# The Big Bang Theory, October 3, 2013 -- "The Scavenger Vortex" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 3, 2013, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300 "2013-10-03T21:47:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2013, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/1 "2013-10-03T21:47:31Z")
I’m starting this thread in anticipation of tonight’s episode. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/2 "2013-10-04T00:12:42Z")
lots of room for funny. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/3 "2013-10-04T00:57:07Z")
They definitely need to put Amy & Howard together more often. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/4 "2013-10-04T02:18:38Z")
Interesting way of splitting up the usual pairings. Didn’t care for lame ending to the scavenger hunt, but found it totally in character for Raj to do it that way. Loved Amy with Howard. Also liked Penny solving some of the clues, but that purple shirt really didn’t work for her. Think they overdid the Bernadette in bitch mode thing, though. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/5 "2013-10-04T03:36:12Z")
“Sweet Caroline…” Gods, I hate that song. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/6 "2013-10-04T03:52:36Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > “Sweet Caroline…” > > Gods, I hate that song. it had to be. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/7 "2013-10-04T12:19:18Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Think they overdid the Bernadette in bitch mode thing, though. Really? I thought you could get a whole spinoff sitcom out of crazy Bernadette. She was hilarious. > [@silenus](#): > > “Sweet Caroline…” > > Gods, I hate that song. Wait’ll the Dodgers come to Fenway in a few weeks… ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/8 "2013-10-04T12:25:15Z")
As much as I liked Howard and Amy, I couldn’t get over the game. I always thought a scavenger hunt was a group set out to find unusual objects: maybe an out of state road map, fuzzy dice, a cigarette holder, things like that. They weren’t scavenging anything- just solving riddles. ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/9 "2013-10-04T12:26:19Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > They definitely need to put Amy & Howard together more often. Oh yeah, they were great together! I liked crazy scary Bernadette, too. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/10 "2013-10-04T12:32:19Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > I couldn’t get over the game. I always thought a scavenger hunt was a group set out to find unusual objects: maybe an out of state road map, fuzzy dice, a cigarette holder, things like that. They weren’t scavenging anything- just solving riddles. Calling it a scavenger hunt is incorrect (it’s correctly known as a [puzzlehunt](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puzzlehunt)), but Howard wasn’t bullshitting about the MIT one being famous: > **[MIT Mystery Hunt / Puzzle Club](https://puzzles.mit.edu/)** > > The MIT Mystery Hunt is an internationally renowned puzzle competition which takes place every January on MIT campus and attracts hundreds of participants from all over the world. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/11 "2013-10-04T12:58:02Z")
At least this episode settled some of the questions we had as to what universities everybody attended - Princeton came in for some mocking. Which tells us that Sheldon must have attended someplace like Berlin Polytechnic (Captain Tuttle’s old school!), because a doctorate from UT wouldn’t give him mocking rights. He also didn’t make fun of Harvard (Amy’s school), so we can likely rule out there and Yale for him. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/12 "2013-10-04T13:15:13Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > At least this episode settled some of the questions we had as to what universities everybody attended - Princeton came in for some mocking. Which tells us that Sheldon must have attended someplace like Berlin Polytechnic (Captain Tuttle’s old school!), because a doctorate from UT wouldn’t give him mocking rights. He also didn’t make fun of Harvard (Amy’s school), so we can likely rule out there and Yale for him. He probably went to CalTech. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/13 "2013-10-04T13:27:08Z")
> [@RikWriter](#): > > He probably went to CalTech. That’s my guess as well - not many schools mock MIT other than similar Technical schools. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/14 "2013-10-04T13:35:01Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Princeton came in for some mocking. Which tells us that Sheldon must have attended someplace like Berlin Polytechnic (Captain Tuttle’s old school!), because a doctorate from UT wouldn’t give him mocking rights. He also didn’t make fun of Harvard (Amy’s school), so we can likely rule out there and Yale for him. Why does that rule out Harvard? It would make perfect sense for a Harvard grad to mock Princeton while of course not mocking Harvard. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/15 "2013-10-04T13:45:17Z")
Amy knows where Sheldon went to school. If it had been Harvard, she would have said “we” or asked if Sheldon did that when he was there. Caltech is definitely an option for Sheldon. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/16 "2013-10-04T14:00:59Z")
Besides, would he have had a chance at getting hired at a school that didn’t already know him? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![aNewLeaf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@aNewLeaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aNewLeaf)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/17 "2013-10-04T14:30:08Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Sheldon must have attended someplace like Berlin Polytechnic (Captain Tuttle’s old school!), In one episode he mentions being at a German university. He got an enema there, maybe a diploma too. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/18 "2013-10-04T14:41:18Z")
He was a visiting professor. I suppose he could have gotten his second doctorate at the same time. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/19 "2013-10-04T14:46:44Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Besides, would he have had a chance at getting hired at a school that didn’t already know him? 😉 On the other hand, would he have had a chance at getting hired at a school that DID know him? ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2013, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300/20 "2013-10-04T14:56:02Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > That’s my guess as well - not many schools mock MIT other than similar Technical schools. MIT & Harvard absolutely mock each other. Being a 20 minute walk away helps though. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-big-bang-theory-october-3-2013-the-scavenger-vortex/670300.md?page=2)