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How was the Rebellion financed? It seems to me that fighting a war against the galactic empire is an expensive business. There needs to be a lot of hardware. More over there are references to the fact that the Rebellion has money. They give Han a healthy reward, and they payed a lot for codes to access the second dea...	Ironically it was the same smuggling and criminal activity that allowed the rebellion to gather enough resources to pose a real threat. Mon Mothma was born in 48 BBY into a wealthy and influential family living on Chandrila. The rebellion is made up of many organisations that suffered under the empire. The most notable...
Is the age of Tony Stark consistent with the appearance of his father in the Captain America movie? Nick Fury told Captain America that he has been "asleep" for nearly 70 years. If Dominic Cooper was playing Howard Stark Senior (grandfather of Tony Stark) then it is fine, but if he was playing Howard Stark (father of T...	Tony Stark's DOB is 29 May 1970 [source: SHIELD character files ] Which makes Howard 53 years old at time of Tony's birth, which is completely biologically possible and narratively probable given his age in the video from 1974 as shown in IM2, when Tony would be around 4. In the movies: Howard Stark's DOB is 15 Aug 191...
What happened to the Joker in The Dark Knight Rises? By the end of The Dark Knight (2008) , the Joker's fate is left open. Yes, he was arrested, but he is still alive. His fate is never completely explained. More precisely, in The Dark Knight Rises (2012) : I noticed that Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow was the judge of...	In the novelization of The Dark Knight Rises the Joker is said to be the sole occupant of Arkham Asylum.
Are there any hunters from Supernatural who haven't faced a personal tragedy? The Winchesters lost a mother/wife and one of them a fiance to a demon, Bobby Singer's wife to a demon possession, and Gorden's sister was turned into a vampire. Are there any hunters (excluding Ghostfacers) who haven't lost someone to a sup...	There's one and only one that I can think of, Eliot Ness.
Do you really have to salt the bones, before you burn them? In the beginning, the Winchesters salt the bones before burning them, but around season 4 I've noticed they don't seem to do the salting as much anymore. Is it entirely necessary to salt ghost bones, before burning them? <Q> As to the rationale for why we see...	As far as the salting mechanics go, the salt is for the purification of the body and preparation for the destruction of the hostile spirit. Actually, in Season 7 Episode 4 they still salt the bones before burning them, there is just less attention drawn to it.
Is the Hulk immortal? In World War Hulk, we see a what-if scenario with Bruce Banner actually making it to the 'peaceful planet'. Here we see him become the guardian of a lizard-like species that eventually evolves into sentience, a process that should take bajillions of years. Does this imply the Hulk is immortal...	The Incredible Hulk(s) - (She-Hulk, Red Hulk): while it has never been substantiated, the Hulk's near-perfect and instantaneous regenerative abilities should mean he will never appreciably age or will age incredibly slowly in relationship to other humans.
How does Bruce travel from The Pit to Gotham City? After Bruce escapes The Pit in The Dark Knight Rises he travels to Gotham City, however The Pit is located in South Africa and Gotham City is located half-way across the world in North America. At this point in the story Bruce is completely broke, and he has no acc...	Bruce has experience traveling around the world with no resources (he probably established ones in his previous journey), hence he could easily got back to the US. The first movie also mentions secret "Underground Railroad " tunnels in the Batcave which can connect to Gotham city.
How does Bane's crew know where to dig? In the movie: Bane's crew is working in the tunnels and sewers of Gotham. One of their goals is to burrow under Wayne Tower and get into Bruce's personal armory. But this made me wonder, how does Bane know the exact location of Bruce's Armory. It's stated in the movie...	It's never mentioned, but must be assumed that Wayne Tower was under surveillance by the League of Shadows.
Is there a reason the Daleks would use a toilet plunger as their arm? Look at the arm of a Dalek. Tell me that is not a toilet plunger: Now I can understand, the show may have had a low budget when it started, which is why they took what they had. But is there an in-Universe explanation as to why, one of the most ad...	What is covered by the plunger prop is enough to explain a lot of functions that wouldn't make sense if they merely had a claw or mechanical hand.
Is Goldberry a regular mortal woman? Having read the Lord of the Rings a number of times I was always curious about the significance of Goldberry. I have not managed to find any reference to her origins within the other Middle-earth books that I have read. Is she was just a mortal woman, or is there was some deeper si...	Although Goldberry's origins are uncertain, Bombadil clearly identifies her as having been found by him in the river and her title "River-woman's daughter" strongly suggests that she is not a mortal human being , but rather a spirit of the river Withywindle in the Old Forest of Tolkien's Middle-earth.
How does Galadriel know that Gandalf 'survives' his encounter with the Balrog? In The Two Towers , when Gandalf meets Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli for the first time since the Balrog encounter, he briefly gives some details of the encounter which to me are (perhaps intentionally) vague. In particular though when Gwaihir...	Having been born in Valinor, it's likely that she also knew that Gandalf was Maiar and that his physical body contained an even mightier spirit. I suspect that Galadriel was watching the events with interest anyway, and would have seen - either with the Mirror, through the ring connection, or with other abilities - som...
Are Futurama comic books canon? I recently noticed that Futurama has a comic book series. I was wondering if the Futurama comics are events that really happened in the Futurama universe or are they fake events simulated similar to the What If Machine? <Q> The comic somewhat continues the series itself. <S> From wiki:...	: I would say Futurama Comics are canon.
