Logos01 comments on Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality discussion thread, part 13, chapter 81 - Less Wrong

6 Post author: bogdanb 27 March 2012 06:07PM

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Comment author: Logos01 29 March 2012 05:02:00AM *  0 points [-]

Wasn't "muggleborn" a term that referred not to blood-purity ("mudblood") but rather to where you were born-and-raised?

I'm not up on my canonical!HP.

Comment author: Alicorn 29 March 2012 05:27:18AM 6 points [-]

In canonical!HP, halfbloods are wizards/witches with one witch/wizard parent and one Muggle parent. "Dad's a Muggle, Mum's a witch. Bit of a nasty shock for him when he found out." Muggleborns have two Muggle parents.

Sometimes people with a Muggleborn and a pureblood for parents are called halfbloods (Harry is one of these). Finer gradations aren't referred to (I'm not sure what Harry and Ginny's kids would be called).

Comment author: Logos01 29 March 2012 05:31:24AM 0 points [-]

I'm familiar with "pureblood", "squib"/"halfblood", and "muggle"/"mudblood".

I was under the impression that "muggleborn" wasn't a synonym for "mudblood". I guess I'm mistaken about that, but in reading your response I don't seem to be able to put a pin on coming to that conclusion.

Comment author: Alsadius 29 March 2012 08:14:16AM *  5 points [-]

"Squib" is a nonmagical child of magical parents, at least in canon. MoR seems to be using it as a genetic marker, which I'm honestly not sure is compatible with canon.

(Now that I think about it, if Harry's genetic theory is correct, doesn't a squib child of a wizarding couple imply that Mom was getting some on the side?)

Comment author: Lavode 31 March 2012 06:44:33PM *  6 points [-]

.. Not nessesarily. I just had an amusing thought. The number one use of polyjuice is quite obviously as a sex toy, right? Depending on how deep the transformation goes, it is entirely possible that the genetic lines of wizardry if anyone ever tested them would be enormously confusing, and a lot of squibs are technically the decendants of Jane Russell and Rudolph Valentino.

Comment author: Normal_Anomaly 29 March 2012 05:30:04PM 3 points [-]

Probably! That or a mutation, anyway. But a few weeks ago I read about an interesting situation * in which a parent with AB blood and one with A blood can have an O child without adultery, because of another gene that sometimes suppresses the A and B antigens. That wouldn't allow for varying power levels with blood purity, and would sort of be still "one thing that makes you a wizard."

  • I can't remember the name, and would appreciate if someone could remind me.
Comment author: Percent_Carbon 29 March 2012 08:33:05AM 4 points [-]

Go, Mom.

Comment author: loserthree 29 March 2012 04:02:17PM 2 points [-]

if Harry's genetic theory is correct, doesn't a squib child of a wizarding couple imply that Mom was getting some on the side?

Not necessarily. Genetic code changes in ways that do not make an nonviable specimen now and then.

Adultery is more likely, though.

Comment author: Anubhav 29 March 2012 01:04:20PM 1 point [-]

doesn't a squib child of a wizarding couple imply that Mom was getting some on the side?

Accurate deduction! Here, have a cookie.

Comment author: taelor 29 March 2012 06:54:21AM -1 points [-]

Mudblood means non-pure ancestry, and is thus broader than muggleborn; the children of two muggleborns would still be considered to be mudblooded, despite both parents being wizards.

Comment author: pedanterrific 29 March 2012 07:14:32AM 1 point [-]

Where did you get this idea?

Comment author: AspiringKnitter 29 March 2012 05:02:49AM 0 points [-]

No.