Eric Gablehauser

Dr. Eric Gablehauser is the head of the Physics Department at the California Institute of Technology, and the boss of Sheldon, Leonard and Raj.

Background
Dr. Gablehauser is responsible for running the physics department smoothly as well as hosting the Physics Bowl ("The Bat Jar Conjecture"). He also introduced child prodigy Dennis Kim to the university, though his time there was short lived ("The Jerusalem Duality"). He is later asked to settle one of many arguments between Sheldon and Leslie Winkle. ("The Barbarian Sublimation")



Dr. Gablehauser makes a point of calling Howard "Mr. Wolowitz", while referring to Sheldon, Leonard and Raj as "Dr. Cooper", "Dr. Hofstadter" and "Dr. Koothrappali", respectively. Once Raj receives accolades for the discovery of a planetary body, he believes he has discovered a star in Dr. Koothrappali and reveals the business of the university is to make money. ("The Griffin Equivalency") He has also described Sheldon as "nuts" on at least one occasion. ("The Jerusalem Duality")

Relationship to Sheldon Cooper
Sheldon dislikes having a boss such as Gablehauser, who, according to him, has done no original research in the last twenty-five years and has spent his career writing books which reduce scientific concepts to anecdotes, "each one dumbed down to accommodate the duration of an average bowel movement". But Sheldon takes things too far when he introduces himself to Gablehauser as "an actual real scientist", which is followed by a series of insults. As a result, Gablehauser fires Sheldon, but re-hires him some time later, not because of Sheldon's apology (which never actually takes place), but because Gablehauser has a soft spot for Sheldon's mother. ("The Luminous Fish Effect")