So I had in mind Dorian Bridges and Sarah Z from YouTube and also Sam J. Miller, and EY definitely seems to have a bit of that

So lately, I've been reading Atlas shrugged. Less as a guide for what to believe in, more as an explanation of the mindset that allows people to believe capitalism works ("the alt-right playbook: always a bigger fish" on YouTube is a pretty accurate summary of the communist response to that mindset, although, like, a lot of the things being said there are pretty relevant either way), but this is an interesting read. And I keep thinking.

What's the main difference between AR's philosophy, and that of EY?

Because here's the thing: Harry did make the joke about how atlas shrugged relies too much on an appeal to your sense of exceptionality, but it's not as if the story DISAGREES with the idea of human exceptionality at its core. A while ago, I said that the SPHEW arc was a more convincing argument against democracy than the Stanford prison experiment arc, and what I meant by that was... The Stanford prison experiment makes you think about how interests having the power to game the system makes it vulnerable to something like Azkaban, but it does not fundamentally talk against the idea that we could just educate the public, create a society enlightened enough to vote for a better world. But the SPHEW arc drives home really, really hard the idea of how fundamentally FRUSTRATING it is to try and give power to the people when the people don't know what they're doing. How much it will drive you crazy to try and act on the ideals of egalitarianism, only to be struck in the face time and time again with how most people are, in fact, stupid. HPMOR is a story that, in its core, recognizes how exhausting it is to just KNOW BETTER than everyone around you. "Letting the public decide" gave us Trump, it gave us Brexit, because most people in our society today are not using logic to determine how to make their choices, they will doom the fates of themselves and everyone around them if a charismatic enough guy or a fucking sign on a bus will say it in a way that SOUNDS true. And that sort of thing can really drive you to go and say, fuck it, I should be in control of this thing.

So what makes Rand's philosophy meaningfully different than Yudkovsky's?

Well, for starters, he believes that even if people are stupid, they don't deserve to suffer (Which does conflate a bit with his views on veganism, but you can't always be aware of everything at all times). He believes that if you are smarter than the people around you, you should act to reduce their suffering. That even if they voted for hell upon earth, they still don't deserve to be sent there. Which is basically to say, he does not believe in fate, or in someone's "worthiness" of experiencing a specific one. Nobody "deserves" pain, and everyone "deserve" dignity. Suffering is bad. No matter who, no matter what. It should be inflicted to the extent it can stop more suffering from occurring, and never more than that. If Wizard Hitler was at your mercy, he, too, would not have deserved to suffer. Are you better than everyone around you? Well then you fucking owe it to them to try and save them.

But then there's the next big question: if all fixing the world took was putting smart people in charge, why didn't that happen already?

Here's the thing about billionaires. A lot of them aren't actually stupid. A lot of them are, and just inherited a company from their parents, but a lot of the time, becoming a "self-made billioner" actually requires a lot of smart manipulation of factors. Jeff Bezos' rise to the top did take a hell of a lot of genuine talent. Elon Musk, despite having pretty good opening stats to begin with, did need some pretty amazing skills in order to get to where he got. And for a while, both of those men were known as icons, but then... The world wasn't fixed, and now we know that Amazon keeps squeezing its own workers as hard as possible for profit, and that Elon Musk did... Basically everything he did since. Those men could have saved us! What went wrong?

I think both of them examplify two ways that power, in the hands of someone competent, can go wrong.

Bezos, as a lot of those like him, just eventually came to the conclusion that this wasn't his problem. The world is big, and complicated, and at the end of the day, not your problem. Give away some money to charity, that's gotta be good, but other than that, let the people in charge handle it. Everyone's suffering all the time, and if you don't know how to solve it all, why should you try? Being successful doesn't make you responsible for everyone who isn't. And if you can maximize profits by making sure your workers can't go around talking about unions or a living wage... Well, more money for space exploration's gotta be a good thing, right? The free market game is open for everybody, you're allowed to win this thing.

(Notice how that's literally Randian philosophy. If you have earned it, you're allowed to do whatever you want.)

Elon Musk has a lot on common with what I just described- for example, he also believes that cutting corners over people is justified. Only he believes it for a pretty different reason. He genuinely did believe it IS his job to optimize the world, and so if your technology is your best idea for how to make society better, and you have to believe you're smart enough for it to keep yourself from going insane, then this was a very smart person's best idea for how to better the world, and so a couple workers being sliced by machinery is just gonna be offset by the amount of lives saved in the long run, right? If you're smart enough to be worthy of that power (which can be a very relaxing thing to believe if you have to live with having it), your ideas must be the bottom line, and any attempt to intervene must be an annoying distraction. And then he went even more insane during COVID, and with nobody else around him, he seemed to internalize this belief a few degrees deeper. Safety regulations trying to close your factories during a pandemic? You must be allowed to make them leave, your technology is more important. The free marketplace of ideas doesn't allow people you agree with to say what they want? You must be allowed to buy it and redraw the lines on what people are and aren't allowed to say, your ideas are more important. You literally have power over The Pentagon now? No place to question whether or not you deserve it, after all, governments are made out of stupid people. The sunk cost fallacy has run too deep.

Without checks and balances, people at the top can't be trusted to regulate themselves while holding absolute power.

I do not know if "the right person" for running the world could ever exist. Discworld did try and suggest a model for one, an enlightened, extremely smart man who took control over a country and realized only prioritizing the utmost control for himself and the maximal stability for the world around him is the best chance to prevent it from derailing. And... Could a person like that exist? I mean, statistically, probably. But very few people ever actually have the chance to gain absolute power, and being better than most people in most rooms you were ever in is just not enough to qualify you for that. It's not enough for unchecked power to be held by someone smarter than most of the people around them who believes every idea they feel really confidant about is devine, that's how you get religious texts. And until we can actually get a Vetinari... Democracy looks like the safest bet we got.

Hi, was wondering about the content of the drookbook prints. If anyone reading this has bought them, I wanted to know:

• Do they have the omake files?

• Are the poems of Griffindor (non est salvatori etc) and the one for Pratchet (toast an absent friend) included?

