CARE OF MAGICAL CREATURES END OF YEAR EXAM - CLOSED

Welcome to the Care of Magical Creatures End of Year Exam! The exam will cover the topics we have looked at in the COMC classes from the past HE year, and you will be able to show your knowledge of all that you have learned.

The exam will be open until the 15th February, and can be taken by anyone - you don't have to have done the previous classes.

You may now begin!

Part One: Mythological Creatures

1. Fluffy the three-headed dog is based on the Greek Mythological creature Cerberus. For this question, present a short factfile on Cerberus, making sure to include the following information:

Full appearance:
Role:
'Owner':
A myth involving Cerberus:
Anything else you want to add:
A picture:

The word count for this section must not be below 80, and must not exceed 150 words. (10 points for this section)

2. Describe the appearance of the Greek Sphinx. (4)

3. What are the origins of the word 'sphinx'? (4)

4. Who solved the Sphinx' riddle? (2)

5. Solve the following Riddle of the Sphinx, where the answer will be a mythological creature. Please PM me your answer for this part, entitling the post 'COMC Exam Riddle'. Riddle answers posted here will not be counted. (5)

Hind of a horse,
And head of a man,
I divine the stars,
Map out your plan.

Not always friendly,
Nor willing to aid,
We live sequestered,
Alone in the shade.

Total points for part one: 25

Part Two: Creature Creation

Imagine that you work in the Creature Creation Laboratory at the Ministry of Magic, then answer the following questions. Remeber to be imaginative and to put yourself into the role!

1. Why are new creatures created and how often do you create them? (4)

2. Describe the last creature that you created, and was the creation successful? (6)

3. Why might some people be opposed to the creation of new creatures in a laboratory situation? Think in terms of ethics. (5)

4. Has anything ever gone wrong in the creation of a creature, and if so, what was the result? (3)

5. How exactly are creatures created? Does it involve spells, potions, transfiguration or some other form of magic? (2)

Total points for part two: 20

Part Three: Dragons

1. Choose a breed of dragon from the Harry Potter books, and write a short essay of no more than 300 words and no less than 150 words on its appearance, characteristics, habitation and any other information you deem necessary. (5)

2. Choose your favourite book/film about dragons and explain the dragon's history and role in the storyline. (NOTE: If you completed the previous homework 'Dungeons and Dragons', please choose a different story to write this answer.) (5)

3. Find a picture of a dragon, and use a Paint editing program to label its features and characteristics (eg. scales, wingspan, etc.) (5)

Total points for part three: 15

Part Four: COMC and You

In this section, you need to think about Care of Magical Creatures in relation to yourself. Write a short (200-350 words) essay on what CoMC means to you. Will it help you in your future magical career? How has it affected other areas of your study, for example animagus testing? What have you got out of learning this subject? Write on these prompts and anything else you might think of. (10)

Total points for part four: 10

SPAG

There will be an additional five points available to you for correct usage of SPAG throughout the exam. SPAG is an acronym meaning: Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar. Run your exam through a spell-checker before posting, to ensure that there are no/few mistakes.

Total points for the entire exam: 75

Remember to cite all sources used and no copy/pasting!

End of Year Exam
KatieBellaTrix

Part One

1. Cerberus which means demon of the pit was the hound dog of Hades. It is normally classified to have three heads, but in some variations, 50 or 100 heads have been included. Other physical characteristics would be his notable snake was a tale and serpentine mane. His parents were Echidna and Typhon and siblings were chimera and Orthrus. His main purpose was to guard the underworld for his owner making sure no one dead could leave, and no one alive could enter. A famous myth in which Cerberus was a major part would be Hercules' final labor. Hercules's was given his task, and in the end did manage to capture the beast.
http://www.itpremium.com/portfolio/2dgraphics/cerberus.jpg

2. A basic description of the Sphinx would be the body of a lion, with the head of a human, hawk, or ram. (If you need more elaboration, like the question above, I will redo it)

3. The word sphinx comes from Middle English, Latin, and Greek. When I searched it this came up:
--Mythology. A figure in Egyptian myth having the body of a lion and the head of a man, ram, or hawk.
--often Sphinx Greek Mythology. A winged creature having the head of a woman and the body of a lion, noted for killing those who could not answer its riddle
--A puzzling or mysterious person

4. Oedipus

5. ...(Should I PM this to you?)

Part Two

1. New creatures are of course created for various reasons. They are helpful to our economy, and can prove to be important assets in everyday living. While we are carefully testing, and examining new animals, and there pureblood counterparts, we work in the hope that we will find an animal whose spine will cure dragon pox, or whose spine will have healing powers, more efficient and readily available then phoenix’s tears.