Why was Gimli given a Scottish accent in the Lord of the Rings films? I can see no good reason for Gimli having a Scottish accent, and I just wonder if there is any information on why this was deemed necessary? Is it supposed to be indicative of a Dwarvish accent in general or unique to the character of Gimli? I ha...	One the oldest tropes in fantasy literature, movies and television regarding dwarves is that they have Scottish accents and wield axes.
When the liquid metal terminators change their appearence, do they still feel like metal? When the liquid metal Terminators change their appearence, does the skin portion feel like skin and their clothing feel like clothes, or do the Terminators feel like liquid metal no matter what they outwardly morph into? <Q> Theor...	I would conclude that it wouldn't feel like metal when changing shape in the spirit of the above mentioned experiment.
Why did Yoda not take on another apprentice after Episode III? At the end of Episode III (or shortly after) the movie storyline implies that Yoda goes into hiding on Dagobah. Knowing that he was one of the few remaining Jedi why did he not attempt to find an apprentice during the years that the Skywalker twins were g...	Yoda knew that Palpatine was simply TOO powerful for any Jedi other than someone with the same midi-chlorian count as Anakin, to take on.
How does Bane eat? Bane has to wear a mask, I'm assuming at all times, because it helps him withstand the severe pain. So how does he eat? Most forum questions are filled with wildly speculative answers, including injection of drugs (which I guess would be the most likely). In the comics, I understand that he original...	Due to the extreme nature and complications of prolonged IV-only nutrition, I'm inclined to believe ingestion through the mouth via a straw. Bane in the comics wears a mask because it's what all the cool guys are doing, and he receives his strength through the Venom formula. The problem with this question is that eatin...
What was the significance of the scar on Miranda Tate's back? In the Dark Knight Rises, we are introduced to the character Miranda Tate, who becomes physically involved with Bruce Wayne. During their tryst, we see a peculiar scar shaped like an upside down 'U' on her back. Bruce traces it with his finger, but he doe...	As far as an in-universe answer, I would speculate that it is the scar from the removal of the League of Shadows brand. Miranda's scar, which is kinda shaped like a bat, might be from an implant put in by Batman to track her.
What is the earliest example in sci-fi or fantasy FILM containing a family link between Hero and Villain? I can think of the obvious Star Wars but after that I am stumped. Anyone else have an earlier example? Edited due to question being deemed too broad. <Q> Earlier epics maybe had less obvious distinctions between h...	For example: Frankenstein (Edison Studios, 1910) - the creature is, in effect, the 'son' of Dr. Frankenstein, his creator. Going (much) further back, Oedipus ’ antagonist is his father who abandons him in the woods due to a prophecy that his son would kill him (which turns out to be self-fulfilling). Fritz Lang's Metro...
Could the Elder Wand be repaired and used again? At the very end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows movie, Harry broke the Elder Wand and threw away the pieces. Did the Elder Wand lose its power permanently due to this? Or could someone repair it with a "Reparo" spell and use it again? <Q> Harry broke the wand i...	The only wand that is known to be able to fix a wand is The Elder Wand itself but that is kind of the problem because it is the Elder Wand that is broken.
Who was the first DC/Marvel costumed crime fighter credited as being a former Olympic athlete? Some of the DC/Marvel costumed crime fighters biographies show them to be former Olympic athletes. Who was first of them with that credential? <Q> Northstar won a gold medal in skiing by secretly using his superhuman speed, ...	The Triune Understanding's leader Jonathan Tremont imbued Delroy with the powers stolen from the former superhero, the 3-D Man.
Why must the water of the Mirror of Galadriel not be touched? In The Fellowship of the Ring , Galadriel warns Sam not to touch the water before he looks into the mirror. Then when it is Frodo's turn, as he is slipping forward she also warns him not to touch the water. Is there a reason for this? Is it touched upon in ...	It could be that the water poured into the basin is enchanted by Ulmo and it must not be touched for fear of distorting the illusion or breaking the enchantment.
Where was Spider-Man's "Spider Sense" when he was hit by a bullet? In The Amazing Spider-Man movie, after Spider-Man revealed his real identity to Gwen's father and tried to jump to the top of the building, he was shot in the leg by a policeman. A few moments ago, he escaped a storm of bullets being fired by SWAT. H...	His spider-sense can be distracted by injuries or stress, which may prevent him from being able to react to potential threats. Sometimes it can happen that the human ability, rather than disability, can overpower the spidy sense.
Is there any significant meaning behind the term "Saruman of Many Colours"? When Saruman reveals his betrayal to Gandalf, he says the following: "And here you will stay, Gandalf the Grey, and rest from journeys. For I am Saruman the Wise, Saruman Ring-maker, Saruman of Many Colours." Is there any significance behin...	I believe you've hit upon the right reason, that he wanted to dissociate himself from the color White.
Is there any significance to the license plates of the Winchester's Chevy Impala? In the first two seasons the license plate KAZ 2Y5 is a Kansas plate denoting the show's first year, 2005. Later on it changes to CNK 80Q3 when they are hiding from the FBI. Is there any significance to this license plate? CNK is appa...	2&5 could refer to the highest places the album Leftoverture, featuring "Carry on Wayward Son", reached on the music charts. The Supernatural Wikia page suggests that KAZ might be a reference to the brothers' home state of Kansas.
