"Ignorance Is Bliss" is the ninth episode of the sixth season of the American television series ''

House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

''. It aired on

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

on November 23, 2009.

Plot

On the eve of Thanksgiving,

and the team take on the case of James Sidas (

Esteban Powell Esteban Powell is an American actor. He attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, a magnet school of the Houston Independent School District. He was cast in the role of Carl Burnett in the 1993 Richard Linklater ...

), an exceptionally brilliant physicist ( IQ 178 very giftedvery superior), in fact the youngest person to ever graduate

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

, who traded his successful career for a job as a courier to be with his intellectually inferior wife (IQ 87 low averagebelow average). For the ailing patient, intelligence is a miserable burden that alienates him from others. The team eventually suspects he suffers from TTP, but the

splenectomy A splenectomy is the surgical procedure that partially or completely removes the spleen. The spleen is an important organ in regard to immunological function due to its ability to efficiently destroy encapsulated bacteria. Therefore, removal of ...

they perform does not improve his situation, ruling that condition out. However, it is later revealed that a depression as a teenager due to his loneliness as a

child prodigy A child prodigy is, technically, a child under the age of 10 who produces meaningful work in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to describe young people who are extraordinarily talented in some f ...

led him to attempt suicide, and House realizes that the ribs he broke back then made his spleen split into several parts, which is why the procedure had no effect – it was TTP all along. The remaining symptoms are explained after the discovery of his use of DXM (mixed with alcohol to prevent

brain damage Brain injury (BI) is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors. In general, brain damage refers to significant, undiscriminating trauma-induced damage. A common ...

), which he used to reduce his intellect. As Sidas regains his status of intellectual

genius Genius is a characteristic of original and exceptional insight in the performance of some art or endeavor that surpasses expectations, sets new standards for the future, establishes better methods of operation, or remains outside the capabiliti ...

by not abusing the addictive medicine, he begins work in

applied physics Applied physics is the application of physics to solve scientific or engineering problems. It is usually considered a bridge or a connection between physics and engineering. "Applied" is distinguished from "pure" by a subtle combination of fac ...

, drawing a schematic for a toroidal helicon plasma device, and is reassured that he cannot relate to his wife with his original intellect. House, relating to his situation, essentially helps "

lobotomize A lobotomy () or leucotomy is a discredited form of neurosurgical treatment for psychiatric disorder or neurological disorder (e.g. epilepsy, depression) that involves severing connections in the brain's prefrontal cortex. The surgery causes ...

Einstein Albert Einstein (14 March 187918 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is best known for developing the theory of relativity. Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics. His mass–energy equivalence f ...

" by giving him back his meds, as the patient wishes to be dumb and happy rather than smart and miserable. House tries to break up Lucas and Cuddy at Thanksgiving dinner. However, Cuddy gives him the wrong address on purpose to stop him from messing up the evening. Afterwards, House breaks into Lucas' home, faking a drunken stupor, tells Lucas about how much he wants to be with Cuddy. Cuddy arrives the next morning at House's apartment, lying about how she and Lucas had split up. Later in the episode, House finds out she lied after she did not accept free tickets he offered her. Meanwhile, Chase wants to be left alone to deal with the fact that

Cameron Cameron may refer to: People * Clan Cameron, a Scottish clan * Cameron (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Cameron (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) ;Mononym * Cam'ron (born 19 ...

left, but everybody keeps on wanting to comfort him. As a result, Chase ends up punching House in the face. He later apologizes and tells House it was his means of keeping the others away.

Taub Taub is a surname. It may refer to: Persons * Abraham H. Taub (1911–1999), American mathematician and physicist * Ari Taub (wrestler) (born 1971), Canadian Greco-Roman wrestler * Ben Taub (1889–1982), American philanthropist and medical ...

has problems with his wife, because she thinks that, at the age of 40, he's still doing an intern's job instead of having his own private practice. Taub convinces her that he confronted House for keeping him from Thanksgiving dinner by showing her a picture of House's beaten-up face (by Chase), claiming he was responsible, which soothes her.

Reception

Zack Handlen of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

'' graded the episode a B.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ignorance Is Bliss House season 6 episodes 2009 American television episodes Television episodes directed by Greg Yaitanes fr:Heureux les ignorants it:Episodi di Dr. House - Medical Division (sesta stagione)#Beata ignoranza

Plot

Reception

See also

References

External links