2. During my course of work, I have created, a muggle-turtle like creature I like to call Squirtle Sammy. He is a part turtle, and parts my own creation, I have used various spells and charms, and other animals to be sure he would be part of a surviving species. I am glad to say, that my creation was successful, however, I am still looking for more uses of its powerfully magical powdered claw, and shell. I hope one day, they will prove to help us explore the world’s lakes and oceans.

3. I think many people are concerned about animal abuse. I thin they need to have more trust in our government’s decision making, and code of ethics. I know personally, some people who oppose my job because they are afraid we are taking rights away from animals, and are harming, them. Other’s think it is dangerous. But if they were open-minded and came for a tour, I am sure we could change there minds.

4. I am sorry to say, we have had failed creature-creation attempts. The most memorable, was of course, the infamous blasted-end skrewt which occurred, when a team member of mine got a little tipsy and fooled around with some fire-crab eggs we were hatching for dragon-pox research. I was called late into the ministry when there was a report of smoke coming from the lab in which I work. Naturally, I was scared for the animals, and my job. When I got there, and opened the door, I simply thought the fire crabs hatching had failed for I couldn’t see them. Then the skrewts charged at me. I managed to get them into some crates which I fireproofed until my colleagues returned. When they did I demanded an explanation and the creator confessed. He said he would properly dispose of them and he took them from me. And of course, he gave them to that half-giant Hagrid who endangered children with them. I am still truly sorry for that incident.

5. Creature creation includes many forms of magic. Transfiguration is a leading role with charms and potions close behind. We also use tradition methods of cross breading. Transfiguring eggs is usually a first step, and injecting potions including another creature’s blood is popular. I wish I could say it is a routine thing, but the amount and type of magic is different in each case.

Part Three
1. I chose to use the Norwegian Ridgeback for my description. This dragon is more popularly known as Baby Norbert in the Harry Potter series. Many people would describe this particular breed of dragons as having black scales and ridges accompanied by bronze
horns. Native, to Norway, it spends much of its time in the mountains, though as with every dragon there have been known escapes. Eggs are also a black color. We can deduce that the mother dragon’s milk is similar to brandy. Most live in colonies where it easier to have better control on breeding and muggle ignorance, but there are still some out in the wild. They eat any large mammal, and have been known to eat water animals. While they can’t breathe fire right away, they can send out smoke from pretty early on. Rated XXXXX by the ministry of magic it has become illegal to breed dragons of this kind sense the 1709 Warlock’s Convention.

2. I chose to use Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire movie/book. In this story the dragon which happens to be a Hungarian Horntail plays a major part. The dragon is used as a plot device to get the main character Harry to retrieve the Golden Egg, to advance farther into the TriWizard Tournament. This is important because at the end of the TriWizard tournament, Harry meets his arch nemesis Lord Voldemort who tries to kill him again after he is resurrected. Also, without the dragon, Harry would have never made up with his best friend Ron Weasley, with whom he had been feuding with.

3.
picture (orginal)

(my version)

Part Four

Care of Magic Creatures is a very important subject to me. I feel that while he can help me to grow as a student now, it will also help me out later in life. No matter what career path you take COMC is an important asset to add to resumes. It is also helping me out in other subject areas such as potions. I hope that this essay will stress to you how important COMC is to me.

While I have been participation in this class, which I happen to enjoy very much, I think I have grown as a student. It has shown me that while work can be tedious, it can also be fun and a great way to get involved in the school community. I feel it has opened my horizon to be more apt to trying homework before going on to the community forums.

I have mentioned before in other classes, my desire to be a wand maker or auror. Well, in order to take those challenging career paths, I will need to have a good knowledge on magical creatures. In wand-making knowing the magic qualities of each individual animal is important and where else do you learn that? COMC of course! Becoming an auror requires having top grades in every subject area including potions. Well, while in potions you will need to know about the animals whose by-products you are using to create your concoction. Where would you learn that? COMC of course!

I have been doing animagus testing and I feel I owe my passing grades to COMC. In this class I have learned the qualities of each animal, and through some soul searching learned which I relate to the most. I am very grateful for COMC.

Welcome to the Care of Magical Creatures End of Year Exam! The exam will cover the topics we have looked at in the COMC classes from the past HE year, and you will be able to show your knowledge of all that you have learned.

The exam will be open until the 15th February, and can be taken by anyone - you don't have to have done the previous classes.

You may now begin!

