# The Big Bang Theory 3/17/2008 (S01E09) "The Cooper-Hofstadter Polarization"



## dswallow (Dec 3, 2000)

I absolutely loved the opening and closing sequences. But the middle was run-of-the-mill. Some funny moments, of course, especially the fighting after the seminar and seeing it posted on YouTube... but overall the middle just felt like some cheap laughs.


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## Marc (Jun 26, 1999)

If anyone wants to watch it, there really is the YouTube video.


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

dswallow said:


> but overall the middle just felt like some cheap laughs.


The whole show is cheap laughs. But I love it!

[totally boring aside: I actually am familiar with Bose-Einstein Condensate Theory (mentioned in the show as the subject of their paper). My next door neighbor is a professor who is considered one of the leading BEC researchers in the world. Now, are you sorry you asked?  ]


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## hanumang (Jan 28, 2002)

Marc said:


> If anyone wants to watch it, there really is the YouTube video.


Classic. 

I'm glad this show is back, I missed my geek jokes.

Favorite geek shout-outs:
1. The bottle city of Kandor
2. Galactica (TOS) flight suit


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## Hippster (Nov 28, 2001)

:up: :up: Yay for new episodes!!!!


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## dswallow (Dec 3, 2000)

hanumang said:


> 2. Galactica (TOS) flight suit


I thought he said Babylon 5.

Looking at some photos online, except for the color of the one I found, the style looks much more like Babylon 5 than the original Battlestar Galactica. But it's not really worth me walking upstairs turning on the TV and undeleting it then rewatching it. I did find another site that talked about overall color schemes and there being brown for Army personnel, so Babylon 5. 

Battlestar Galactica uniforms: http://www.geocities.com/sjpaxton/unipics.html

Babylon 5 flight suit: http://www.yourprops.com/norm-456f9199c5af6-Babylon+5+(TV)+(1994).jpeg


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## JETarpon (Jan 1, 2003)

The spherical chicken joke was hilarious. I had to pause.


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## JETarpon (Jan 1, 2003)

dswallow said:


> I thought he said Babylon 5.
> 
> Looking at some photos online, except for the color of the one I found, the style looks much more like Babylon 5 than the original Battlestar Galactica. But it's not really worth me walking upstairs turning on the TV and undeleting it then rewatching it. I did find another site that talked about overall color schemes and there being brown for Army personnel, so Babylon 5.


No. Definitely BSG.

"WHAT is THIS?"
"That's my original series battlestar galactica flight suit."


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## MarkofT (Jul 27, 2001)

Marc said:


> If anyone wants to watch it, there really is the YouTube video.


The video is also available in HD: 




Put that "&fmt=18" bit at the end of any YouTube URL to see the HD versions they are starting to roll out.


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## Kamakzie (Jan 8, 2004)

Too funny that they actually made a youtube account and posted it.


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## Vendikarr (Feb 24, 2004)

JETarpon said:


> No. Definitely BSG.
> 
> "WHAT is THIS?"
> "That's my original series battlestar galactica flight suit."


I liked the lines following.

"Why didn't you wear it on Halloween?"
"Because it's not a costume, it's a flight suit."


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

I liked the predictable yet always amusing scene with Penny helping him clean out the closet, especially because they had the Flash costume in the closet!

Diane


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## Alfer (Aug 7, 2003)

We were so desperate for new comedy shows we decided to give this one another try....we decided you have to be an uber techy/science geek to enjoy any of the laughs...overall we didn't find anything funny about this episode...the only chuckle I had was when Penny tried the "Scanners" thing on one of the geeks.


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## Steveknj (Mar 10, 2003)

I'm still on the fence with this show. Some of the bits on the show are really funny, some are just fall real flat. I have yet to watch one episode where the show was funny throughout. I think I was skeptical from the beginning because this show replaced a show I really liked in The Class which I thougt really hit it's stride as last season ended and was hoping it got renewed. I thought last night's show was overall pretty good and I'll stick with it.

And are they EVER going to get that elevator fixed?


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## TiVo'Brien (Feb 8, 2002)

Not one of their best shows, but I enjoyed it anyway. I don't like Penny's new hairdo. Loved Sheldon's comment "I'm perfectly happy walking up the stairs with you in silence."


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## Steveknj (Mar 10, 2003)

Also anyone read the closing "poem"? I loved the shot at Dancing with the Stars (I think it was) at the end.


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## Graymalkin (Mar 20, 2001)

This was the first episode I watched all the way through. It amused me. But then, it doesn't take that much to amuse me. 

So, what was the design on the T-shirt that the tall Chinese geek was wearing in the very last scene? It looked very familiar... DC or Marvel comics, perhaps.


