The Big Bang Theory and Philosophy: Rock, Paper, Scissors, Aristotle, Locke -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: "Unraveling the Mysteries" -- Part One: "It all Began on a Warm Summer's Evening in Greece": Aristotelian Insights -- 1: Aristotle on Sheldon Cooper: Ancient Greek Meets Modern Geek -- The Life of the Mind -- The Ancient Greek and the Modern Geek -- The Joy of Geekdom -- Geeky Fun and the Purpose of Life -- Trial of a Nerd -- The Aristotle-Cooper Evaluation -- Notes -- 2: "You're a Sucky, Sucky Friend": Seeking Aristotelian Friendship in The Big Bang Theory -- "Do You Have Any Books about Making Friends?" -- "Did You Ever Consider Making Friends by Being . . . Pleasant?" -- "Kripke! What'd You Say of the Idea of You and I Becoming Friends?" -- "To Make Friends . . . Take an Interest in Their Lives" -- "That's Insane on the Face of It" -- "There Is No Algorithm for Making Friends!" -- Notes -- 3: The Big Bang Theory on the Use and Abuse of Modern Technology -- Some Healthy Webcam-ing -- Unhealthy Interactions -- Virtual Vengeance -- Aristotle's Mean -- Aristotle in Television -- Bright and Shiny Penny -- Where Do We Go? -- Notes -- Part Two: "Is it Wrong to Say I Love Our Killer Robot?": Ethics and Virtue -- 4: Feeling Bad about Feeling Good: Is It Morally Wrong to Laugh at Sheldon? -- Lorre and Prady on Sheldon Cooper -- Diagnosing Sheldon I: Cognitive Impairment -- Diagnosing Sheldon II: Sociability -- Diagnosing Sheldon III: Functionality -- What Is a Disability? -- Notes -- 5: . . . But Is Wil Wheaton Evil? -- The Wheaton Occurrences -- The Theodicy Corollary -- Beyond Good and Evil Wil-or, the Wrath of Sheldon -- The Name-Calling and Line-Cutting Topologies -- The Comic Book Paradigm -- The Inscrutability Factor -- Notes -- 6: Do We Need a Roommate Agreement?: Pleasure, Selfishness, and Virtue in The Big Bang Theory.

The Giant "Hedon" Collider -- The Egoism Polarization -- The Social Contract Instability -- The Aristotelian Virtue Vortex -- The Dennis Kim Conundrum -- Notes -- Part Three: "Perhaps You Mean a Different Thing Than I Do When You Say 'Science'": Science, Scientism, and Religion -- 7: Getting Fundamental about Doing Physics in The Big Bang Theory -- Studies in Sheldonology -- A Unified Theory of Sheldon? -- Resolving a "Nonlovers" Quarrel (about Science) -- The Pragmatics of the Special Sciences -- Notes -- 8: Sheldon, Leonard, and Leslie: The Three Faces of Quantum Gravity -- The Methods of Science -- Theoretical "Discoveries" -- The String Theory Paradigm -- Hang-Ups, Breakups, and New Beginnings -- Notes -- 9: The One Paradigm to Rule Them All: Scientism and The Big Bang Theory -- The Data -- The Background -- The Controversy -- The Ramifications -- The Analysis -- Notes -- 10: Cooper Considerations: Science, Religion, and Family -- Magic Maharaja Macs? -- Scientist Sons Scolded -- Monumental Math Mysteries -- Lifelong Lessons -- Notes -- Part Four: "I Need Your Opinion on a Matter of Semiotics": Language and Meaning -- 11: Wittgenstein and Language Games in The Big Bang Theory -- "The Philosophy Is Theoretical, but the Fun Is Real" -- "So, What Does That Mean?" -- "Be Serious, We're Playing a Game Here" -- "Figured Out the Magic Trick Yet?" -- "It's a Nonoptional Social Convention," Stupid! -- "Believe in Magic, You Muggle!" -- Notes -- 12: "I'm Afraid You Couldn't Be More Wrong!": Sheldon and Being Right about Being Wrong -- "More Wrong?" -- "In None of Them Am I Dancing" -- "I Think You Mean I'm Improbable" -- The Cooper-Wrongness Paradox -- "Of Course I'm Right-What Are the Odds I'd Be Wrong Twice in One Week?" -- "Throw All the French around You Want, It Doesn't Make You Right." -- Notes.

13: The Cooper Conundrum: Good Lord, Who's Tolerating Whom? -- Who's Tolerating Whom? -- Worlds Apart or Words Apart? -- The Mutual Exclusion Dogma -- World Speak or Person Speak -- The Tolerance Tally -- Notes -- 14: The Mendacity Bifurcation -- Should We Be Learning How to Lie Better? -- Should We Listen to What Sheldon Has to Say about Lying? -- Is Sheldon Really a Bad Liar? -- Does Lying Require Intending to Deceive? -- Does Lying Require Intending to Violate a Social Convention? -- Notes -- Part Five: "The Human Experience that Has Always Eluded Me": The Human Condition -- 15: Mothers and Sons of The Big Bang Theory -- Raj: The "Selective Mutism" Mutant -- Sheldon: Roots in Fundamental(ist) Particles -- Howard: A Sociological Cliché -- Leonard: Hofstadter's Monkey -- Aristotle, Justice, and Special Obligations -- Cognitive Dissonance and Psychological Courage -- Notes -- 16: Penny, Sheldon, and Personal Growth through Difference -- Are Penny and Sheldon Really Friends? -- Penny's and Sheldon's Friendship and the Importance of Difference -- Modern and Classical Friendship -- Good Friendship and Good Friends -- Notes -- 17: Deconstructing the Women of The Big Bang Theory: So Much More Than Girlfriends -- The Big Bang Gender Theory -- "It's a Warm Summer Evening in Ancient Greece . . ." -- The Big Bang Performativity -- "Come for the Breasts-Stay for the Brains." -- Knock Knock . . . Manhood? -- White and Fisher Productions #1 -- Notes -- The Episode Compendium: "Hey, It's a Big Menu-There's Two Pages Just for Desserts" -- Contributors: "But If We Were Part of the Team . . . We Could Drink for Free in Any Bar in Any College Town" -- Index: "Cornucopia . . . Let's Make That Our Word of the Day".