Part One: Mythological Creatures

1. Fluffy the three-headed dog is based on the Greek Mythological creature Cerberus. For this question, present a short factfile on Cerberus, making sure to include the following information:

Full appearance: Cerberus is a three headed giant dog with a snake for a tail and for hair.
Role: He supposedly guards the entrance to the underworld in Greek mythology. He doesn’t let the dead go back to the living world or the living pass into the underworld.
'Owner': Cerberus belongs to Hades, the Greek God of the Underworld.
A myth involving Cerberus: He was lulled to sleep by Orpheus singing a lullaby, and was also overcome by the powerful half god, Hercules as his last mission.
Anything else you want to add: Cerberus had a sister, the Chimera, and a brother, Orthrus. His parents were Echidna and Typhon.
A picture:

The word count for this section must not be below 80, and must not exceed 150 words. (10 points for this section)

2. Describe the appearance of the Greek Sphinx. (4) The Greek sphinx is different to the Egyptian sphinx. There is only one evil demonic Greek sphinx of destruction and bad luck. She is always shown on a pedestal to be a winged lion with a woman’s head, or as a woman with the arms and chest of a lion and a serpent’s tail.

3. What are the origins of the word 'sphinx'? (4) Sphinx is derived from Greek “Sphingo”, which means “to strangle”, as she strangled anyone who failed to answer her famous riddle “Who has four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three legs before the sun sets?”

4. Who solved the Sphinx' riddle? (2) Oedipus solved the riddle; the answer was man.

5. Solve the following Riddle of the Sphinx, where the answer will be a mythological creature: (5)

Hind of a horse,
And head of a man,
I divine the stars,
Map out your plan.

Not always friendly,
Nor willing to aid,
We live sequestered,
Alone in the shade.

ANSWER:

Total points for part one: 25

Part Two: Creature Creation

Imagine that you work in the Creature Creation Laboratory at the Ministry of Magic, then answer the following questions. Remeber to be imaginative and to put yourself into the role!

1. Why are new creatures created and how often do you create them? (4)

New creatures are created for research. Muggles have reams of textbooks and publications about the biology of average organisms. We know comparatively little about our own magical creatures past the point of taking care of and restraining them. Creatures are made in the Ministry to delve into the knowledge on magic and biology so that we can a) better our understanding of them and b) prevent any unauthorised and dangerous creatures from coming into existence in the future. To fully understand what we are doing, we create a creature, which takes up to 18 months and analyse it for an average of about 3 years depending on the complexity of the creature and how interesting it is.

2. Describe the last creature that you created, and was the creation successful? (6)

The last creature we created was called Experiment 627. We haven’t yet given it a name and yes, it was very successful. With a Ministry Approved rating of *** (not very dangerous, but please learn how to control one before buying it for young children), it is one of the most simple and easy to maintain creatures we have created. Most of our creatures are X-rated, and created purely for understanding, but this creature, 627, was created for a more family orientated purpose. It is cute, cuddly, and well behaved, but only when unprovoked. When its “family” is in danger, 627 will go to any length to protect it. The reason for the raised rating is that without proper training, 627 will attack anything in its path when in a full-blown rage. It has long retractable claws, deadly sharp teeth and it’s fur and tail can tranfrom itself similar to a porcupine. It will eventually be available in different colours and could pass as a normal dog in a Muggle Household.

3. Why might some people be opposed to the creation of new creatures in a laboratory situation? Think in terms of ethics. (5)

In the Muggle world, Animal Testing has been a taboo thing for many years as it was thought of as cruel and inhumane. There has always been the question of, whether the testing actually hurts the creatures or whether the creatures will be imprisoned or disadvantaged for life. There are similar concerns in the Wizarding World, but pain is not as big an issue. We can use potions and charms to put the creature in a deep REM sleep and with other forms of magic, can resolve most other concerns of experimenting with animals. The other argument is that animals have done nothing to us, so why should we try experimenting on them? I have answered that question earlier, and another point to mention is that we conjure any creature we need to experiment it and Vanish it (if it is dangerous and if we can) after experimentation. Pain does not last and the average arguments of Animal Activists are moot where magic is concerned.

4. Has anything ever gone wrong in the creation of a creature, and if so, what was the result? (3)

As always in any experimentation, the method we use is trial and error. Errors occur all the time. Sometimes we get different results than we expect, i.e. a particular potion produces an extra head where we thought we would get a colour change. Sometimes nothing happens, sometimes too much happens. We learn from mistakes and from the unexpected.

5. How exactly are creatures created? Does it involve spells, potions, transfiguration or some other form of magic? (2)

We create creatures using basic Charms, Transfiguration and often we use spells we ourselves have created. Potions are also used in abundance and sometimes, we use the properties of certain herbs and magical plants to help us.

