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1500 questions
51
votes
5 answers
Why does Michael Crichton use US Customary measurements in hard sci-fi?
The great Crichton is known for thoroughly researching his subject areas for each different book, evident from the extensive bibliography in the end and the checkable facts throughout the book. This contributes to a heightened sense of…
Vorac
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51
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Why did Sirius's outlook towards House Elves change drastically from GoF to OotP?
During the trio's meeting with Sirius in his Hogsmeade hideout, Sirius seems to be much kinder towards House Elves.
"Hermione's obsessed with house-elfs," Ron muttered to Sirius, casting Hermione a dark look. Sirius, however, looked…
Anya Mae
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51
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7 answers
Why did the Slytherin team opt for size over skill, given their many defeats?
We know that till the first book, Slytherin had won the House Trophy six times in a row. As an answer on this site pointed out, this was probably due to winning the Quidditch Cup all those years (an opinion with which I agree).
However, from the…
Myungjin Hyun
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51
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3 answers
Why didn't the Hogwarts ghosts know about the Chamber of Secrets?
This question got me to wonder why Hogwarts ghosts never knew about the Chamber of Secrets.
Some ghosts have been around Hogwarts for centuries. Plenty of time to explore the school grounds, talk to people who might know, or talk to the person…
RichS
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51
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2 answers
Did Dumbledore know about the Dumbledore's Army before it was discovered by Umbridge?
In the 5th book/movie, Harry and other students made a secret organization. They signed their names on a paper titled "Dumbledore's Army".
When the paper was discovered by Inquisitorial Squad and Umbridge, Dumbledore lied to Minister for Magic to…
user931
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51
votes
5 answers
How come Hermione fancied Gilderoy Lockhart?
Hermione Granger was one of the brightest Hogwarts students of all time. She alone recognized Prof Lupin as a werewolf when Snape gave them an essay on werewolves. She knew that ministry was interfering in school's matters as soon as Umbridge was…
Dheeraj Kumar
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51
votes
9 answers
Which year does Spider-Man: Homecoming take place in?
The first scene of the movie is presumably set in the immediate aftermath of The Avengers. The movie then fast-forwards to '8 years later'.
But Spider-Man already appeared in Civil War as a high school student, which he still is in this movie. So…
Tushar Raj
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51
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3 answers
Why don't Merry and Pippin seem taller than Frodo and Sam, even after drinking ent-draught?
I believe that in the 2nd movie, Merry and Pip meet Treebeard and drink ent-draught from Fangorn. They didn't appear any taller when we see them in ROTK though, very strangely they are the same heights as Sam and Frodo, and Pippin is shorter than…
Lampham
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51
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5 answers
Why does the aluminium need to be transparent?
In Star Trek IV, Scotty gives away the formula to the inventor of transparent aluminium. This aluminium, if my memory serves me, is to house the humpback whale they must procure from the past. Crazy, I know.
But why does the humpback whale need to…
AncientSwordRage
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51
votes
1 answer
How is Yoda's speech translated to non-English languages?
Yoda infamously speaks using the OSV (object, subject, verb) word ordering
Much to learn, you still have.
rather the SVO ordering used in English
You still have much to learn.
How is this dealt with in translations to other languages,…
Chris Taylor
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51
votes
7 answers
Who is the oldest character in Harry Potter?
Most of the characters are just children, but other characters are quite old.
Who is the oldest character (of any race) in the saga? He/she/it must be alive, at any moment of the saga.
Perostek Balveda
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51
votes
6 answers
Why didn't Harry Potter become a professional seeker?
Harry Potter, in his later Hogwarts years, is aiming to become an Auror, and in The Cursed Child we see that Harry did become an Auror. However, the first thing he really excelled at Hogwarts was broom riding, becoming Gryffindor's youngest Seeker…
NeutronStar
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51
votes
7 answers
Why are there no battle tactics among groups of wizards or witches?
In Harry Potter, all of the magic-user-to-magic-user combat is split up into single combat, like here:
Duels between one person and more than one opponent exist, such as Granger, Lovegood, and Weasley vs. Lestrange, but all three students focus…
Count Dooku
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51
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2 answers
Who do these helmets belong to?
A recent image presented by none other than SQB in Mos has arisen, and it's my turn to post. There's a shirt currently available on Busted Tees which features several helmets from the SFF genre. Unfortunately, not all of them are easy to…
user40790
51
votes
5 answers
What's the point of locked doors in Harry Potter?
In the Harry Potter universe, there is a spell that unlocks things. In the books and movies, there are many occasions where the main characters use this spell to open doors in wizard buildings (such as the door leading to where the Philosopher's…
DaaaahWhoosh
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