Polite Dissent's Morrison agrees that House, like most medical shows, doesn't give the whole picture of real-life medicine. "It’s true that there is an art to medicine and most of the television shows are good at showing that, but the art is built on a solid foundation of science, and this is the part most television shows have problems with."

Even if he could shut off his doctor brain while watching, Morrison's reviews cause him to look for errors, and some of his commenters are fans who seem to do the same thing. "There’s certainly fun – or at least an enjoyable challenge – in looking for errors, at least in a certain segment of viewers."

He doesn't believe that detracts from the show, however. "It is possible to watch the show on two different levels: the fan and the doctor. The Star Trek series has had nit-picking fans for years. There’s even been several Nitpicker’s Guide to Star Trek published – but remember that the books are not written by critics, but by fans of the show."

Some doctors might not be able to see past the fictional medicine of the show, but many of Sanders' colleagues love it and long to be like House. "Not the rudeness," she specified, "but they'd like to be someone who's completely committed to figuring out what's going on. The biggest difference between every other doctor and House? House has one patient at a time."

Continuing her take on the metaphorical medicine of the show, she added: "House represents how much time we spend trying to figure out the things that don't necessarily make sense or fall into our expectations."

Given that House and other fictional shows often give an inaccurate picture of real-life science, it's not surprising that some scientists have conflicted feelings about the message television sends about their profession.

Structural biologist Dr. Aled Edwards is a consultant on Canadian sci-fi show ReGenesis, and while he finds it difficult to watch most popular science-based shows, he also thinks expecting accuracy from them is not realistic. "It's almost like watching a cartoon, where Batman or Superman or House is the same. When I watch Superman, I don't get upset: 'Hey, men can't fly!' When I watch those shows, I turn off my scientific brain. I say I'm watching mindless entertainment here. Because if I put on my scientific brain, I'd get upset. So I just watch it and think this is not science, this is not medicine, this is television."