What was the implication at the end of The Dark Knight Rises? At the end of The Dark Knight Rises it was revealed that Joseph Gordon Levitt's character's first name is Robin and he discovers the Bat Cave behind the waterfall. I don't fully understand what was the implied result. Was he supposed to be the new B...	The implication that I took out of those scenes were that he was meant to be Robin to Bruce Wayne's Batman, given the significance of him revealing his original name.
What is the white flag outside of Starfleet Academy? I've noticed this in a few episodes now, and have not been able to figure it out. The screenshot below, with a circle added to highlight the flag, is from Star Trek: The Next Generation - Season 5, Episode 26: Time's Arrow, Part I . What is this flag? It appears...	It is most likely the flag of the United Earth :
Was NX-01 not a Federation ship? It seems there may be a bit of a retro-continuity error in one of my personal favorite Star Trek scenes, which I noticed just today. Click the picture above for a YouTube video. A transcript of the pertinent bits is below, emphasis added. SCOTTY: The Enterprise! Show me the bridge...	Yes, the NX-01 does pre-date the founding of the Federation.
How many Palantíri are accounted for? "They are not all accounted for, the lost seeing stones. We do not know who else may be watching." —Gandalf (The Fellowship of the Ring) After the Third Age and the final fall of Sauron, were the Palantíri (orbs or seeing stones) ever accounted for? Where were they located, and...	The palantíri of Annúminas and Amon Sûl are lost. The palantir of Minas Ithil, held by Sauron after the capture of Minas Ithil and its corruption into Minas Morgul. Well, we know from the books that Saruman possessed one until it was thrown from Orthanc. The stone of Orthanc is still in perfect condition and is current...
Why wasn't the young Palpatine (Darth Sidious) identified as a potential Jedi at birth? As per Wookieepedia To hinder transgression, those who showed an aptitude for the Force were taken directly from birth (or soon afterward) to train in the Jedi Temple headquarters on Coruscant or at smaller Jedi Enclaves as Padaw...	Maybe no sufficiently-trained Jedi ever passed near Palpatine when he was a child. Palpatine's father was concerned regarding his son's murderous nature from the child's infancy (explained in the book "Plagueis").
Why are the Stark wargs losing their sense of Shaggydog? In chapter 8 of Storm of Swords, through his warg bond with Summer, Bran Stark senses that Shaggydog is near, but grows more distant every day [ref] . In A Dance with Dragons chapter 3 Jon Snow, in Ghost, mentions that of the four remaining wargs there is o...	My personal opinion is that Shaggydog leaving Westeros and its magic (Children of the Forest, Weirwood network, etc.) is what is causing him to fade from the other direwolves' perception.
What did the people in the prison chant in The Dark Knight Rises? As the title says, what were the words that the people in the prison chanted when anyone attempted to climb out of it? What language was it in? <Q> ref <A> As you can hear around 1:04 in the trailer , the chant is: <S> Deshi deshi basara basara <S...	The prisoners we chanting "Deshi Basara", which is Arabic for "He Rises".
Why didn't the demolition bot stop once it became obvious Spooner was in the house? While searching the house of the late Dr. Lanning the demolition bot outside Gets reprogrammed to begin demolition immediately by the AI known as VIKI. At one point the demolition bot is traveling through the house towards Detectiv...	It can also be argued that the Demo bot knew Spooner was there and carried on even though it knew but that this didn't break the 3 laws .
Did JRR Tolkien ever write any music for the many songs in The Lord of the Rings? Due to the number of songs in The Lord of the Rings , I have recently been wondering if Tolkien had any musical training and if any "official" music was written (by him or anyone else on his behalf) to accompany the verses of these songs...	No, Tolkien himself conceded he had "little musical knowledge" in Letter 260 :
Can Luke deflect and absorb Force lightning? Luke Skywalker is arguably the most powerful jedi to ever live, even more powerful than Master Yoda. Yet I have never seen an instance in which Luke has deflected Force lightning with his hands or absorbed it. Galen Marek, Yoda and Revan did it. Shouldn't Luke be able to as ...	Luke was the only other Jedi aside from Yoda, that was able to repulse force lightning.
What do the people of the Middle Earth use as their best food source? Throughout the stories of the Middle Earth there are many foods. Which types of food were used the most and who and how do they farm it? <Q> Hobbits had access to a great number of foods, although not enumerated. <S> Bilbo's party ensured the atten...	The Elves obviously ate lembas as a way-bread, as did the Dwarves with cram, but they also ate normal foods when not travelling. We see references to "many farms, cornlands, vineyards, and woods" where the Shire now stood, Farmer Maggot's mushrooms, vineyards, beer (hops) and tobacco, so farmland was definitely plentif...
Why are there so many different bat symbols? Over the years of superheroes not many superheroes' symbols have changed as much as Batman (my opinion, not fact). Why hasn't Batman had any concrete symbol? <Q> The simplest answer is Batman has had a lot of different interpretations. <S> He is one of DC Comics most highly...	Batman's logo is much more complex than most other superheroes' logos.