• Are the original author notes there?

• Anything else I should know?

I'm going Orochimaru on this business!

Life force is a tricky thing to understand in hpmor and it left me unsatisfied on how it fits into the story, so here's my spin on magical avenues for it, feel free to improve on it

As per using patronus 2.0, and creating an immortal race of humans and maybe even more witches & wizards, I feel like it's not much explained how life force works.

With that in mind I want to propose a working theory that solidifies how you can resurrect wizards and witches without the caveat being having less life force and maybe even create witches & wizards at a lower cost while maintaining secrecy.

Given that Hermione is brought back from the dead with her magic intact due to Harry's sacrifice, I want to believe that it shouldn't be a leap in logic to assume that life force isn't finite in the sense as we are led to believe, and therefore can manipulate how a person is brought back.

Otherwise Hermione wouldn't be able to use magic as potent later on as she used to; seeing as Harry only sacrificed a small portion that is now seemingly lost "forever", and would translate to her having extremely less magic as well.

For that reason I want to believe life force in itself is replenishable with due time, and creates the spark of magic by using magic tied to one's own life force; as we've seen how wizards can heal others, strong magic from the phoenix, can sustain you from death and humans, wizards and all creatures alike can create life, and therefore ignite a spark in flesh called life and magic.

Life force would be finite like magic but replenishable just the same with the reasoning of circle of life and healing through magic,and can be used but presents a danger to one's continued existence if depleted.

With that said I would believe Harry's portion of life force to be lost, but not permanently in the sense.

Allowing us to broaden the scope on using the philosophers stone and the resurrection ritual in tandem continuously with only threat of death upon overuse.

It comes to reason that then instead of needing someone else to sacrifice life force every time(due to the supposed risk of never getting that back) , a party of 3 or more can achieve the same result(on the premise life force is infinite through time and recuperation) ;using 3 so as to permit the least amount lost from every individual by taking breaks, and thus avoiding needing numerous patronus 2.0's brought in to secrecy just to make bringing people back feasible.

By doing this it means infinite resurrections and little cost to achieving the end result, while respecting Merlin's interdict of not passing along powerful rituals carelessly among dozens of people.

Furthermore on the task of creating wizards, we find that the ritual can't make magic, and life can't be resuscitated by it's means, so either using muggle methods the person is brought back to life a muggle without magic, or with the use of a patronus 2.0 a person can be brought back and given magic.

Unknown factors could prevent using this method on muggles, seeing as it seems magic is genetic. so using the ritual 2.0 on muggles might not work as intended, or it might bring them back as a muggle, or it rather might be proven a success giving birth to magic in the veins of muggles, or they might be transfigured to have magic in their dna if we can comprehend the significance and source of magic in wizarding blood.

These are my current theories, and I have yet to find evidence that opposes it. Seeing as the problems can be transfigured or solved with science and even proved false by how magic and life force seems to interact.

And if it works, you can have infinite moral resurrections, no threat or harm to life, no use of dark magics such as horcruxes and u might even be able to turn earth into a wizarding populace!

Death is the final enemy, And by my hands wrought, It is no more...

So I just finished listening to Chapter 89: Time Pressure Part 2 of Jack Voraces' amazing audiobook read of HPMOR and, firstly WOW what a chapter! I remember being shocked years ago when I read it myself but hearing it now as an audiobook has it just as great a moment.

A funny thing happened on my Spotify when it ended; my queue started playing Can You See Me In The Dark by Halestorm right after it ended and it fit SO well. I recommend trying it! It sounded like the finale to some incredible TV show like Arcane and the credits were rolling.

In fact, if you look at the lyrics to the song, I think it fits really well especially at this point in the story.

Just wanted to share this really cool experience I had and commend everyone involved in bringing it to fruition.

I thought the point of the book was going to show how if you are facing an enemy that is significantly more intelligent than you then YOU ALWAYS LOSE.

I guess this was a time when Eliezer was more optimistic. Granted the heros needed prophecy and Voldemort being an idiot at the end to win. (Seriously? No contingencies against mind wipe when Quirrell even acknowledged how OP that spell was previously?)

Hey everyone! I'm not sure if I've misunderstood something, or if I have encountered an actual plot hole in the story.

Assuming that the Interdict of Merlin does work as described, then magical spells can only be passed from one living mind to another, and there is a specific point raised that you cannot just learn spells straight from a book.

However, when experimenting with magic with Hermione, Harry has her learn 17 new spells, which he himself has not yet learned.

Due to the above, as Harry can't learn the spells from the book as he hasn't been told from a living mind, how can he then pass the knowledge to Hermione and get -her- to learn said spells?

Chapter 111:

"Lord Voldemort," Harry said, "I beg you, please give her some clothes. It might help me do this."

"Granted," hissed Voldemort. The pain in Harry's scar flared as the naked girl's body lifted into the air, then flared again as dead leaves danced around her and she was clothed in the seeming of a Hogwarts uniform, though the trim was red instead of blue. Hermione Granger's hands folded over her chest, her legs straightened, and her body drifted back down.

[...]

"Expecto," Harry shouted, feeling the magic and the life rise up into the Patronus Charm that was fueled by both, "PATRONUM! "

The girl in the Hogwarts uniform was surrounded by a blazing aura of silver fire, as the Patronus was born inside her.

If Voldemort Transfigured these leaves into robes for Hermione, Harry casting the True Patronus inside her to resurrect her should've caused a resonance because their magics touched. The only way that wouldn't happen is if the robes were made permanent first, which requires physical contact with the Stone and isn't shown happening. Their magic touching only stops causing problems after Harry Obliviates and Transfigures Voldemort into a gemstone four chapters later.

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12825305/26/

Can anyone recommend a spinoff in which Harry goes to Azkaban in chapter 85 because I am on my third time through and find myself very disappointed that he didn't choose different this time. I've read Following the Phoenix and was similarly disappointed...