Total points for part two: 20

Part Three: Dragons

1. Choose a breed of dragon from the Harry Potter books, and write a short essay of no more than 300 words and no less than 150 words on its appearance, characteristics, habitation and any other information you deem necessary. (5)

The Hungarian Horntail is allegedly one of the most dangerous dragons in existence. Like others, it has its natural fire breathing ability and can shoot flames up to forty feet in length, reaching temperatures of well over 100 degrees Celsius. The Horntail is named after its most deadly feature: its serpentine tail that has several sharp and lethal scales, or horns, ending in one final spike. These are not just for decoration and when dealing with a Horntail, the tail is the limb to watch out for more than most. Dragons, especially females, are fiercely protective of their eggs and will do anything to prevent harm from coming to them. The Hungarian Horntail originates from the deep forest and dark depths of East Hungary, where they have little contact with humans. They feed on the medium sized creatures that live in the forests such as

2. Choose your favourite book/film about dragons and explain the dragon's history and role in the storyline. (NOTE: If you completed the previous homework 'Dungeons and Dragons', please choose a different story to write this answer.) (5)

In Sleeping Beauty, there is a dragon guarding the princess’ tower. There is no mention as to which dragon it is, and it has been described in many books and films as gigantic and ferocious, shooting great streams of fire to deter the various Princes from reaching their goal. The Dragon was there since the very beginning, when the Princess Aurora was first charmed to fall asleep. The dragon doesn’t have a pivotal role in Sleeping Beauty, but it does add a touch of excitement and thrill to the classic fairytale storyline.

3. Find a picture of a dragon, and use a Paint editing program to label its features and characteristics (eg. scales, wingspan, etc.) (5)



Total points for part three: 15

Part Four: COMC and You

In this section, you need to think about Care of Magical Creatures in relation to yourself. Write a short (200-350 words) essay on what CoMC means to you. Will it help you in your future magical career? How has it affected other areas of your study, for example animagus testing? What have you got out of learning this subject? Write on these prompts and anything else you might think of. (10)

Care of Magical Creatures is an important class for me because of the values and life skills it teaches me. I can officially learn about the creatures themselves, but it also teaches me to respect and revere life in general. I can see how evolution has creates such complex creatures, and every lesson, I am awed by the different varieties in which life can occur. I love this class because it is so lively and always enjoyable and lively. Creatures are exciting things that never cease to amaze, whether cute or scary, I always wonder where they came from. On a more professional level, I don’t believe CoMC will benefit my healing career very much other than teaching me how to treat creature induced injuries and wounds. This is a valuable skill as 32% of Mungo’s Injuries are creature based. CoMC has also helped me to better understand my Animagus form and also vice versa. I can use knowledge from this class to prepare me for the trials and tribulations of being a creature, and I can also use my Animagus form to understand and maybe even converse with the other creatures of a similar species. From learning CoMC I have learnt how to be responsible enough to care for other things that live with us and to respect life in all its forms.

Total points for part four: 10

SPAG

There will be an additional five points available to you for correct usage of SPAG throughout the exam. SPAG is an acronym meaning: Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar. Run your exam through a spell-checker before posting, to ensure that there are no/few mistakes.

Total points for the entire exam: 75

Remember to cite all sources used and no copy/pasting!

Part One: Mythological Creatures

1. Cerberus is often depicted as a giant dog with three heads, although it can have 50 to 100 heads, with a tale of a snake and a serpentine mane. He guards the gates to the underworld, ensuring that no one living enters and that the dead do not escape. The Greek meaning of his name is demon of the pit. Cerberus is the offspring of Echidna and Typhoeus from whom all the major Greek monsters were created. He is owned by Hades, the Greek god of the underworld. In one tale he is lulled to sleep with drugged honeycakes by Psyche, so that she make ask Hades wife Persephone for a box of beauty in order to give to Aphrodite.
<a href="http://photobucket.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://2img.net/h/i149.photobucket.com/albums/s58/RigbyDumbledore/cerberus.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting"></a>
2. In Greek mythology the Sphinx is represented as having the head of a woman, with the body of a winged lion, in other depictions she is a woman with the paws, claws and chest of a lion, wings of a eagle and a serpentine tail.

3. Sphinx comes from the Greek verb, sphingo, which means “to strangle”.

4. The riddle of the Sphinx was solved by Oedipus. This riddle is as follows:
What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?
Oedipus answered correctly with “man”.

Part Two: Creature Creation

Imagine that you work in the Creature Creation Laboratory at the Ministry of Magic, then answer the following questions. Remember to be imaginative and to put yourself into the role!

