With an IQ of 187, Sheldon Cooper is The Big Bang Theory's resident genius. The show wasn't solely about Sheldon but his upbringing was so interesting that it spiraled into a spinoff called Young Sheldon. But even a photographic memory and a high IQ don't make Sheldon to infallible mistakes.
It doesn't happen often, but there are times when the one and only Sheldon Cooper makes mistakes at work, with his friends, and in his relationship. Sometimes he apologizes for his blunders and other times he's too embarrassed. But thanks to on-the-ball fans, TBBT viewers spotted some of Sheldon's inaccuracies.
His Mathematical Errors In His Paper For Stephen Hawking
In season 5's "The Hawking Excitation," Sheldon wrote a paper and had the opportunity to show it to Stephen Hawking. As always, Sheldon was feeling proud of himself and cocky of his accomplishment but Hawking humbled him quickly.
Hawking told Sheldon that there was a mathematical mistake on the second page. Sheldon denied the possibility of him making a mistake but after flipping through his work, he realized it was true and fainted.
When Leslie Winkle Fixed His Whiteboard
Sheldon was shocked to wake up and find the equation he was working hard on was solved. Leonard didn't touch it, so who did? Leslie Winkle walked out of Leonard's bedroom and admitted that it was she who changed his whiteboard.
Had it not been for her finishing touches, Sheldon would still be working on the equation. But considering his relationship with Leslie, Sheldon never thanked her properly for her help.
The Physics Bowl Fiasco
In the first season, the gang competes Caltech's Physics Bowl. The foursome knew they had what it took to win but Sheldon didn't know how to be a team player. He didn't allow his teammates to speak and assumed that he was right while they were wrong. Leonard made the executive decision to drop Sheldon from the team and add Leslie Winkle to take his place. Things came to a head with the final question when Sheldon didn't know what the answer was. His teammate answered correctly but Sheldon refused to believe him and protested until he was deemed wrong. Leonard's group ended up winning it all.
He Misidentified The Cricket
In "The Jiminy Conjecture," the guys find a cricket in their apartment and each claims it to be a different species. They also go between the names Toby and Jiminy before catching it and bringing it to an entomologist at Caltech.
After a short time glancing at the cricket, the professor confirmed that it was a field cricket, which wasn't the answer Sheldon had. Sheldon admitted defeat and gave Howard credit for his assumption.
He Used The Wrong Measurement
Sheldon is astounded when he was able to "synthesize a new island of stable super-heavy element" in "The Romance Resonance." He told Leonard and Amy that no one could have done what he did and that it was a huge accomplishment. But right as he started gaining success for his findings, he realized that he made a grave mistake that would discredit his work. He read the work as square meters instead of square centimeters. This would mean his math was still off and that the findings were a flub.
Polish Vs. Polish
When Sheldon, Leonard, Penny, and Amy were playing a game of Pictionary, the girls watched in glee as Sheldon and Leonard struggled with the clues. Sheldon drew a picture of things relating back to Poland (which Leonard never guessed) but Penny schooled him when she showed him that the hint was not Polish, it was polish. The word was written in a "small p," which only furthered Penny's point.
Magic Tricks With Raj
Sheldon wasn't just bad at magic; he didn't understand the charisma and pageantry that went along with it. Whenever Raj and Howard did magic tricks around him, Sheldon was stumped. He tried to succeed at the tricks but always ended up failing. And sure, Raj and Howard played pranks on him during his attempts but even with a regular person like Penny, Sheldon was wrong.
The Science Of Moving Furniture
In "The Big Bran Hypothesis," Penny asked Leonard and Sheldon if they could help her move some furniture into her apartment when she was at work. While pushing the large box up the stairs, Sheldon and Leonard admitted that the box was heavy but they were smart enough mentally to find a way to use force to push the box up the stairs. However, one smart fan mentioned, "This is not just a question of work (energy) but also of power (energy/time).” They continued saying, "Since he and Leonard cannot produce an unlimited amount of energy per second, they may need to push it slowly, contrary to what he asserts.” In this case, it appears a fan has outsmarted Sheldon.
His History Of The Term "Toast" Was Incorrect
When Leonard began dating Priya, he prepared her for Sheldon's quirky personality by showing her times where he would interject in conversation. In one scene, Sheldon claims that the history of the term "make a toast" comes from Romans dipping bread into wine. However, fans quickly pointed out that the term was coined before ancient Rome. Sheldon also claimed that haggis and blood pudding were essentially the same but they're two completely different meals.
He Should Know He Can't Notarize His Own Paperwork
In "The Flaming Spittoon Acquisition," Sheldon and Amy made revisions to their relationship agreement after officially recognizing themselves as boyfriend and girlfriend. Sheldon excitedly found his notary belongings as both he and Amy signed the document. However, as someone who has the ability to notarize things, Sheldon should know that notaries are not able to notarize their own documents.