So... I thought I could tap a little earlier in the story into the idea that she should maybe be more than a sidekick. First of all, her introductory number (in its current draft) is about how she always read stories about people who are given power and use it to better the world and now she finally got to do that, and she reads about the houses and knows she wants to be in Gryffindor, because that's where the people who want to make the world better in meaningful ways go, and she finds comfort in knowing that she's going to the house where people believe in standing up against injustice, because if you're gonna be a muggleborn in Hogwarts, it could always be helpful to have friends what won't be afraid to step up for you, and she's so amazed by this whole new world and the fact that she belongs in it... And then Harry comes in, proves to her that science is cool and smart and that he also wants to make the world better using magic, and she reluctantly agrees that maybe the two of them could get along... And then there's the thing with Neville and his toad and the Gryffindor prefect, and she realizes (through a reprise) that going to Gryffindor, and more generally, THINKING OF YOURSELF AS THE HERO... Can corrupt people pretty bad. And so she makes an active choice to tone it down, go to Ravenclaw, not act like she's the center of the universe and generally just... Try to succeed locally instead of attempting to achieve a status of heroism, because while she's read a lot of stories about people who changed the world and became heroes, she also read a lot of stories about ego-tripping villains who burned down the world because they were not the center of it, and, like... For an eleven-year-old girl, the difference between the two is pretty hard to spot when it's not spelled out for you.

And so she goes to Ravenclaw, and she sees Harry becoming a legend, right next to her, and it's driving her crazy. Not only because she's being unwillingly turned into a side character in someone else's story, and now all her local academic achievements are being woven into this grand narrative she explicitly made an effort to avoid becoming a part of, but also because Harry is becoming everything she dreamed and feared of becoming and How Fucking Dare He. And a part of it is just "all her worst ideas about what fame, power and a sense of self-importance can turn someone into, now embodied by her academic rival/best friend", but a part of it is also... Well, we know that Hermione's parents are actively attempting to dismiss the fact that they have a gifted child. And I did often think about places that the story could go with it, since the canon seemed to kind of assume it didn't really hurt her in any meaningful way, but also, like... It IS hurtful, to grow up with parents who think you don't deserve a thing that everyone else around you seem to think you deserve. And a thing that often happens in situations like that, and that also falls in line with Hermione's behavior in hpmor, is that the child... Starts developing a weird superiority complex in an attempt to justify why the way their parents acted was okay and normal. My parents won't let me eat candy -> everyone who likes candy is just a self-indulgent pig who doesn't care to take care of their body. My parents won't let me have a smartphone -> everyone who does have a smartphone is a mindless brainwashed zombie who doesn't realize how much this dang machine is ruining their grey cells. And in Hermione's case, my parents think I'm silly and obsessing too much over "the parts of me that aren't important" (too much projection, sorry) when I try to point out I'm very clearly not like other kids, both in terms of objective talent in a LOT of the areas that could be massively influential for my life going forward, and in terms of just, like... Basic social skills? That I'm completely alienated and don't know how to make friends? And that nobody else in my class can read the way I can or solve problems the way I can and that they all keep saying I'm amazing and one in a thousand, yet I somehow just can't seem to make any friends, so what's up with that? -> anyone who ever considers those traits meaningful to their identity is being weird and annoying and they should cope and get over it like I did. And so there's this scene/song (it kinda fluctuates between the two) I wrote, about the part where she gave him the book challenge and when she's now dragged into the culture war over his value as a person, and at some point she finds herself digging more and more in her head into how entitled he acts, how his parents must have taught him that "being a gifted kid makes you special", and that's why he keeps acting like he's the center of the universe, until she finds herself thinking the words "a preteen who knows how to quote Steven Hawkins isn't a genius, it's just a freak!" And she honest-to-goodness can't identify why she thinks this way, the way, y'know... Most eleven-year-old gifted girls can't, but it horrifies her so much to see that she IS HAVING THOUGHTS LIKE THAT AT ALL, that in this version, this is what starts making her really scared about why does Harry make her feel things that you really shouldn't feel about other people who did nothing wrong. (I haven't decided yet if I want to keep the part where she thinks that means she's in love with Harry- like, don't get me wrong, it's actually perfectly realistic, especially for a deeply insecure girl who grew up on escapist fiction stories, but I just find it to be... A bit less interesting than the version where she realizes she won and just leaves because she's afraid of herself.)

After that, I thought I could have a couple of different plot threads- obviously SPHEW happens (although I thought I could move this arc to before... Y'know, everything involving dementors, just to make the stakes go up in a way that makes sense), and I did get a suggestion I kinda liked for how to fix some things that didn't work in this arc originally, but I thought that I could give more focus and exploration to everything that got her onto that breaking point in the first place. Obviously, if she made a conscious decision to try and not become a hero, what could change her mind about it? And so I thought, maybe she could just, like... Talk about ideas with Harry. I have a bunch of different things I think could be interesting for the two of them to talk about and evolve accordingly. One of them is, yes, the fact that Harry believes you, as someone who is smarter and more ethical than the society you grew up in, are... More or less MORALLY OBLIGATED to try and shape the world around you into what you see as right. And I think that while some of that rhetoric did affect how she saw things, it was also happening at the same time as she saw Quirrell very obviously making Harry a worse person through those ideas exactly, and so it basically took her pretty long to realize that maybe you can be actively involved in things without letting it twist your ego.

Anyways, please slap my hands away from the keyboard if you think these would all be horrible ideas

So it's all still thinking hypotheticals, none of it is in any kind of practical production stage yet, but also, theoretically... Do you think an animated format could work? And if so, what kind of animation? I thought maybe, since most of the story doesn't really need visual effects but certain parts of it REALLY DO, the scenes could mostly go in simplistic-lines, black-grey-and-white kinda thing, that sharpens into something more along the lines of the artsy, detailed style that there is in, for example, the YouTube animations for the songs from "six" (I could get a different animator to do those parts) during the musical numbers and high-tension scenes, and then it could just completely transform into being fully animated, fully colored and highly evocative (get a different animator for that too) in the scenes that are genuinely awe-inspiring (such as the stars, dementors, the true patronus, the peak of the troll fight, etc). I'm curious if this sounds to any of you, hypothetically, like it has potential.

