We don't know.

However, the experience of Harry, who knew he had seen his parents death as a child, and had encountered memories of it, but only was able to see them after watching Cedric dying, points to something more immediate in association and appreciation of what has occurred.

If we think about this in the thematic mode HP magic operates, it may depend on the engagement and realization of what the individual has gone through. For instance, I would imagine if Harry saw a video stream in real time of Cedric dying, than that would count, but a recording of his parents deaths ten years earlier would not - let alone video footage from a long way off of a protestor being killed, for the absurd extreme.

But the bottom line is we don't know.

 

I saw it in an article when the writer was summing up voldemort's back story that apparently old voldy was offered the position of minister of magic when he returned from his travel to Albania.
Is that actually true? If yes, is there anything in canon about why didn't he summersault into the position?

 

I am fairly certain that there was no such offer. The only one to whom the post was ever offered is Dumbledore.

 

The closest thing is Slughorn telling him he could help him become Minister in 10 years, but he never went to the Ministry.

 

If the holder of the Elder Wand dies of natural causes, to whom does the allegiance of the wand belong to?

 

That was Dumbledore's plan, essentially. To die without being beaten. In such a case, the he assumed that the power of the elder wand would die with him.

 

Ok follow up: If the holder of the Elder Wand commits suicide, who does it belong to?

 

Probably the next person to pick it up, but there is no conclusive evidence. Purpose of this thread is to pin down actual canon info, rather than conjecture wildly about the gaps between. For that, write fanfiction (or use a different thread, at least, like https://forums.darklordpotter.net/t...fic-that-dont-deserve-their-own-thread.24530/).

 

How is the lighting of Hogwarts arranged?

 

Hogwarts is lit by torches:

The normal rule applies: it goes to the individual who defeated them. So... their wife.

 

There is also some lamps, at least in bathrooms. In Half-Blood Prince, Sectumsempra chapter, Malfoy’s spell hits one.

 

And windows and the magical ceiling of the great hall.

 

Can wizard/witch learn Parseltounge? I remember that ron try to mimic voice to open chamber but i dont remember where in the book said that dumbledore can understood Parseltounge but cannot speak it.

can Parseltounge use as unique magic?

 

At the end of CoS, Dumbledore talks about Parseltongue in terms of Voldemort's "own powers" and Slytherin's "very rare gift". It's not a definitive statement, of course, but it does suggest that it can't be learned. Given that Ron can mimic it though (which I've always thought is nonsense), I'd say that you might be able to learn how to say things in Parseltongue, but that wouldn't help you understand what a snake was saying. But then again, if you learned how to say things by listening to a Parselmouth and copying them, you'd presumably be theoretically able to understand a snake, by deduction at least...there's no definite statement in canon, anyway, so in fanfic terms you could do what you like.

Parsel magic though has only ever existed in fanon. I've got more time for it as a concept that learning how to speak it without the actual gift, but there's nothing canonical about it.

 

Rowling said that Professor Dumbledore understood parseltongue .Then how come he didn't hear the basilisk in CoS?

 

Harry only heard the snake in the first place because he was in the right place at the right time.

 

In my mind, the innate part of Parseltongue (the gift of Slythrin's line) is the automatic, unconscious translation. Basically someone like Dumbledore (or Ron, even though I don't like this scene either) hears some hissing and knows what words they correspond to, while a true Parselmouth barely hears the hissing, but can directly hear the words in their language.

I do think it's also possible for the first kind to talk Parseltongue, or at least the sounds accessible to humans.

To be perfectly clear: it's my interpretation of the canon facts (Parseltongue being unlearnable but some other people understanding / saying a few words), not the official explanation.

 

Looking around, I couldn't find many sources, but the clearest example for how loud a snake would be is a hearing health site, which gives a rattlesnake a range of 60-80 decibels. Whilst the Basilisk isn't a rattlesnake, and the sound didn't come from a rattle, it's also much bigger than a rattlesnake.

Based on the chart below, this is the range from a normal conversation, to an alarm clock.

On the other hand, alligators (reptiles, but not snakes) can peak at about 90 decibels, and literature suggests that volume and size are pretty closely linked. So a basilisk that roars like an alligator probably gets louder, but you have to bear in mind that the basilisk was being sneaky, and so is unlikely to be doing threat displays.

Spoiler

My sister's downstairs watching TV, quite loudly. I can hear all the words, and can make out each speaker, if I have my door open. Closing the door, this fades to not being able to hear at all.

Hogwarts is a castle.

This means that, likely, most of the walls are stone. Not just brick, but great big chucks of rock. Further, the basilisk was inside the pipes inside the walls.

I don't have any handy stone walls to check how much of an impact they have, but even standard interior walls and doors block sound a bit, even when they don't lie completely flush.

I'd guess (someone could probably correct me) that a solid stone wall, and a solid metal pipe (probably) on the other side would be a pretty good sound insulator. I mean, people sell it as such, although I don't have any figures for it.

Imagine trying to listen in on a whispered conversation. Now imagine it's in a second language, one you don't speak very well. You now probably don't understand any of it.

Overall, Dumbledore probably couldn't hear the basilisk because it was being quiet, and stone made it quieter.

 

@Thaumologist Thanks for the detailed answer
--- Post automerged ---
"Well, I've always felt an affinity with the great magical birds. There's a story in my family that a phoenix will come to any Dumbledore who is in desperate need."

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald- Original Screenplay - Page 43

Why didn't a phoenix come to help Ariana Dumbledore?

If the story is false why did Dumbledore even bother mentioning it?

 

Would it be possible for someone to somehow manage to acquire unicorn blood willingly, and what would happen if someone consumed it?