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## hanumang (Jan 28, 2002)

Graymalkin said:


> So, what was the design on the T-shirt that the tall Chinese geek was wearing in the very last scene? It looked very familiar... DC or Marvel comics, perhaps.


I thought it was from that William Katt show, Greatest American Hero. Could be wrong though...


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## Graymalkin (Mar 20, 2001)

That's it! Greatest American Hero! I knew it was a superhero symbol.


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## JimSpence (Sep 19, 2001)

It's all about the eye candy!!!!!

"Who driving the red corvette?"


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## Jonathan_S (Oct 23, 2001)

I just have to say the X-10 part bugged me. 
1) it's off the shelf hardware, so it's not geeky enough for them.
2) no geeks/nerds who were on the internet through the annoying X-10 pop-under ad campain of several years ago would be likely to use their stuff. X-10 redefined annoying mainstream internet ads for a while.

That said, there were a few amusing bits, but overall it felt a bit off.


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## IJustLikeTivo (Oct 3, 2001)

Happy to have BBT back but not their best work.


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## Lenonn (May 31, 2004)

I think I caught a _Star Trek IV_ reference in the episode. When Sheldon and Penny are discussing Leonard (after picking up their mail), he is asked something to the effect of, "How do you feel?" and he responds, "I don't understand the question."


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## MikeD99 (Nov 11, 2005)

I couldn't read the Post-It note stuck on the laptop in one scene because I don't have HD. Will someone please post what it said? Thanks,
Mike D.


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## orome (Dec 30, 2004)

Remote X10? I was doing that in the early Eighties. Catch up, people. 

http://www.news.com/2300-1042_3-6213000-9.html?tag=ne.gall.pg (with cassette-port-based X10 controller, Expansion Interface with RS-232 card, and 300-baud Hayes Smartmodem).


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## Jebberwocky! (Apr 16, 2005)

it was almost like the strike never happened on CBS last night :up:

Many funny moments or were we just starved for new comedy?

I didn't get the spherical chicken joke - not sure I heard it all. Can someone repeat it?


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## Jonathan_S (Oct 23, 2001)

Jebberwocky! said:


> I didn't get the spherical chicken joke - not sure I heard it all. Can someone repeat it?


(slightly paraphrased due to inexact memory)

Farmer: I'm having a problem with my chickens, they aren't laying eggs.
Physicist: I'm a physicist and I think I can help, let me just calculate a few things.
...
Physicist: I have a solution, but it only works for spherical chickens in a vacuum.


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## Graymalkin (Mar 20, 2001)

Spherical chicken in a vacuum, or something like that.

Sounds like what you have inside an egg -- except I doubt it's a vacuum in there. But I'm neither a physicist nor a biologist, nor have I played either role on TV.

Jonathan's version is funnier.


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## milo99 (Oct 14, 2002)

Jebberwocky! said:


> it was almost like the strike never happened on CBS last night :up:
> 
> Many funny moments or were we just starved for new comedy?
> 
> I didn't get the spherical chicken joke - not sure I heard it all. Can someone repeat it?


i think the punchline was that it had to be a spherical chicken in a vacuum or something like that. I don't know if it had any physics properties per se, but i laughed because i think it was poking fun at the scientific community and how experiments and theories always assume a perfect environment in a vacuum- i.e. not the real world.

Sort of like how economics theories are so often based on perfectly efficient markets, with rational behavior, no transaction costs, etc etc ... i.e. not the real world


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## nlsinger (Feb 8, 2006)

*I* got the chicken joke. *I* laughed through the whole episode. My husband laughed at *me*.


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## markp99 (Mar 21, 2002)

Yay, BBT is back!

Many good chuckle moments. The Jewish geek had great timing gags in this ep. Perfect.


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## astrohip (Jan 7, 2003)

Steveknj said:


> Also anyone read the closing "poem"? I loved the shot at Dancing with the Stars (I think it was) at the end.


I always pause & read his notes. :up:

He said something about having to come up with two funny scripts (or two 30 minute shows?) to compete against the deaf girl dancing.


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## Steveknj (Mar 10, 2003)

astrohip said:


> I always pause & read his notes. :up:
> 
> He said something about having to come up with two funny scripts (or two 30 minute shows?) to compete against the deaf girl dancing.


Yes exactly. And since I don't watch DWTS, I assumed that was the show he meant and now I realize that it is Marlee Matlin he's referring to.


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## Steveknj (Mar 10, 2003)

Hey, maybe I missed something but anyone else notice that Leonard was wearing one side of his reversable tie at home and the other side of the tie when he got to the hotel?


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## Rob Helmerichs (Oct 17, 2000)

Steveknj said:


> Hey, maybe I missed something but anyone else notice that Leonard was wearing one side of his reversable tie at home and the other side of the tie when he got to the hotel?