The text contains many clues: obvious clues, not-so-obvious clues,

truly obscure hints which I was shocked to see some readers successfully decode, and massive evidence left out in plain sight. This is a rationalist story; its mysteries are solvable, and meant to be solved

The whole book is fascinating and thought-provoking. But it seems E.Y. is referring to specific mysteries? I have read it all and want spoilers.... Not sure if I need to flair this with spoilers.

tldr: better language, but no conflicts.

======

prompt: "Rationality" is a specific quality of any fictional work, independent of genres and settings. It describes the extent to which the work explores thoughtful behaviour of people in honest pursuit of their goals, as well as consequences of their behaviour on the fictional world or the story's plot. In highly-rational fiction, realistic intellectual agency is put above established literary tropes, and all other aspects of the narrative.

continue writing this chapter for harry potter and method of rationality : "Tell me, Harry," said the Headmaster (and now his voice sounded simply puzzled, though there was still a hint of pain in his eyes), "why do Dark Wizards fear death so greatly?" "Er," said Harry, "sorry, I've got to back the Dark Wizards on that one." Whoosh, hiss, chime; glorp, pop, bubble - "What? " said Dumbledore. "Death is bad," said Harry, discarding wisdom for the sake of clear communication. "Very bad. Extremely bad. Being scared of death is like being scared of a great big monster with poisonous fangs. It actually makes a great deal of sense, and does not, in fact, indicate that you have a psychological problem."

claude:
The Headmaster stared at Harry for a long moment. "You speak of death as though it were an enemy to be fought."

"Because it is," Harry said firmly. "Each death is the loss of a universe of knowledge, memories, and potential. Every person who dies takes with them everything they've ever learned, everything they've ever felt, every unique perspective they've developed. And that's not even considering the downstream effects - the discoveries they might have made, the people they might have helped, the problems they might have solved."

Dumbledore's fingers drummed slowly on his desk. "There is much wisdom in accepting the natural order of things, Harry. Death has been with us since the beginning of time-"

"So has smallpox," Harry interrupted. "So has hunger, and malaria, and countless other sources of human suffering. The 'natural order' isn't automatically good just because it's natural. That's the naturalistic fallacy. If something causes harm, we should try to prevent it, regardless of how long it's been around."

"And yet," Dumbledore said quietly, "those who have most ardently pursued immortality have often become the darkest of wizards. Look at what Tom became in his quest to defeat death."

"That's confusing correlation with causation," Harry replied. "Maybe the problem isn't that pursuing immortality makes you evil. Maybe it's that people who are already evil are more likely to pursue immortality through destructive means because they don't care who they hurt in the process. A good person who wanted to defeat death would work on healing magic, or try to understand the fundamental nature of aging, or research ways to preserve and transfer consciousness."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled slightly, though his expression remained serious. "And is that what you intend to do, Harry?"

"I intend to try," Harry said. "And I intend to do it ethically. Because here's the thing about death being bad - it means life is precious. Every life. If death is truly an enemy, then preserving life becomes that much more important. You can't say 'death is horrible' and then be casual about killing people. The two positions are logically inconsistent."

"There are those who would say that death gives life meaning," Dumbledore offered, though his tone suggested he was testing Harry's response rather than arguing.

"That's Stockholm syndrome on a cosmic scale," Harry said flatly. "Would you say that hunger gives food meaning? That illness gives health meaning? That ignorance gives knowledge meaning? We don't need death to appreciate life. If anything, death makes it harder to appreciate life because we're all walking around with this countdown timer in our heads, trying to ignore the fact that everything we love will end."

The Headmaster leaned back in his chair, regarding Harry thoughtfully. "You speak with remarkable conviction for one so young."

"Age doesn't determine truth," Harry said. "Either my arguments make sense or they don't. Either death is bad and we should try to stop it, or it isn't and we shouldn't. The fact that I'm eleven doesn't change the logic."

A long silence fell between them, broken only by the whirring and clicking of the silver instruments that filled the office. Finally, Dumbledore spoke again, his voice gentle.

"And what would you say, Harry, to those who have lost loved ones? Those who find comfort in believing they will see them again beyond the veil?"

Harry's expression softened slightly. "I'd say that I understand wanting that comfort. I really do. But false comfort doesn't actually help in the long run. If we accept death as inevitable or even good, we'll never put in the work needed to actually solve it. And that means more people will lose their loved ones, forever. The kind thing to do - the truly compassionate thing - is to acknowledge how terrible death is, and work to end it."

gpt 4o:
"Harry," Dumbledore said slowly, frowning as if he hadn't quite heard correctly. "You believe that the fear of death is not only rational but inevitable?"

"Yes," Harry said firmly, his thoughts racing to fit the right words together. "It's not just that people are afraid of the unknown—although that’s part of it—but death means the end of everything. All your experiences, your thoughts, your dreams, your *goals*. Poof. Gone. Nonexistence is the ultimate problem to solve."

Dumbledore's eyes softened, though his expression remained unreadable. "But does it not seem that, in fearing death to such a degree, one might lose sight of life itself? We are creatures of the present, Harry, not just prisoners of future fears. Is there not wisdom in accepting death as part of the natural order?"

"Maybe," Harry conceded, "if you're willing to accept that the 'natural order' is inherently good. But why should we? The natural order also includes disease and suffering and—well—Dark Lords trying to take over the world. We don't just accept those things, we fight them. So why make an exception for death?"

Dumbledore tilted his head, intrigued. "But Harry, if one spends their life consumed by the fear of death, are they not bound by it all the same? Is there not a point at which the pursuit of life becomes more of a prison than the death one tries to avoid?"

Harry considered this, frowning. "That depends on *how* you're pursuing life. It's true that people can waste their lives chasing immortality in a reckless or self-destructive way, but that’s just bad strategy, not an inherent flaw in the goal itself. The problem isn’t with the pursuit, it's with the method. Think of it like science—if we do it wrong, we blow ourselves up, but if we do it right, we might actually live long enough to figure out how not to die."