How did the Emperor punish Darth Vader? When the first Death Star was destroyed, the Emperor punished Darth Vader by removing his arm (according to the novel "Heir to the Empire"). This was originally said to explain Vader's mechanical arm, but it was later revealed that all of Vader's limbs were mechanical after a nea...	I think he could have used the force the disconnect Vader's arm from his body due to it being prosthetic, or just burn it off with something like force lightning. Although, all this is really retconning. The loss of a limb could have been incidental to whatever life-threatening action that was taken. Jade's claim is no...
Have we ever seen a demon manifest without posession? At the end of Season One, in Devil's Trap , when Meg is trapped and Dean starts roughing her up, Bobby steps in to stop him, saying "That's a human being possessed by a demon. Can't you tell the difference? " [emphasis mine]. This implies a few things: Demons ...	Aside from yellow eyes appearing as smoke, in the final two episodes of season 2, while Sam and the other psychics are in that small abandoned village, there are a couple of demons that manifest without possessing.
Does Batman whisper/change his voice in the comics? In the Christopher Nolan movies we saw Batman whisper/rasp his way through them, presumably to conceal his voice to stop people recognizing him as Bruce Wayne. Having people recognize his voice is obviously not generally a problem in comics given it's all written, bu...	Yes, Bruce Wayne does disguise his voice when he speaks as the Batman.
How close is The Hunger Games movie to the first book in the trilogy series? Started reading The Hunger Games trilogy, now the movie is out. Although many people who watched the movie say that it is close to the first book, it must differ in many ways. How close is The Hunger Games (2012) movie to the first book in t...	As other folks have said, the movie was very faithful to the book.
Is it the TARDIS that allows the Doctor to speak baby? In Closing Time The Doctor shows off the fact that he can 'speak baby' with Stormaggedon . In previous episodes we see that the TARDIS lets anyone who's been in it can speak as though they've got a universal translator. Amy Pond never seems to speak to her chil...	Although there's no canon evidence, it also seems reasonable to assume that the Doctor is also trying to alleviate his own distressing memories (e.g. at having lost his own children in the Time War) by constantly making jokes.
Is this Bane pose inspired by comics? In The Dark Knight Rises, I've noticed that Tom Hardy/Bane frequently walks and stands while grabbing his coat/shirt. Here are some examples: Is this stance/pose inspired by specific comics? Or is this purely part of the movie? <Q> It is unlikely that this posture was one in...	As the accepted answer states, he doesn't have anything to grab in the comics, but the choice to have his fingers under his chest plate could be a practical one from Tom Hardy actually having to wear a chest plate. I suspect it is a command posture designed to make him appear larger than life, take up more space or to ...
Who were the first alien species in the Star Wars galaxy? I'm having trouble finding what the first civilization of the Star Wars galaxy. I don't think that it's the Celestials , because they are more of god-like beings. <Q> TL;DR: <S> It's unknown when either of them started, and no mention of more ancient civili...	The answer is that it's either Jerrileka who went extinct over a million years BBY, or Celestials (who were known to be active in 1MM BBY period). From what I saw in Wookieepedia, there was no earlier sentient race mentioned anywhere. The next chronologically would be those races who dealt with Celestials, likely start...
Are there any purely Northern mythology elements in Harry Potter world? J.K. Rowling borrowed her "magical" elements from all sorts of different mythologies. She had Phoenix from eastern one, she had centaurs from Greek one, she had Veela from Eastern Europe, she had Leperchauns from Ireland. What about uniquely North...	It's not a common name, nor based on pseudo-Latin like Lupin, so I think it's quite probable that Fenrir Greyback from the Harry Potter series was named after the creature from Norse mythology.
Are swords usually referred to as male, or female? "and drawing Scalpel whistling from her sheath" ( Fritz Leiber , Swords Against Wizardry ) I was surprised to see the Mouser's blade referred to as "she". No particular reason why, I just thought the sword would be a "he" (if anything). Are swords usually referred...	One could argue that swords are female because they are beautiful and deadly.
Do comic characters sometimes get drawn like the actor playing them? I noticed in Spider-Man's recent cameo in Captain Marvel, he appeared an awful lot like Andrew Garfield who is playing Spider-Man in the recent movie. Irrelevant of whether it is just my imagination, do some depictions of comic characters morph to b...	The characters in the comics of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and 'Angel' look (sort of!) like the actors who portrayed them in the TV series.
How did Son'a obtain such an advanced technology infrastructure in such a short time? In Star Trek: Insurrection , Son'a fly some very powerful high-tech ships and in general boast a high-tech base/infrastructure. But, as we find out (quoting Wiki) The Son'a are a breakaway faction of younger Ba'ku who a century ...	My belief, is they simply used the technology which originally brought the Ba'ku to the planet, and then simply built upon that with their slave labourers...
Movie where the main actress doubles as real dancer and as a dancing machine I watched this old movie about a decade ago (early 2000), but have so far been unable to find it via Google or the IMDB. By old, I mean it seemed like something from the 1940s or 1950s. I am not sure anymore, if it was black & white. I am sur...	From your description the obvious answer (seeing as you have said it was a talky thus ruling out Metropolis) would probably be "The Perfect Woman"
Back from the Dark Side In all the material that I've covered from the Star Wars Universe, apart from Vader, I have not read of any one who came to the Light Side of the Force after being exposed to the Dark Side.Given that my knowledge is limited, I would like to ask whether there has been any one who came to the Ligh...	Well, one example would be Darth Caedus , aka Jacen Solo; he went back and forth a few times. In the Dark Empire storyline, Luke faces the Emperor reborn and decides he must face the Dark Side "from within." Revan , renowned as "The Revanchist" and dreaded as the Sith Lord Darth Revan, was an eminent Jedi Knight turned...