Was that before or after she made him reverse it at the hotel?


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## mike_k (Sep 20, 2005)

I just want to know why Penny would ever be looking at Howard's Facebook page....


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## Steve_Martin (Jul 18, 2004)

mike_k said:


> I just want to know why Penny would ever be looking at Howard's Facebook page....


I thought that too as soon as she said it. 
ETA: maybe her friend from back home that Howard hooked up with alerted Penny though it wasn't mentioned or inferred.

Looks to me like she's put on a little weight since last season (not that it matters). I liked how she calls him "sweetie" all the time.


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## IJustLikeTivo (Oct 3, 2001)

Steve_Martin said:


> Looks to me like she's put on a little weight since last season (not that it matters). I liked how she calls him "sweetie" all the time.


Why does that make me think of a bad joke about guessing someones weight?


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## Steve_Martin (Jul 18, 2004)

IJustLikeTivo said:


> Why does that make me think of a bad joke about guessing someones weight?


I quit that circus long ago...


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## milo99 (Oct 14, 2002)

mike_k said:


> I just want to know why Penny would ever be looking at Howard's Facebook page....


well they're probably linked as friends since she'd probably be too nice to not accept his request. So if he tags her in a pic, she gets a notification.

i didn't see anything odd about that..


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## MitchO (Nov 7, 2003)

And she's probably linked as a friend because she knows that she continually needs to "monitor" him.


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## dianebrat (Jul 6, 2002)

mike_k said:


> I just want to know why Penny would ever be looking at Howard's Facebook page....


I loved that little throwaway tidbit...


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## hbtaylor (Dec 20, 2001)

milo99 said:


> i think the punchline was that it had to be a spherical chicken in a vacuum or something like that. I don't know if it had any physics properties per se, but i laughed because i think it was poking fun at the scientific community and how experiments and theories always assume a perfect environment in a vacuum- i.e. not the real world.
> 
> Sort of like how economics theories are so often based on perfectly efficient markets, with rational behavior, no transaction costs, etc etc ... i.e. not the real world


Yeah, it is kind of like Physics problems dealing with a parachutist, but with "assume a parachutist of point mass and a parachute with no wind resistance". It allows the problem to focus on the core instructional topic. Otherwise, the math gets all messy! 

I'm not proud of how hard I laughed at the joke, either.

H.B.


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## marksman (Mar 4, 2002)

I laughed enough.

We need more sitcoms on tv. The lack of sitcoms on TV is highly disappointing. And I am not meaning just highbrow ones that get critically accliamed and canceled. There is room for the lowbrow slapstickish ones too...


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## mike_k (Sep 20, 2005)

milo99 said:


> well they're probably linked as friends since she'd probably be too nice to not accept his request. So if he tags her in a pic, she gets a notification.
> 
> i didn't see anything odd about that..


It seems to me that if Howard posts a picture of Penny asleep on his shoulder, with a reference to Penny as his girlfriend, he's not going to tag her (I don't know anything about Facebook, so I'm not really sure what that means) in the picture - or do anything that would in some way cause Penny to be notified that the picture exists. Unless friends get a notification whenever another friend posts a new picture...

It seemed odd then that she would be checking his Facebook page, even if she did get a notice that Howard posted a new picture.


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## DUDE_NJX (Feb 12, 2003)

Steve_Martin said:


> I thought that too as soon as she said it.
> ETA: maybe her friend from back home that Howard hooked up with alerted Penny though it wasn't mentioned or inferred.
> 
> Looks to me like she's put on a little weight since last season (not that it matters). I liked how she calls him "sweetie" all the time.


She's definitely packing more junk in the trunk this season. Not that there's anything wrong with that.


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

Jonathan_S said:


> I just have to say the X-10 part bugged me.
> 1) it's off the shelf hardware, so it's not geeky enough for them.
> 2) no geeks/nerds who were on the internet through the annoying X-10 pop-under ad campain of several years ago would be likely to use their stuff. X-10 redefined annoying mainstream internet ads for a while.


(and an X-10 isn't going to control an RC car..)

I have a bunch of X10 stuff.. Actually, at one point, one of their online deals (NOT via a popunder ad) was a whole bunch of stuff (lamp controller, couple of other controllers, remote) for some insanely cheap price like $10. I have an X10 Home Controller Interface on the shelf above me (at work). It has a big serial connector plug (like I think the //c has).


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## mattack (Apr 9, 2001)

milo99 said:


> i think the punchline was that it had to be a spherical chicken in a vacuum or something like that. I don't know if it had any physics properties per se, but i laughed because i think it was poking fun at the scientific community and how experiments and theories always assume a perfect environment in a vacuum- i.e. not the real world.