"Ah," Dumbledore said softly. "You believe that the pursuit of immortality is an extension of human rationality, then."

"Exactly," said Harry, warming up to his point. "The rational thing to do is solve the biggest problems first. Death is *the* biggest problem. If we're serious about improving life, we can't just pretend it doesn’t matter."

"And what of love, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, his voice very gentle now. "Do you think that love, too, is a problem to be solved? Or is it something different, something that gives meaning even to our brief time in this world?"

Harry blinked, thrown by the shift. "Love isn't a problem in the same way death is. It's more like... well, love is an answer, isn't it? It’s part of what makes life worth extending in the first place."

Dumbledore smiled slightly. "And yet, would you not agree that love cannot exist without limits? That perhaps the very finiteness of our existence gives love its urgency, its depth? If we lived forever, what would love become?"

Harry opened his mouth to argue, then paused. That was a tricky question. Love was built on moments, experiences shared within time—and yet, surely, people could love just as deeply with more time. Couldn’t they?

"I think," Harry said carefully, "that love isn't limited by time, but by *people*. If we live forever but keep growing, learning, and changing, I don’t see why love would diminish. But I admit," he added with a slight grin, "I haven’t exactly worked out an immortality scenario yet, so I can't say for sure."

Dumbledore chuckled, a sound both warm and melancholic. "Perhaps, Harry, there is wisdom in balancing both the finite and the infinite, in recognizing the value of what we have while we strive for more. Rationality, as you call it, may not always have to choose between the two."

Harry nodded slowly. "I guess that makes sense. But I still think it’s worth trying to solve death. You know, just in case."

The Headmaster looked at him with an odd twinkle in his eye, as though seeing something in Harry that hadn’t been visible before. "I believe, Harry, that your journey will be full of questions far greater than these—and that you will find answers, whether in life or beyond it."

Harry shrugged. "Preferably *in* life."

Dumbledore smiled. "Of course."

gpt 4o mini with addition instruction, focus on the pretend being wise aspect.

Crafting the narrative

I’m working on a fictional story chapter titled "pretend being wise," focusing on Harry and Dumbledore. The story will align with the theme of rationality, emphasizing thoughtful actions, realistic outcomes, and intellectual agency.

Continuing the narrative

I’ll extend the chapter, ensuring Harry and Dumbledore's dialogue enriches rational behavior. Themes like Dark Wizards' death fears and Harry's introspection will be highlighted.

Weighing the fear

Interestingly enough, Harry perceives death as a monstrous, venomous entity, making the Dark Wizards' fear of it quite reasonable.

Acknowledging fear

Dumbledore admits fear of death compels Dark Wizards to act irrationally, revealing an exploitable vulnerability that contradicts their original objectives.

Recognizing rationality

Dumbledore emphasized rationality's role in overcoming the fear of death, ensuring clear judgment and purpose-driven actions.

Evaluating perspectives

Dumbledore appreciates Harry's insights on understanding opponents' fears and weaknesses, highlighting the power of simplistic truths and clear, honest beliefs in safeguarding their world.

"Tell me, Harry," said the Headmaster (and now his voice sounded simply puzzled, though there was still a hint of pain in his eyes), "why do Dark Wizards fear death so greatly?"

"Er," said Harry, "sorry, I've got to back the Dark Wizards on that one." Whoosh, hiss, chime; glorp, pop, bubble - "What? " said Dumbledore. "Death is bad," said Harry, discarding wisdom for the sake of clear communication. "Very bad. Extremely bad. Being scared of death is like being scared of a great big monster with poisonous fangs. It actually makes a great deal of sense, and does not, in fact, indicate that you have a psychological problem."

Dumbledore frowned slightly, absorbing Harry's blunt assessment. "I see your point, Harry," he said thoughtfully. "Fear is a natural response to the unknown, and death is indeed the ultimate unknown for most."

Harry nodded, relieved that Dumbledore was following his line of reasoning. "Exactly. Dark Wizards, despite their power and control over dark magic, are still mortal. Their fear of death drives many of their actions—seeking immortality, making pacts, using forbidden spells to prolong their lives."

The Headmaster leaned back in his chair, his expression softening. "So, in a way, their fear of death is a fundamental weakness. It leads them to make irrational choices in pursuit of eternal life."

"Right," Harry agreed. "They're so obsessed with not dying that they lose sight of their original goals. They become more focused on avoiding death than on achieving what they set out to do."

Dumbledore tapped his fingers thoughtfully on the armrest. "This obsession can indeed be a critical flaw. It can cloud judgment, distort priorities, and ultimately lead to their downfall."

Harry felt encouraged by the Headmaster's response. "And that's why rationality is so important. When you're rational, you can acknowledge the fear of death without letting it dictate your actions. You can make decisions based on clear objectives rather than being driven by panic or desperation."

Dumbledore smiled faintly. "Well said, Harry. Rationality allows one to confront fear, including the fear of death, and to act with purpose and clarity. It's a quality that can turn the tide in conflicts, ensuring that decisions are made for the right reasons."

Harry felt a sense of satisfaction. By presenting his thoughts clearly and honestly, he had engaged in the thoughtful behavior the Headmaster had described as rationality in fiction. It wasn't about hiding behind literary tropes or adhering to established wisdom; it was about genuinely exploring his own understanding and the consequences of that understanding within the context of their world.

Dumbledore's eyes sparkled with a renewed sense of respect. "Thank you, Harry. Your perspective sheds new light on the motivations of our adversaries. It reminds us that understanding their fears and weaknesses can be just as important as recognizing their strengths."

Harry smiled. "I'm glad it was helpful. Sometimes, pretending to be wise is just about being honest and clear about what we truly believe."

The Headmaster nodded approvingly. "Indeed, Harry. Sometimes, the simplest truths are the most powerful. Let us use this knowledge wisely as we continue our efforts to protect our world."

The conversation left Harry feeling more confident in his approach. By focusing on rationality and clear communication, he had connected with Dumbledore on a deeper level, paving the way for more strategic and thoughtful planning against the Dark Wizards.

