- Bernadette and Howard offer to watch Raj's dog and live to regret it. Leonard and Sheldon hire their favorite childhood star to make an appearance.
- Sheldon has just located his childhood hero, Arthur Jeffries Ph.D., online. He was better known as Professor Proton, host of a children's science show. Both Sheldon and Leonard were faithful viewers when they were children before the show was canceled. Professor Proton is still available for special appearances, so Sheldon decides to hire him for a small gathering at the apartment. When Jeffries arrives and finds only Sheldon, Leonard and Penny, he is confused as he expected a party full of children. But performing his Professor Proton show to the three allows him to open up about the dichotomy between the wants of Arthur Jeffries Ph.D., and the realities of Professor Proton. Meanwhile, Raj asks Howard and Bernadette to babysit his pampered dog Cinnamon for him. This babysitting experience demonstrates to Howard and Bernadette whether they are ready to graduate to having a real live baby.—Huggo
- Leonard is teaching Penny how to launch a toy foam rocket using his computer. Sheldon discovers that Professor Proton (Bob Newhart), the Mr. Wizard of his youth, is alive. He is now available to perform at children's birthday parties. Sheldon wants to hire him so he can do experiments for them, hang out with them, and maybe even take twelve photos with them to make their own calendar. Sheldon emails him as Leonard and Sheldon sing his theme song: "Grab your goggles, put your lab coat on. Here he comes, Professor Proton."
At the Caltech cafeteria, Raj asks Howard to watch his dog over the weekend while he spends time in the telescope lab. Howard says that he'll talk to his wife about sitting Raj's dog. Sheldon comes running in to announce that Professor Proton will be coming to their place. Howard wonders how Sheldon got him to come. Sheldon then quotes Professor Proton, "There is no problem you can't solve if you use your brain" and later says that he wrote him a big check.
Raj shows up at Howard and Bernadette's Apartment with his Yorkie, Cinnamon in a fancy stroller telling the dog that she is going to have a sleepover at Uncle Howard's place. Her diet consists of people food including veal chops and scampi. He also has to close the toilet seat since she drinks out of it.
That night Sheldon calls Leonard through the wall because he can't get to sleep due to Professor Proton's visit the next day. He tells Leonard that he is planning on wearing a tuxedo and asks Leonard if he has any cuff links which Leonard does not.
When Howard and Bernadette return from the park with Raj's dog, they find the stroller empty. Each of them tells the other that it was their job to put her back in the stroller.
Sheldon is staring out the peephole because Professor Proton is late. Professor Proton calls Sheldon to say that he is stuck on the third floor building landing having to walk up three flights of stairs taking half an hour to do so. All three of them find Professor Proton sitting on his suitcase with Sheldon exclaiming, "It's really you!" Leonard apologizes that they should have told him about the broken elevator. Exhausted, the Professor agrees. The Professor says to just call him Arthur. Arthur remarks that a friend would have told him about the elevator. Leonard introduces himself and Penny whom the Professor obviously likes. Arthur is confused when he learns that there is no children's birthday party. As they climb the final stairs, he says that since the blonde girl is really his girlfriend that Leonard is the true genius.
Leonard tells Arthur that they just wanted to hang out with him and learn about his life. Arthur explains that after his show ended, birthday parties were the only work he could get. He then asks if he has it straight, that they are two physicists who want him to do a children's science show for them. Arthur tells them that he is a real scientist with a PhD from Cornell University. Sheldon then asks if he brought his puppet.
Howard and Bernadette are driving around calling out for Cinnamon. Bernadette wonders if she is not coming because of Raj's accent, so they both start calling for Cinnamon in Raj's accent.
Arthur is doing an experiment where he puts on an egg on top of a flask with a candle burring in it and asks what is going to happen as the air pressure decreases. The egg then falls into the flask. Sheldon then wants him to do the potato clock where he powers the clock using the potato as a battery. Penny is impressed and says that that could solve the world's energy crisis, which Arthur denies. The Professor then tells them to keep their money because he is done. Arthur tells them that he is tired of being Professor Proton whom Sheldon tells him is "the best." Arthur tells them that his puppeteer slept with his wife. Sheldon has an autographed picture of Professor Proton from when he was a kid. Sheldon explains that he didn't have any friends growing up and every day at 4 PM Professor Proton would come to his house and they would do science experiments together. Otherwise Sheldon might have ended up as a hobo or a surgeon. Professor Proton inspired millions of kids to become scientists and all these discoveries are in part his work too. Arthur then sits down thinking that he is having a problem with is pacemaker.
In the telescope lab, Raj gets a call from someone who found his dog. Raj thanks him and heads to pick her up and telling him to not give her anything starchy.
Arthur is now strapped to a gurney under the care of two paramedics. Sheldon volunteers to ride with him to the hospital in the ambulance.
While Howard is printing out a lost dog poster, Bernadette thinks that since they lost the dog, she'd be a terrible mother. Raj video calls Howard and Bernadette. Howard tells him that Bernadette just took her out for a walk. Raj says that that is interesting and asks if they walking down Liars Lane. A lane frequented by liars as he holds up Cinnamon. Bernadette is angry that he has had her for hours while they both had massages to calm down. She asks him why he couldn't have picked up a phone and called since they were worrying themselves sick about her.
At the hospital, Sheldon sings Professor Proton "Soft Kitty". Arthur tells Sheldon that he is not feeling up to doing his act scheduled for the next day, so he asks Sheldon to be Professor Proton. Sheldon considers that an honor like ascending Mt. Olympus to dine with the gods. Realizing that they will know he is not the real Professor Proton, Sheldon asks Arthur if it is all right with him if he goes by Professor Proton Jr. Arthur agrees.
Title Reference: "Professor Proton" re-enters Sheldon and Leonard's lives after being their childhood hero.
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