Question: Why does the show go out of the way never to show the names of sodas? IE, 'Cola' instead of 'Coke', 'Lime' instead of 'Sprite,' 'Zip' instead of '7up.' They don't seem to have a problem with showing names of other products, such as the snacks in the vending machine.
Chosen answer: Certain items are part of paid product placement. Those would be obviously named, as would things that can't go unnamed for simplicity reasons. Other things might be unnamed because of opposite product placement, i.e. Coke pays for it so they don't name Pepsi products.
Question: My understanding is Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, Howard, and even Amy and Kripke work for a university; but none of them seem to be teachers. And if they are, they never have office hours, or are seen grading homework, and Sheldon seems inept at teaching. Do universities really hire that many people who simply do research with no actual work requirements? Or what's going on? (I understand not filming boring office hours or grading, etc. But they never even allude to it, their work never interferes with random daily events, and I imagine college teachers/professors would stay extremely more busy.
Chosen answer: The boys work for Caltech, a research university mainly dedicated to science and technology. It's never been stated where Amy works, except that she has her own lab. But remember, her lab is fully funded by the Saudi prince that she is pseudo-engaged to. Any business or university would hire her for that reason.
Answer: In season 7 though Amy came to work at the university til the end.
Question: Why doesn't Amy even once wear pants?
Answer: Amy does not wear pants because Mayim Bialik does not wear them in her personal life. She is Jewish and observes the Judaic custom of modesty and only wears skirts. The Big Bang producers allowed her to incorporate this practice into her Amy character.
Question: Why can't Leonard's mother act like an actual mother? Why did she treat him like a test subject?
Answer: Because she is not the mother-type. She is a very emotionally detached person. She probably got children for the prospect of them being successful and interesting to her work. Not because she likes raising them or take care of them.
Question: Whenever the gang always have dinner together why is it always in Leonard and Sheldon's apartment?
Chosen answer: Out of everyone's apartments, the gang likely eats and hangs out at Leonard and Sheldon's apartment because it has the largest living room space and they would be given the most amount of room to interact in. Raj's apartment and Penny's apartment do not appear to have as much living room space as Leonard and Sheldon's apartment, so they may not want to hang out there, nor would they want to hang out at Howard's place since his mother would be there.
In addition to this, I'm sure that Sheldon has some sort of rule that if they aren't eating at a restaurant, they eat at Sheldon and Leonard's place because it's where Sheldon is most comfortable.
In addition, I think a big part of the reason would be that 3 of the 5 (at first) friends lived in the same building so eating there meant fewer people had to travel. Plus, it was very quickly traditional for Penny to come over to Leonard and Sheldon's apartment to eat so it was natural it stayed that way. And lastly, it's not at Penny's apartment since Penny usually doesn't have money to pay for the food so since Leonard usually brings the food, it's logical everyone goes to his apartment.
This isn't true. In one episode, I can't remember which, the group eats at Raj's place with Priya. Sheldon expresses his displeasure to Amy who explains that Leonard is the nucleus and that where Leonard goes, everyone goes. Sheldon has no such rule about eating there.
Since he states his displeasure it proves he is more comfortable eating at home. He even doesn't like eating at a dinner table in his own apartment, let alone somewhere else entirely. He only compromises if he has no choice.
Question: Was it ever established how long Howard spent on the International Space Station? I ask because some story arcs that begin with one season's finale pick up immediately where the last season left off (S4-S5), but others take place more or less in real time, such as when the guys went on a scientific expedition to the Arctic Circle. So did Howard actually spend three months on the ISS, or was there a "time jump"?
Chosen answer: Howard went up on Expedition 31 and came back on 32. If the BBT universe holds to the same schedule as the real one, he would have been up there for approximately two months.
Question: Can someone explain to me the friendship between Penny and Amy? I don't quite understand it.
Chosen answer: Penny and Amy became friends simply because their significant others (Leonard and Sheldon, respectively) happened to be friends as well as roommates. While it may have been simply a matter of convenience at first, Penny and Amy genuinely grew to enjoy each other's company as time progressed despite their obvious differences.
Question: Do any of the kitchens (with the exception of the Wolowitz home) have a dishwasher? I know it's a picky question but it just seems strange.
Chosen answer: They may be behind or built into the counters where we can't see via the Fourth Wall. Not all apartment buildings offer a dishwasher as a standard feature, though.
Question: I know the Big Bang Theory has hired scientists and physicists to write the technical science parts of the scripts and the white board equations. Since Mayim Bialik has a doctorate in neuroscience, does she collaborate with the writers to write those parts of the script?
Answer: She has helped them out when she can, but this is not part of her formal contract with the show.
Question: In the majority of the episodes, whenever one of Howard's friends, or he himself, knocks on his front door his mother yells out, "Is that a sex criminal" or something along those lines. Is that referencing anything in particular?
Chosen answer: I can only recall one episode where this happens more than once. Perhaps there are others episodes where this line is spoken but this does not occur enough times to be a specific reference or a regular on-going theme.
Question: In which episode did Sheldon criticize Falcon of the Avengers?
Answer: The Decision Reverberation.
Answer: Because Raj's selective mutism seems to be caused by women that Raj sees (on some sort of conscious or subconscious level) as a potential sexual partner. An attribute that wouldn't apply to either his sister or mother.