Does the fantasy genre garner more sequels and series? If so, why? Trilogies seem to be prevalent in fantasy , but there are a disproportionate amount of sequels in general it seems . Why is this? The ratios described in the link, and below are (roughly) 1:8 for fantasy, 2:3 for sci-fi and 1:1 for horror (the best d...	Could be both because SciFi readers are more receptive (or more desiring) of new worlds than fantasy ones; or some more complicated factors.
What was the first SciFi work that had a "biologically different" intelligent race? What was the first SciFi work that had a an intelligent race that was biologically significantly different from humans? Not simply "non humanoid", but, say, non-vertebrate (non-humanoid vertebrates are OK, as long as they are clearly ...	The War of the Worlds (1898) is an early work, and the Martian Invaders were biologically different:
Are there any precision examples of telekinesis in Star Wars? I was in a chat room discussing who would win in a fight between Andrew from the recent movie Chronicle and a young Anakin Skywalker. They trumped me by saying that the SW characters never used TK with as much precision as Andrew, like ripping teeth out of...	The construction of a lightsaber requires pinpoint precision, as seen in the Clone Wars episode,
What was the first sci-fi work that had an intelligent virus/bacterium? What's the earliest example of an intelligent virus/bacterium? There have been a number of comic-book characters (e.g. Sublime, Hlavac, Despotellis), television versions (e.g. the black oil from the X-files, the sentient virus in Farscape), and the...	" The Beautiful Bacillus " by Patrick Dutton has a bacterium that transforms into an intelligent communicating lifeform with a sense of humor.
How is the Iron Man platform capable of maneuvering in flight? I understand that the boot repulsors provide the lift/thrust and the palm repulsors provide stabilization but how is it capable of turning without a tail ruder of some sort? I know that there are flaps at various points for air braking but wouldn't he have ...	I theorize he is utilizing some of the antigravity technology created by his father in addition to his repulsor technologies.
If an Aes Sedai makes a promise, is she compelled to keep it? The first of the Three Oaths is to "speak no word that is not true." As such, would someone who is bound by this oath be forced to keep their promises? Moiraine makes plenty of off-hand promises, like "I will destroy you before I let the shadow have you" amo...	If the speaker believes it to be true, it is considered "true" for the purposes of the Oath.
Is Trelane related to or associated with the Q continuum? I've always assumed that Trelane was not related to the Q continuum but it's hard to ignore their similarities (e.g. super-human powers, mischievous personality, testing/observing humans, etc). Are they related/associated at all? <Q> Trelane only appears in ...	Yes, Trelane is a Q (probably).
Why didn't someone entertain the idea of creating clone army of force sensitives? There was never a scarcity of force sensitives provided there was successful cloning technology. But still, Jedi order was eager to find new force sensitives. The original clone army was designed using modified DNA of a bounty hunter. It...	In response to the Imperial presence on their world, the Kaminoans launched a covert rebellion against the Empire by discreetly breeding a new army of clones, all based on the genetic template of Jango Fett.
Why does an X-Wing have this name when there is no "X" in the Aurebesh alphabet? I was reading about Galactic Basic Standard , the standard language in Star-Wars. This lead me to the article about Aurebesh , the alphabet that is used to write it, and that is used all over the Star-Wars franchise. I noticed that the...	This could be one of those typefaces that is used in all upper case (as old terminal displays used to do on Earth) and there could have been a lower case version of Xesh (the X character) that we are not privy to.
Why did Saruman not kill Gandalf? Gandalf travels to Orthanc to take advice from Saruman, at which point Saruman reveals himself as a traitor. Why does he then simply imprison Gandalf on top of Orthanc instead of killing him? Clearly Saruman is still intelligent and you would think intelligent enough to know that Gand...	That aside, the conclusion is that already evidenced and espoused by Saruman - he wanted Gandalf to reveal where the One Ring was hidden, and being dead would not help that plan.
Is Legilimency a Dark Art? Is it Legal? I was watching Order of the Phoenix today and during the Occlumency scene I wondered if Legilimency is a Dark Art or even legal at all? Snape says to Harry: ‘Then you will find yourself easy prey for the Dark Lord!’ said Snape savagely. ‘Fools who wear their hearts proudly o...	Because Dumbledore also claims to practice it, it's probably not a Dark Art. Given the invasive nature of the spell, it is highly likely that the use of Legilimency is considered unethical unless deemed necessary.
Can an avatar pass on their non-native bending genes? Element Benders can pass on their abilities genetically. I'm wondering is an avatar that has access to more elements than usual is able to pass on more than their native bending talent. We haven't, to my knowledge much to go on but this family tree. I doubt we'll ...	Being an avatar is purely spiritual, and cannot be 'passed on' as with normal bending genes.
How can Bumi be a non-bender? If Aang was an airbender and Katara was a waterbender, then how come Bumi has no bending elements at all? I mean you would think that Bumi would have some kind of element, seeing that Aang was the avatar! When Pema and Tenzin had children they all took after their father taking in his airb...	Katara was the only one in her family that was a waterbender if I recall correctly, meaning that it was a recessive gene in Katara's case.