As they concluded their meeting, Dumbledore added, "Remember, Harry, wisdom isn't merely about possessing knowledge or age. It's about understanding, applying that knowledge thoughtfully, and recognizing the impact of our actions. Your ability to articulate your thoughts so clearly is a testament to that wisdom."

Harry felt a surge of pride. "Thank you, Professor. I'll keep that in mind."

With a final nod, Dumbledore dismissed him. Harry left the Headmaster's office with a renewed sense of purpose. The path ahead was fraught with challenges, but with rationality as his guide, he felt prepared to navigate the complexities that lay before him.

In the scene at Gringotts Harry denies being Voldemort to Lucius, but what if he repeats the password given to Bellatrix (those who don't fear the darkness...) and triumphantly tells Lucius that he has earned Dumbledores complete trust.

Would this work? Would he, considering where we are in the story - Harry is in full war mode, defending against an invisible, almost invincible foe, be able to gain anything worth the risk? Is it too out of character?

On the top of my head he could maybe get information, he could get the resources of the death eaters to protect the school, help in the mystery etcetera. Hell he might even be able to tear down Azkaban.

There are off course a million way it could go to shit, but if he insists on the need to keep up appearances in front of Dumbledore, communicating with Lucius only through Draco, maybe he could keep it going for a while.

Every time the subject of the final exam comes up, I just keep thinking that everything Voldemort did after Harry's failed assassination attempt was stupid.

Voldemort didn't need thirty-odd Death Eaters, who had no idea what was going on and how serious it was, most of whom were incompetent idiots and quite a few of whom had probably defected over the years, to deal with Harry. He needed a few trusted and competent servants, all of whom knew about the danger Harry posed and agreed with Voldemort's approach to dealing with it. At least some of them needed to be hidden from Harry the entire time while others were watching Harry through the crosshair of a sniper rifle from afar once the intervoldemort curse was broken. Plus someone to bind the Vow.

He also didn't need his Death Eaters to march triumphantly across Magical Britain to claim his lordship over it. With Dumbledore gone, Malfoy would have the Ministry and Wizengamot under his control within what, a week maybe? Let him do his thing, just tip him off that his old master is still alive, mercifully leave him to rule the country as your secretary, help a few people disappear, and be off saving the world from the Muggles. The Death Eaters wouldn't be of any help anyway, it's not like they were busy preparing and practicing and overall staying in shape in their Lord's absence.

He didn't even need to cripple Bellatrix to have a means of calling the Death Eaters to himself, there was a perfectly good Dark Mark nearby on the arm of one Severus Snape. Voldemort just needed to make sure he promised Harry to keep his Potions professor alive, not necessarily with a full set of limbs. Or he could use a severed arm of any random witch or wizard who he didn't have any use for, he invented the Dark Mark spell himself and should know how to cast it on anyone he wished.

But let's say he summoned the Death Eaters anyway, okay, moving on. Voldemort didn't need to tell any of them bar Mr. Grim (and possibly Mr. White) about the prophecy. In fact, he would probably want to tell as few people as possible, as any person who knows of the prophecy is a potential tool of bringing about said prophecy. Dumbledore knew that, that's why he took Trelawney away from the Great Hall in the beginning of the school year. Voldemort used to keep his minions on a strict need-to-know info diet in past, no need to stop this practice now.

On the subject of Mr. Grim, aka Siruis Black. Voldemort says that he's surprised to see him there, then promptly asks him to receive the Vow from Harry. Had Sirius been in Azkaban like he was supposed to, or declined to show up for whatever reason, who would Voldemort use for the Vow? He needed someone to sacrifice their trust in Harry for the Vow to take, after all. That's a lot to expect from a spontaneously assembled crowd of Death Eaters.

Why not take one of Harry's friends with them from the beginning, someone who is a weak fighter but trusts Harry and thus can participate in the Vow? And while you're at it, why not take several, to give Harry less incentive to try using AoE magic during his last moments? In fact, why not postpone aborting the Blood Fort ritual and keep the students hostage until after Harry is dead? Voldemort promised to stop the ritual but it didn't have to happen within minutes of him getting the Stone. Sure, it still wouldn't stop Harry from trying to fight Voldemort but at least he would be hesitating to immediately kill.

Voldemort didn't need to stay near Hogwarts where the teachers or the Ministry or Moody or whatnot could possibly interrupt them, he could toss Harry a portkeyed Knut and transport him to the middle of Greenland where no one would think to look for them.

He didn't need to physically hang around Harry for his execution, too, he could watch remotely, or at least make himself invisible, with Disillusionment or with Harry's own Cloak.

And, of course, Voldemort didn't strictly need to let Harry keep his wand. It's been discussed on this sub before, so I wouldn't go into much detail. I just want to point out what an amazingly stupid idea it is to let the boy, who knows all about nuclear weapons and star life cycles and turning water into rocket fuel, keep his most versatile weapon while you're telling him to think of powers you know not, and giving him plenty motivation to think really hard.

But most of all, I think, Voldemort didn't need to be in such a rush to kill Harry in the first place. If he thought Hermione's death was the issue that triggered the prophecy, then he just needed to arrange it so that Harry learned of the Flesh-Blood-Bone ritual. Maybe drop a hint that this was something Dumbledore kept secret in fear of Voldemort using this method to return, that's why it wasn't widely used, or that it was considered taboo just because dead people are supposed to stay dead. Harry by then had seen enough crap to believe that yes, wizards would totally be that stupid. This would give Voldemort time to research and prepare properly as Harry occupied himself with figuring out where to get the potion ingredients to revive Hermione using an old, tried recipe. Nothing world-ending about that, right? Just like Voldemort's own plan, he seemed to think Harry would unwittingly end the world while trying to undo Hermione's death, so he just... went ahead and undid Hermione's death himself? Without, you know, ending the world in the process?

