cartoo-oh, this is a good one!" However, there is no way he could know that it's a good episode of the show because the opening theme song can be heard playing and the name of the episode does not appear until after it.
Suggested correction: He meant the cartoon is good, in general. Not the specific episode.
Nah, he was told right beforehand that it was Batman: The Animated Series. A nerd like Howard definitely knows which cartoon that is and that it's a good cartoon without needing to look at it.