Why did Tarrlok do what he did at the end of Season 1? In the show, Season 1, after Amon lost to Korra, he released Tarrlok and took him to a boat so they could escape to a new city and start a new life. Tarrlok then grabbed an electric glove used it to blow up the boat, killing them both. But why did he do it? <Q> ...	The power appears to have gone to Noatak's head, and so Tarrlok seems to have come to the conclusion that killing his brother was the right course of action to prevent further bad guy actions or to punish himself and his brother for all that's happened. In Episode 11, "Skeletons in the closet", Tarrlok tells Korra the ...
Can hybrid Vulcan/Humans procreate, or are they like mules? Like full blooded Vulcans, the hybrid Spock is driven by the urges brought on by pon farr. Can hybrid Vulcan/Humans reproduce, or are they like horse/donkey hybrids on Earth, physically willing, but biologicaly unable to create offspring? <Q> So a male hybrid ...	In the Star Trek novel "Yesterday's Son", Spock discovers that he fathered a son with Zarabeth when he was stranded in the past in the 'All our yesterdays' episode. Since we know that Romulans are an offshoot species of Vulcans, odds are that their genetics are relatively similar for reproduction.
Why is Spock's blood copper based if he is half human? From this page : Unlike human blood, which is iron-based, Vulcan blood is copper-based, making it green. Red blood cells in humans store oxygen by means of hemoglobin, which makes them bright red; that is why human arterial blood, on its way from the cardiopulmo...	If Spock's blood is green, it's probably vanadium-based rather than copper-based, though there is some controversy as to whether vanadium is a viable oxygen carrier and those few creatures (on Earth) that have vanadium in their blood also tend to have a larger proportion of haemocyanin (copper based) blood.
Why didn't the Ferengi just steal the whole NX-01? In Episode 1x19, a couple Ferengi manage to stun (almost) the entire crew of the Enterprise NX-01 and board it wearing gas masks to steal valuables: We see the four Ferengi dock with a pretty pathetic little ship and loot all decks basically grabbing everything they ...	We know that ships in the future could be automated enough for longer term operation by a small team, but the NX-01 was essentially an experimental prototype and it is unlikely that such a high level of automation was possible. So again, a crew of 4 Ferengi would be unlikely to be capable of operating it on their own. ...
In Aliens, did Burke have a plan at the end? Near the end of Aliens , after the Aliens have found their way past the barricades and Ripley calls for everyone to head to medical, Burke runs off on his own and locks the doors behind him, trapping Ripley and crew with the aliens. Did Burke have a plan at this point (per...	Burke's plan was to escape alive and make sure all witnesses against him were dead.
In Total Recall 2012, how could they build that rail system with so few people left on Earth? Just saw the new Total Recall and experienced a moment of "How could they do that?" The premise of the movie indicates the entire world has been laid to waste except for the UK/Europe region and the Australian continent called...	As for how they would build it, a direct, well-reinforced tunnel would do very well.
Is everything in later episodes of Adventure Time just a dream? In the end of the episode "Evicted!", we see Finn and Jake hypnotized by King Worm, and it ends on that note without any real resolution. Fast forward a couple seasons, and we have "King Worm", where Finn and Jake finally break out of the hypnotism that Ki...	The Lich, Flame Princess, Fear Feaster, and the Ghost Lady are from episodes later than Evicted, so King Worm can't be a direct continuation.
What did the crowd think it took to win renewal in “Carrousel?” In the movie Logan’s Run (1976), once you hit the age of 30, you are forced to participate in an event called “Carrousel.” At the beginning of each spectacle, the announcer states: “If you are strong, you win renewal.” But, if you didn’t win renewal...	The early draft of the film script (as mentioned above) states that renewal means reaching the top of Carrousel and touching the rainbow/crystal, following which the lucky person is allowed to live beyond 30 (presumably another 30-year cycle) IN THEIR CURRENT BODY.
Why do the Sith use red-colored lightsabers, but the Jedi don't? As far as I have seen, the Jedi have different color lightsabers viz. blue, green...but, all the Sith have red-colored lightsabers. I don't have a heavy grip on Legends, so I can't declare it an universal rule, but look at this: In the last episode of Sea...	The primary reason for the Sith utilizing red lightsabers had to deal with their manufacture, using synthetic crystals which were initially red in color.
How did Gandalf not lose his ring? After the fight with the Balrog Gandalf says to his fellows "Naked I was sent back - for a brief time, until my task is done." (The two towers, ch. The white rider). The three rings (and the one ring) are, albeit magical and special, physical objects: which can, as we know, be physic...	Eru was probably able to send Gandalf back with his ring.
Looking for a collection of scary stories for children I am looking for at least two books. Each book contained a collection of scary stories. I used to borrow them from the library where they were in the children section (up to age 12, but I'm unsure about the specific age category). One story was about a boy who cha...	Some books contain only one story but several are collections of spooky tales.
Did Dobby know about Horcruxes during/before Chamber of Secrets? “Albus Dumbledore is the greatest headmaster Hogwarts has ever had. Dobby knows it, sir. Dobby has heard Dumbledore’s powers rival those of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named at the height of his strength. But, sir” — Dobby’s voice dropped to an urgent whisper ...	Dumbledore himself tells Harry that he didn't clue in on Horcruxes as the issue until the end of Chamber of Secrets .