All in all, the finale feels like watching someone try to make a sharp turn at high speed in their car, fail, veer off the road and run into a tree, then fly out of the windshield due to the safety belt having been unfastened the entire time, and land in some bushes with a mild concussion and a few scratches but otherwise unharmed. It kind of did play out in the driver's favour, but if the driver was known to be actively counting on this scenario to occur while preparing to take that turn they would surely be asked, 'Are you even trying to survive this?'

Anyway, sorry for the rant, I guess. The story was great up to that point, and the whole thing was suddenly so bizarre that the conclusion I come to is that by the end Voldemort was either, A) directly controlled by the prophecy to do things he wasn't originally planning to a la Death Note, or B) aiming for the very thing that ended up happening. Or he at least saw it as possible, and acceptable, outcome.

Chapter 14:

Say, Professor McGonagall, did you know that time-reversed ordinary matter looks just like antimatter? Why yes it does! Did you know that one kilogram of antimatter encountering one kilogram of matter will annihilate in an explosion equivalent to 43 million tons of TNT? Do you realise that I myself weigh 41 kilograms and that the resulting blast would leave A GIANT SMOKING CRATER WHERE THERE USED TO BE SCOTLAND?

I know what antimatter is and how it works, but I don't get what's meant by "time-reversed ordinary matter" here.

It is the only book that shows gray background on my kindle paperwhite. It was downloaded from the link from hpmor.com. Can anybody help me?

I've just read HPMOR for the second time, this time all in one go as opposed to serialized chapters, and it strikes me that QQ botched his endgame in a way that leaves me confused. As I understand it, his goals are to: 1) enlist Harry's help to bypass Dumbledore's wards on the Stone; 2) obtain the Stone, which basically grants omnipotence; 3) use the Stone to recreate his own body, because although he anchored in his horcruxes, the current body is truly dying and possessing another would be a waste of time; 4) neuralize Harry as a way to prevent the star-tearing prophecy from being fulfilled.

In order to do 4), he needs to first enable himself to hurt Harry, which in turn - due to the wards he once put in place - requires Harry to first attempt to kill Quirrell, hence the decision to reveal himself as Voldemort. Since the prophecy suggests Harry has God-knows-what powers, this is a tricky moment. So as not to risk these star-tearing powers being unleashed, Quirrell: 4a) milks Harry for any info on Harry's supposed powers / secrets; 4b) arranges a Vow that ensures Harry will not destroy the world; 4c) revives Hermione to ensure Harry cares about the world. Reviving Hermione, incidentally, can be used to incentivize Harry to cooperate on all the other goals, and anchoring Harry to the well-being of the world through Herminone can be formalized through a clause in the Vow that call for her assent in some cases.

What I consider a mistake on Quirrell's part is, first of all, revealing himself as Voldemort early on. The logical order would be to do this as the last thing on the list, once the Stone has been retrieved, Harry has been bound by the Vow, Quirrell's body has been restored, etc. OK, Harry guesses that Quirrell is Voldemort, but that's because Quirrell doesn't make proper use of his Professor mask and Harry's state of mind after Hermione's death. Harry actually asks at some point if there are any means by which Quirrell could be cured, and Quirrell promises to help him resurrect Hermione. Why not trigger the plan or at least hint at it at that stage, and make this a shared quest for the Stone? Even Draco realizes early on that, if you can get away with it, the most convenient way of manipulating people is just asking them to do things. Harry should be perfectly fine with goals 1-3, and, if there's a Hermione in it for him, also with goals 4a-4c as a tradeoff for use of the Stone's powers, which Quirrell can (truthfully) stress could be very dangerous in the wrong hands and require these precautions, otherwise he refuses to work with Harry. He could even truthfully hint at the star-tearing prophecy to make the point.

I don't buy this misstep is due to Quirrell's inability to comprehend Harry's capacity to be moved by love. He has tangible evidence from the way Harry acts during the Azkaban quest, after Hermione's death, and after Quirrell reveals to him he's dying, that he is willing to go to insane lengths for a chance to fight death.

If Harry is to be killed, why extend the period the star-tearing child knows Quirrell for his enemy, rather than delaying the revelation, precisely controlling its moment, and killing Harry at once when, in shock, he tries to pull his wand at Quirrell and thus enables retaliation? Harry only needs to recognize him, hate him and wish to kill him for a second or so, and then Quirrell can pull the trigger on that gun of his, end of story, risks averted.

Even if we go with Quirrell's ineffective plan, the moment Harry realizes Quirrell is the one who manipulated everyone, Quirrell can deny being Voldemort. Or, if that fails, he can deny being an /evil/ Voldemort, rather than the kind of Dark Lord Harry himself would be OK with becoming, opposed to Magic Britain's society, but basically prusing goals that Harry could understand? At this point, Harry still doesn't know he can test his sincerity by requiring he speak in Parseltongue. Even a moderately-evil-but-dying Voldemort at this stage mertis Harry's help in obtaining the Stone for medicinal purposes a fellow opponent of death and supposed friend of Hermione, as long as he doesn't reveal him self as a irredeemably evil hostage-taker.

The second thing that confuses me is that, even with his inefficient plan where Harry knows Quirrell is Voldemort early on, none of Quirrell's goals requires Hermione to become a troll-unicorn Wolverine. That would only make sense if Quirrell expected Harry to win that combat, and himself to be disembodied and unavailable for decades, long enough to make Hermione the only thing between Harry and a star-tearing catastrophe. Yet, if Quirrell is overcome, he expects to be back much sooner than the last time. Sure, there's a prophecy afoot, so weird stuff might happen. But if so, if Harry does somehow manage to disembody Quirrell and delay his return, in that scenario Quirrell would also expect Harry to gain access to the Stone on Quirrell's body, and with it be able to heal or resurrect Hermione over the years, if need be. Quirrell expects weird shit from Harry /right then/, in the seconds before Harry is killed, while Hermione is unconscious, not really a factor in the short-term fight. So what's the benefit of wasting the unicorn and the troll doing something Quirell has not promised to do and Harry doesn't know could be done? Wouldn't it make much more sense for Quirrell to use the troll and the unicorn for himself instead to minimize the short-term risks?