Yes, definitely. I didn't laugh too much at this joke since it's just a variation on an old joke.

(In a very quick bit of Googling, I can't find a reference to the "price list" of a point mass, perfect spring, etc.. which I saw back in high school and/or college.)


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## Uncle Briggs (Sep 11, 2004)

IJustLikeTivo said:


> Happy to have BBT back but not their best work.


Yeah, that's what I thought. I think the writers are still a little rusty.


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## IJustLikeTivo (Oct 3, 2001)

DUDE_NJX said:


> She's definitely packing more junk in the trunk this season. Not that there's anything wrong with that.


Ridiculous. She looks just the same. Take that idea to the Leah Remini is fat thread.

*


Steve_Martin said:



Looks to me like she's put on a little weight since last season (not that it matters). I liked how she calls him "sweetie" all the time.

Click to expand...

*

See above. And FWIW, wouldn't every guy in this thread love to have her calling you sweetie.....


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## orome (Dec 30, 2004)

marksman said:


> We need more sitcoms on tv.


... without laugh tracks, please. I'll either figure out when to laugh for myself, or find something funnier.


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## milo99 (Oct 14, 2002)

mike_k said:


> It seems to me that if Howard posts a picture of Penny asleep on his shoulder, with a reference to Penny as his girlfriend, he's not going to tag her (I don't know anything about Facebook, so I'm not really sure what that means) in the picture - or do anything that would in some way cause Penny to be notified that the picture exists. Unless friends get a notification whenever another friend posts a new picture...
> 
> It seemed odd then that she would be checking his Facebook page, even if she did get a notice that Howard posted a new picture.


in facebook, when you log in, on your 'homepage' not your profile page, you see notices of new stuff friends have done. New apps they installed, surveys/quizes/whatever they've taken, when they've gotten new friends, and when they've posted pics. And the pics notice will include thumbnails of 1 or 2 of the first pics posted (if it's an album). So that could've been the first way.

The other way is in pictures on facebook, you can 'tag' people so when you mouseover them in the pic, it tells you who it is. Whenever you are tagged in a pic in anybody's profile, you are notified.


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## tewcewl (Dec 18, 2004)

The funny thing is there is a Howard Wolowitz on Facebook and one of his friend is Penny Occasional Vegetarian who hails from Omaha, NE. Both of these Facebook profile pictures match who they are on the show. These profiles obviously were also created by the show.

Just for giggles, I asked both of them to be my friend. I couldn't access their profiles directly to peruse them.


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## mike_k (Sep 20, 2005)

milo99 said:


> in facebook, when you log in, on your 'homepage' not your profile page, you see notices of new stuff friends have done. New apps they installed, surveys/quizes/whatever they've taken, when they've gotten new friends, and when they've posted pics. And the pics notice will include thumbnails of 1 or 2 of the first pics posted (if it's an album). So that could've been the first way.
> 
> The other way is in pictures on facebook, you can 'tag' people so when you mouseover them in the pic, it tells you who it is. Whenever you are tagged in a pic in anybody's profile, you are notified.


Gotcha. That's a lot of notification going on...


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## Steve_Martin (Jul 18, 2004)

DUDE_NJX said:


> She's definitely packing more junk in the trunk this season. Not that there's anything wrong with that.





IJustLikeTivo said:


> Ridiculous. She looks just the same. Take that idea to the Leah Remini is fat thread.
> 
> See above. And FWIW, wouldn't every guy in this thread love to have her calling you sweetie.....


I never implied she was fat. I just noticed her seating area was larger than last season.


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## Vito the TiVo (Oct 27, 2003)

Additionally what "this season"? Its still the first season off this show and they only were away from November until now. So she got "fat" in just a few months?


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## Steve_Martin (Jul 18, 2004)

Vito the TiVo said:


> Additionally what "this season"? Its still the first season off this show and they only were away from November until now. So she got "fat" in just a few months?


OK, since their strike induced break.

Either that, or I just now noticed.


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## IJustLikeTivo (Oct 3, 2001)

Steve_Martin said:


> OK, since their strike induced break.
> 
> Either that, or I just now noticed.


Bingo. I seriously doubt she's more than 2-3 lbs heavier, if that. In that business they pay lots of attention to how they look, it's part of their living.

Like lots of women, she carries some baggage but nothing serious.... Most women would die to look that good.


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## JYoung (Jan 16, 2002)

Sheldon fights like a girl.


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## DLiquid (Sep 17, 2001)

TiVo'Brien said:


> Not one of their best shows, but I enjoyed it anyway.


Yeah, not as funny as I remember it being, but it still had some good moments.


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## busyba (Feb 5, 2003)

Kamakzie said:


> Too funny that they actually made a youtube account and posted it.


Way easier than mocking one up just for the show.


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