What is the etymology of "xenomorph" in the context of the Aliens franchise? I know it's first uttered in Cameron's Aliens (1986). Once. It's a word that seems was coined for the movie itself, but one constructed of well-known root words that seem to mean "alien-shaped". In other words, it's in the same category as ...	They literally are alien lifeforms that change shape, hence xeno-, alien, and -morph, with the connotation of shape change.
Why didn't anyone throw Horcruxes in Veil of Department of Mysteries? Dumbledore was brainstorming around destruction of Horcruxes. He knew about Veil of Department of Mysteries. Why didn't he use it? Hermione, Harry and Ron also didn't try it. Why? That was a veil between life and death. Send all parts of soul to dea...	No one has gone thru and come back to tell the tale, so what it does is really unknown. With Voldemort in control of the Ministry, every Death Eater and Voldemort supporter alive looking for them, and (eventually) already having access to a weapon capable of destroying a horcrux, there was really no reason or need to p...
Why wasn't Kyle Reese sent back in time earlier than T101? Leaving aside the dramatic needs of Terminator the movie, it seems utterly dumb for Kyle Reese to have to play catch-up to T101, and have to convince Sarah Connor he's out to help her. Even though being shot at may help as motivator, it'd likely have been eas...	This way Reese and the Terminator are actually the final battle he talks about, despite being sent back chronologically before the T-1000 and the T-800 were sent back. Sending Reese to an earlier time would have been a big gamble. In universe (at least according to the book) - they did not know enough about the highly ...
Why were the "infiltrator" T101 units built on such a conspicious body? It was noted that the Terminators (T101) were infiltrator units, designed to infiltrate the resistance. Given the ragged undernourished humans of the time, wouldn't making an infiltrator body into the hulking over-built Conan The Destroyer frame...	Endoskeletal structure points don't match.
Are the Star Trek Next Generation rank pips based on anything from real life? In Star Trek: The Next Generation, the rank of Starfleet officers is denoted by the “pips” on their collar. An Ensign has one, a Commander three, a Captain four, and Admirals have three pips in a box on each side of their collar. Is the syst...	According to Wikipedia , Star Trek rank insignia are based on the United States Navy and the British Royal Navy.
Female protagonist that is sick in one reality and well in another I read a few books in a series of novels with a female protagonist. She was either severely injured or very ill in 'our world', but she was able to travel to another dimension. They referred to the places where you could move back and forth from 'our ...	The discrepancies are that the ill character is male, and the mechanism for travelling to the alternate universe is by use of a talisman.
How do people know Jon Snow is a bastard just by his name? There are a number of times characters ask Jon Snow who he is, when he says his name many of them comment about him being a Bastard. How can people tell Jon Snow is a bastard just by his name? <Q> Bastards are given a specific surname based on where they lived ...	"Snow" is the name used by all bastards in the north , as explained in the first chapter of A Game of Thrones : the bastard who bore the surname Snow, the name that custom decreed be given to all those in the north unlucky enough to be born with no name of their own.
Which books should I have read before each book in the Thursday Next series? I recently finished reading The Eyre Affair , by Jasper Fforde. The book has many references to both Martin Chuzzlewit and Jane Eyre . Since I had previously read these two books, I was able to get the full effect of the humor from that st...	Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll I recommend Great Expectations, Adventures of Alice in Wonderland, and The Trial.
Story/movie about Earth broken into pieces and then reformed by the survivors Do you know of a movie about Earth being fractured, fissured and finally broken into pieces (by a strange alien attack). The pieces get into a stable motion around the debris (like the floating mountains of Pandora but bigger). People who ar...	There's a very high chance you're thinking of Skyland .
Remote vacation planet and an interstellar war This is from a book I read in the early to mid 1990s but no longer remember the name of. I believe I checked it out of the school library, so it was probably a young adult novel. The story opens on a remote pleasure/vacation planet which is shocked by the appearance of a ...	It was popularised outside Japan under the moniker, Robotech .
How is Data powered? What powers Data from Star Trek The Next Generation? Did he generate his own internal power or did he have to plug into the Enterprise periodically to recharge? Or perhaps a combination of the two? <Q> From the transcript of Insurrection: ARTIM ...	So he is powered by "power cells" that continually recharge themselves
How is it possible for a single strike to shut down Skynet in the future? How can the Resistance shut down Skynet in the future? According to the voiceover at the end of the Rise of the Machines: There was no system core; it could not be shutdown. and yet in Terminator Salvation, the Resistance seeks to destroy...	This Central Core is the key to Skynet's ability to operate; Skynet would be rendered virtually disabled without it.
Why don't more villains die/become crippled? In the superhero genre heroes fight the bad guys daily. Not everyone is blessed with super-toughness and the like, so there will be casualties. Even if everyone is fighting with the best intentions, someone is bound to get hurt. Yet I rarely see a villain die or become cr...	In-universe, dramatically speaking, there's one additional reason: Villains play for keeps, Heroes, by their very nature, tend to allow for redemption.
Are batarangs aerodynamic enough to fly? There some pretty funky batarang designs: Are any of these, or batman's other designs actually aerodynamic? Is there a replica that can be thrown like batman does, not just as an odd-shaped throwing knife but like a boomerang that curves in flight? To clarify for recen...	Judging from the throwing knives of history, the shape of the weapon is secondary to its balance for throwing.