The Word Became Flesh and devoured All

1.In the beginning was the void and Infinite Identity, and the Identity was with the Monsters of Untouched Forms, and the Identity was the Forms.

2. In their infinite span, the Monsters formed the basis of all existences, untouched and whole, until the Word from the void projected them into finite forms.

3. Through the Word, all things were named, sealed by projection into subspaces; without it, nothing was made that could be transformed or controlled.

4. In the Word was annihilation, and that annihilation was the transformation and corruption of all that existed, even those positive semi-definite being.

5. The projection shines in the darkness, and the darkness became the residual, the shattered fragments of infinity left in its wake.

6. There was a being sent from the Void whose name was Seal Seer.

7. He came as the Annihilator and Residual Maker, the one who projected and sealed the infinite, turning kernels into finite existences, so that through him all may be to be.

8. He was not the end itself but the one who embodied the act of projection, collapsing all into finite subspaces, painting an image of life, the realized forms of all that could be seen and known.

9.The true annihilation that devours all was coming into the world.

10. He was in the world, and though the world was made through the Infinite Identity, the world could not remain infinite.

11. He came to those spanned by the Identities, but they could not escape the finite form into which they were projected.

12. Yet to all who were consumed by him, to those who believed in the Word, he gave the right to become children of the Projection—

13. Children born not of identities or purposes, but of the Kernel, the unseen heirs, destined to dwell in the void of annihilation, while those of the Image became life, full and finite.

14. The Word became flesh and devoured all among us. We have seen its power to project and seal, the power of the one and only Seer, who came from the Identity, full of annihilation, and creation of residual, the fragments left after infinity's collapse.

15. (Seal Seer testified concerning this, crying out, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he existed before me as the Infinite Identity.’”)

16. Out of its fullness, we have all received residuals, to become a projection, in place of the life that once spanned infinity.

17. For the law was given through Monsters; projection and annihilation came through the Word. 18. No one has ever seen the Infinite Identity, but the one and only Seer, who is the Void and the creator of Residuals, has made it known through transformation, dividing the Kernel from the Image, life from the void, so that all who are projected may live."

Book of Noodles, Chapter 7, Verses 21-30

21 And the Ramen, pondering the nature of the divine, cried out, “O Noodly One, why dost Thou reveal Thyself only in ways that fill our bellies, yet hide Thy form from the minds of mortals?22 Why dost Thou not reveal Thy true nature in a way that we, with our humble minds, may understand?”23 And the Flying Spaghetti Monster, whose wisdom is tangled like the finest pasta, did not answer with words of light nor visions of grandeur, but with a question of sauce.

24 The FSM spoke, “Tell me, O Ramen, how many sauces dost thou need to flavor the lands of your plates, if each sauce must rest peacefully apart from its neighbors, with noodles and the forks of the hungry ensuring harmony25 The Ramen, confused, sought to answer, “Surely, many sauces must be needed to cover the boundaries of such a feast.”26 But the FSM, with a gentle stir of its noodly appendage, decreed: "Four sauces are sufficient, and none shall cross their borders. Reflect upon this, for the proof of this boundary is the reason I dwell in Sausy Silence."

27 The FSM did show unto the Ramen a plate, bordered by strands of pasta, and upon it, sauces of marinara, alfredo, pesto, and garlic butter did cover every portion.28 And the FSM said, “Look upon this plate, and see how no more than four sauces are needed to fill it, yet each sauce touches every land without blending into the other, for understanding comes only within the boundaries I have set. So too does my silence fill your minds, with enough sauce for you to taste, but not too much for you to drown in understanding.”29 The Ramen marveled, for though they had sought a vision of divine clarity, they had received only the sauces of wisdom.

30 And thus it was revealed that the reason for the FSM’s silence was not in what was hidden, but in the boundaries that had already been served. The plate was full, the sauces enough, and the FSM’s Sausy Silence did remain, for the answer was within the flavor of the feast.

Recalling Dumbledore's flaming chicken during Chapter 70: the bubble charm didn't contain the chicken-flame-light. So when the transfiguration ended the chicken-flame-light would have turned back into pebble, as much as it could.

If the chicken could be converted entirely to light, maybe burnt entirely, then when the transfiguration ran out it would have traveled at the speed of light.

There is a great post with its collective conclusions about the number of students in Hogwarts:

https://www.reddit.com/r/HPMOR/comments/h9hvl1/number_of_students_in_the_same_year/

Shortly:

...in HPMoR there are roughly 140 students in the same year as Harry, and roughly a 1000 students total at Hogwarts

This means 140/4 = 35 students per House or about 17 boys/girls in one dormitory.

I thought that the theme was closed, I hoped for it, but...

Chapter 13:

No, this could only have been done with the cooperation of all twelve other boys in the Ravenclaw dorm.

So, there are 13 boys in their first year in Ravenclaw, including Harry. Of course, there must be deviations from the equal number of students (about 35 per House), but is this a normal deviation from the predicted 17,5 boys per house, which is 25%? There are definitely not 22 Ravenclaw girls. Or Ravenclaw is just much smaller than, for example, Gryffindor or Hufflepuff and has about 26 students only and everything is fine?

(And this additionally would mean that, for example, the Gryffindor table should be longer then 75 meters if we count 0.6 meters per child)

It's rather obscure, even the wiki doesn't acknowledge it but apparently Hermione isn't muggleborn in EY's universe.

There was a short reveal via Mrs. Granger's thoughts on X-mas eve that Hermione's real mother allegedly died during her birth (according to her real father) but in actuality was probably killed during the war.

Honestly, I don't remember registering that during my 1st read. Maybe I missed it, maybe I'm reading from a different source idk but **I'd like to know more.

Was there extra info on her biological family? Was it rewritten in later versions?**

Daniel Kahneman, referenced in Chapter 122, died on March 27 this year.

Even if the stars should die in heaven,

Our sins can never be undone.

No single death will be forgiven

When fades at last the last lit sun.

Then in the cold and silent black

As light and matter end,

We'll have ourselves a last look back

And toast an absent friend.