In GoF, Fudge couldn't communicate with the Bulgarian Minister. If the top politicians aren't using language charms/whatever in international events, I'm pretty sure that there is no easy way to understand/speak another language. Even if Fudge is incompetent, if there was such a charm, it would be routine and someone would cast it.

 

There must be some way to improve the process, because Barty Crouch knows hundreds of them. That'd be impossible without magic, especially as he's hardly devoted his life to learning them - he's been busy with a lot of other stuff as well.

 

I'm sure there are translation spells, they're just never mentioned in canon. After all, Hogwarts has a giant library filled with ancient tomes that are supposedly readable. It's highly unlikely that these books were all written in Middle or Modern English. More likely Old English or Latin.

Here's a sample pic of real Old English. Can you read this? Because I sure as shit can't.

 

Well yeah, I can read it, but it doesn't make any sense. :awesome

In all seriousness, yeah, there probably are magical ways to speed up learning languages, as others have said before me.

 

I think Santi's fic got it right - language learning spell with different results for each person and an environment with foreign languages. It would mean that not every person could learn languages extremely fast, but those who do and in position to interact with vast number of cultures (Head of Department of International Magical Cooperation) would absorb hundreds of languages.

 

With a groan Edward captures my other hand. He holds both my wrists in his left hand, and his right travels leisurely – insolently, almost – down my body, fondling and feeling as it goes, tweaking my
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Ods Bodkins! Turns out it's the original draft of Fifty Shades of Grey. :awesome

 

I know I'm a little late to the party here but I think this bears bringing back up, if that even applies after less than a week in a catch-all thread such as this.

Yeah, the examples are way too narrow, and that's no doubt because of JKR's limited knowledge of the wider range of technology. But it makes perfect sense to me that none of that stuff would work at Hogwarts and in fact I disagree with Warlocke's speculation that you could get around some of the limitations by running an extension cord from Surrey to some old ruins in the highlands of Scotland.

And it's not just Hogwarts: A History that gives us the evidence, though that's the most explicit. There are also the 'protections' around Hogwarts, preventing anyone from Apparating in or out, and in HBP these protections also prevented broom travel in in until Dumbledore dispelled them (at speed and while quite badly poisoned, no less). Note: I don't think these types of enchantments are ever referred to as 'wards' in canon.

And in my opinion the best explanation of how and why Hogwarts zaps electronics while something like 14 witches and wizards in Petunia's kitchen didn't so much as dim the lights? It comes in an off-hand comment from Dumbledore after a refreshing swim. Harry asks him what he's doing, running his hands over the rocks and muttering under his breath, and D'dore tells him that "magic always leaves traces."

Now granted, that cave was on a waiting list to the Tenth Circle of Hell so no one should be surprised that Dumbledore found the traces. And yet Hogwarts is well over a thousand years old, at least one of its Founders was pretty much a dick if the hype is accurate, and with all the thousands and thousands of students who've passed thru there, even had that avalanche or tidal wave of experiences with magic been nothing but sunshine and Conjured roses, I have to think that would be enough to have saturated that old castle.

Add in just the ugly things we know, like Myrtle and the apparently thousand-year-old Basilisk, Tom Roddle himself, the widespread and at least formerly institutionalized bullying of not just Muggleborns but Half-bloods and possibly anyone, the statistical frequency of shitty and/or unethical professors, the list goes on and on before we even GET to all the shit we see Harry have to slog thru.

So yeah, I'm not the least bit surprised that for electronics, Hogwarts might be equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle, a post-apocolyptic EMP dead zone, and a black hole. There's also the fact that the entirety of the school grounds - from I suppose the carriages at the Hogsmeade Station to the Forbidden Forest to the front gates with the winged boars - is under not only those 'protections' to keep out things like Death Eaters and immortal Dark Lords, but also under a Muggle-Repelling Charm. A charm that makes them see those enormous, sprawling grounds and castle as an uninteresting ruin, and then persuades them they've left the iron or the oven on. And correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Hogwarts Unplottable as well, or is that a fanon bleed-over?

So. Yes, the Ministry has to hide its presence as well, but let's be real; it's totally hidden inside a non-descript building in London, and until DH the folks who worked at the Ministry didn't even have to interact with Muggles to get to the office, just Apparating or simply using the Floo. People visiting had to use the phone box - which while incredibly funny and all, was nonetheless retarded. TGhe same ease-of-hiding also applies for St. Mungo's, the main problems are going to occur with the magically fucked-up patients on their way TO St. Mungo's, in the same way that the problem at the Ministry will often result from, say, Madame Maxime trying to squeeze her money-maker into that phone box, particularly if she's brought her friend Albus with.

I'll try not to be too curmudgeonly but as useful as that would be, I want to read a story and think, "Damn, that would be so fucking awesome to have!" and never, ever "Wow, I could really use one of those at the office -or- in a meeting -or- on the toilet."

The flying memos are cute and quirky and, if you think about it, really nothing more than a manifestation of the emails flying around your office or mine every day so in that respect I happen to love the visual.