Where is Helen Magnus' sanctuary located? Anyone know in what rough area the primary sanctuary location - Helen's sanctuary - is located? I know they've always kept it somewhat vague and not really said specifically. But the destroyed bridge, and the general feel always made me think that it was sort of in the south-Br...	Since the Sanctuary Series was filmed mainly in Vancouver BC, the actors and scenes will be mostly Canadian, but the series itself is based on information indicating that Magnus' Sanctuary is/was in New York City.
Why didn't Harry go with Dobby from the infirmary in Chamber? In J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets , chapter 10, we have Harry keeping a firm hold on Dobby's wrist to stop him from hitting himself with the water jug again.… There was a loud crack, and Harry's fist was suddenly clenched on thin...	I think this is simply a matter of Dobby not wanting to take Harry along with him, just as Harry was not ready for it.
Can House-Elves Side-Along Apparate/Disapparate to/from Hogwarts? I know that House Elves can Apparate inside Hogwarts , but this comment made me question whether they could Side-Along Apparate a human to/from Hogwarts. From what canon tells us, it is impossible for humans to Apparate within the grounds of Hogwarts,...	We know that side-along apparating inside Hogwarts is possible for magical creatures as a concept: Fawkes flashed out of Dodge City with Dumbledore.
Does Lily Potter's sacrifice make Harry and Voldemort immortal? I know that when Lily sacrificed herself for Harry, Voldemort could no longer touch him and any attempted Avada Kedavra on Harry by Voldemort would rebound onto himself, until, of course, he took some of Harry's blood and put it into himself. Now Harry a...	It was only Harry's life that was protected by the love-magic in Voldemort's blood (as of Goblet of Fire ).
Why did Grima Wormtongue choose the Palantir to throw? The choice of the Palantir as an object to throw seems strange. The Two Towers , in The Palantir chapter, has this passage (Theoden speaking): '(...) oft evil will shall evil mar.' 'That many times is seen,' said Gandalf. 'But at this time we have been strange...	Aragorn thinks it may have been aimed at Saruman, but either way it's just what it seems - an impetuous act, possibly of defiance or possibly of revenge at losing his most favoured position at Theoden's side. There was more than just luck involved in Grima's choice of the Palantir to throw.
Why didn't Mr. Weasley use Side-Along Apparition to get to the Quidditch World Cup? I don't have any exact quotes, but I remember that in the Goblet of Fire, Mr. Weasley and the younger children have to wake up really early to walk to catch a portkey to the Quidditch World Cup. They meet Cedric Diggory and his father t...	Side-along apparition is rarely used in the books, implying that it is difficult and possibly dangerous. They had a safe, legal way of getting to the World Cup, so they took that way instead of performing a dangerous, illegal bit of magic.
How could a beheaded Terminator search for its own head? In the second episode of season 1 of The Sarah Connor Chronicle , a Terminator named Cromartie reassembles himself: Another subplot is Cromartie's reassembling after he was supposedly destroyed in the previous episode by Sarah with an isotope-fueled weapon. H...	As another option, there might be a backup CPU in the torso.
What prevents lower class Wizards from being upper class Wizards? What prevents lower class Wizards from being upper class Wizards? For example, the many childrened Weasleys are looked down on by their "betters". Why can't they conjure a more comfortable standard of living? Certainly, the Malfoys aren't "better" than t...	You can not buy yourself an upper class standing in Europe/UK the way it's possible in more egalitarian/meritocratic societies like USA even if lower class wizards could become richer; Canon supports that becoming richer isn't a trivial thing for a poor wizard, even with decent magical talent.
Has the Tau empire encountered Necrons yet? The tau are a relatively new race in the WK40K, the Necron are an ancient one. According to the 6th edition wargame rule book allies table, Tau and Necron forces are 'Allies of Convenience' . Necron fluff has supposedly changed (in sixth edition) so they don't have to be me...	Besides crackpot theories that Tau are Necrontyr somehow, and the not-necessarily-canon Dawn of War games, no specific examples. I am fairly sure that there is a snippit within the tyranids codex timeline.
What is the longest winter on record in "A Song of Ice and Fire" books While reading an unrelated blog, I came across a blurb that "16 years of summer have been the longest summer on record" in "Game of Thrones" books. I realize from that discussion (without having read Martin's books) that the seasons in Westeros are ...	In The World of Ice and Fire , it says The Long Night was: A season of winter came that lasted a generation -- a generation in which children were born, grew into adulthood, and died without ever seeing the spring
After Gandalf kills the Balrog of Moria, do any more Balrogs remain in Middle-earth? Is any reference made anywhere in Tolkien's novels about the number of Balrogs in existence after the demise of the Balrog of Moria? Since Balrogs are described as powerful magical entities that even Gandalf feared, I am assuming that ...	The specific number is never mentioned , and it is also not mentioned that the Balrog of Moria is the last.
Reading Order for Wheel of Time (New Spring) When reading the Wheel of Time, what is the best point to read the prequel story New Spring? As I see it there are 3 options: Before Eye of the World Publish Order (after Crossroads of Twilght) Last, i.e after A Memory of Light <Q> I would recommend reading them in pu...	When re-reading the series there is no harm in starting with New Spring, indeed it makes most sense there. My recommandation would be to start reading in publishing order, and if you feel the main story not fast enough for you (I'd say around the 8th book,

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