Well, we do see a lot of quasi-evidence for a general incompetence or maybe apathy, though I feel the need to point out again the unreliable and terribly ignorant point-of-view we get in Harry.

And we as a race of humans can build almost anything but the range of different talents and the levels of skill within all those different talents. Some skills and talents we can markedly improve with effort and others not so much. No doubt it's the same in the Wizarding World with the added aspect of magic and how it relates to whatever skill you want to cultivate or improve.

Exactly, and this is what I mean above as well. For instance, everyone has a table or two in their house or apartment. Did you build it yourself or go out and buy it? I mean, building a table isn't nearly as complicated as building a comfy chair, but I'd bet that most of DLP could manage to build a serviceable if atrocious-looking table if they had to. And yet almost no one - at all, anywhere - you ever met has even tried making their own ottoman or done much more than paint a couple rooms, hang a few pictures (usually crookedly) and rearrange the furniture they already own.

Why? Part of it is insufficient knowledge or not feeling secure enough in your talents or having no idea where to start, whatever - but part of it is (or has been in the U.S.) the fact that it's hard to argue for spending an inordinate amount of time teaching yourself to, say, replace the transmission in your car when there are specialists who not only won't dick it up but will have it done and back to you in a couple of days. And the higher your wealth or rather how much you earn, the less sense it makes *not* to pay someone to perform certain ongoing services around your home like the yard work or house cleaning.

In light of that I'm not surprised that even with all that wondrous and powerful magic, witches and wizards still buy things like robes and cauldrons and telescopes and only relative outliers like the Weasley Twins ever decide to not just 'make' but invent and then manufacture their own products to sell.

 

Do you think a Snitch is expensive? Not in pounds, but more like in the buying range of average wizard - more like school robes (can buy used ones) or, say broomsticks?


Based on DH, they have flesh memory (to remember who has caught them first), and that means they probably change them for every match?
At least?

That basically makes the Snitch worthless after a game, at least for the Hogwarts matches and probably used only for practice.

Changing them every practice (or with every catch even), would be a waste of gold.

Also, if it's relatively cheep it makes James nicking the Snitch more harmless.

After all this, I kind of believe it's something an average wizard could buy for himself as easily as buying a new set of robes - still in the range of simple, maybe slightly extravagant gift, or buying a used one (unless one from a famous match, obviously, but who would care about a Snitch from 1974 year match between Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?) for a cheaper gift, or personal training or something.

Thoughts?

 

There are Quidditch shops. Obviously they sell more than just brooms. I think snitch would be no more expansive than decent basketball.

No the real question is would polyjuice fool the snitch! If not, they would be decent way to confirm who is who.

 

Snitches aren't reusable for games, so they pretty much have to be cheap.

Also, I doubt that the entire snitch is made of gold. It's more likely that they're painted/gilded.

 

I'm looking for a good teacher!Harry. Not particularly Hogwarts proffessor, just a decent fic in which Harry engages in teaching other people (DA not included).

As I'm pretty sure this has come up for discussion before, can someone point me to a thread that could help me?

 

Story search for Teacher!harry here.

 

Viktor Krum was NOT riding a Firebolt in the World Cup, right?

Was somewhat sure of it, but can't find the confirmation.

At the very least, can you say that it wasn't said that he was riding a Firebolt?

 

It never says either way. The Irish players all have firebolts, but it never says anything about the Bulgarian's brooms. I'd take that to mean he wasn't riding a firebolt, as the fact the Irish had them was emphasised several times, I feel it would be mentioned if the Bulgarians had them too.

 

Canon may not mention it, but I suspect both teams would have to ride the same standardized broom for a World Cup Match in order to promote fairness.

 

I disagree. Lot's of sports have a important components beyond human skill. Horse racing for example and most forms of car racing. Quidditch Through the Ages certainly seems to imply that Quidditch League teams get to choose which broom they adopt.

Edit: Quotes for posterity.

Bold mine. This is clearly considered impressive and hence exceptional.

Implies professional Quidditch teams have a choice of broom.

'preference for many British and Irish teams' implies it wasn't used by all.

'preferred' again implies choice.

 

When the Firebolt is first mentioned in PoA, it says that the Irish national team has just ordered seven of them.To me that would suggest that brooms aren't standardised.

 

I thought it meant that they were just very expensive and along the lines of expensive European racing cars in that you could not just walk into a store and purchase one, but had to order it directly from the company. Is there evidence that Harry got his replacement broom from a shoppe or was that one custom ordered as well?

 

Quality Quidditch Supplies has a firebolt display in Prisoner of Azkaban, along with a prototype model.

This was the sign,

Prince on request seems especially telling to me. I'd say you can order them from the shop but you're not just grabbing a box from a rack.

 

In PoA Harry's greatest fear is fear itself but what does this mean? Does it mean that he's not scared of anything except the possibility of being scared?

Are the protections Dumbledore placed on Privet Drive effective just against Voldemort and his followers or them plus any outside force meaning Harry harm? I don't know if this was ever answered in canon but I'd like people's opinions on it.