1. Why are new creatures created and how often do you create them? New creatures are created to provide valuable products and services to the magical world. Sometimes it is simply a matter of speeding up a process that will in all likely hood happen on its own one day. Many of the creatures produced here are essential to the everyday items you use, or the medicine you take. We work daily to create the creatures of the future.
2. Describe the last creature that you created, and was the creation successful? That would be the Flying Brawtney. It was indeed quite successful. We took a normal non-flying Brawt and crossed it with a Flying Ney. The Brawt, of course, is known for the chemical that it produces when frightened, it expels a clear liquid that is smelly and destroys weeds. When crossed with average Flying Ney it becomes a creature that will be a gardeners best friend. You see, the Brawt part of the beast is terrified of flying, and once taken to flight it will expel its liquid. One would only need to direct it fly over a garden in order to de-weed it. This will save time that is wasted on anti-weed spells, which has to be applied to each and every weed individually.
3. Why might some people be opposed to the creation of new creatures in a laboratory situation? Think in terms of ethics. Society is of course concerned for any animal that is created and raised in a lab. Rest assured that all of our animals are treated with nothing but love and the highest respect. Then there are those that fear we are breeding animals as weapons. This is simply not true. We abide by the International Rules of Creature Creation which forbid breeding animals as weapons of mass destruction.
4. Has anything ever gone wrong in the creation of a creature, and if so, what was the result? Occasionally we do have mishaps, just like those that occur in nature now and then. The biggest problem facing us is when we create a creature that just does not serve a purpose. I once crossed a doxy with an ordinary, non-magical cat, and the results were quite unimpressive. There is not a lot worse than a flying doxy with claws, especially one I turned out to be allergic to.
5. How exactly are creatures created? Does it involve spells, potions, transfiguration or some other form of magic? There are many ways to create the creatures, it depends on how DNA compatible the creatures are. If we are wanting to combine more than two animals the use of potions and transfiguration is required. Otherwise we use spells, although the proper spells can takes months, sometime years to perfect.


Part Three: Dragons

1. The Antipodean Opaleye hails from New Zealand, although it can sometimes be found in Australia. The Opaleye gets its name from its large multi-colored and pupil-less eye. It is considered to be one of the most beautiful dragons in the world. Beside the striking eyes, the medium sized Opaleye also can be distinguished by its iridescent, pearl colored scales, and vivid scarlet flame. The dragon can weigh between two and three tons. The Opaleye makes it home in the valley, not the mountains like most dragons. Its main source of food, and its preferred meal, are sheep, although they have been known to attack kangaroos. The Opaleye does not have a history of human attacks, and in fact they are considered quite tame for dragons, since they will only attack when hungry. Muggles have been known to confuse the Opaleyes pale grey eggs for fossils, although so far they have not figured out that they dragon eggs thanks to the quick thinking and acting New Zealand Department of Dragons.

2. One of my favorite books of all time is Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King. Unlike many of his horror novels, this is instead a fairytale. The Dragon in the title is slain by the King of Delain. In accordance to tradition, King Roland eats the dragon’s nine chambered heart. That night King Roland and Queen Sasha conceived Prince Peter. Peter is a special boy and the light of his parents lives. However, the King’s magician, Flagg, is less than thrilled with Peter and with Queen Sasha. He drugs the King, the end result being the birth of a second son, Prince Thomas. Flagg arranges for Sasha to die in childbirth, but she has already shaped Peter into a fine future king. Thomas is more to Flaggs liking since he is easily manipulated. Thomas is jealous of Peter who can do no wrong, and who is favored by their father. Flagg has taught Thomas to spy on Roland in his bedchambers through the eyes of the dragon- the head of which hangs in the Kings room. When Peter becomes a threat to Flagg he frames him for Roland’s murder and Peter is sentenced to life and locked away. Thomas is crowned King, but he is very young and Flagg makes all his decisions for him. Meanwhile, through friendship and his own wit, Peter is planning his escape. He knows that his brother and the entire kingdom of Delain are being destroyed by Flagg. Years go by and Flagg becomes aware that Peter is still a risk. In one evening Flagg decides to kill Peter, and Peter starts his escape (which you have to read the book to appreciate the cunning of his plan but I can tell you it involves napkins and a dollhouse). Peter manages to make his way to his Father, no Thomas’s bedchamber, thinking to use the arrow that his father used to slay the dragon to end Flagg. But the arrow is not there, and Flagg is on his heels with a double sided axe. Hidden in a corner is Thomas, with his father’s bow and arrow. He has suffered from nightmares for a long time about his father’s death, and now realizes that he saw, through the eyes of the dragon, Flagg, and not Peter, poison King Roland. The one area that Thomas could ever compete with Peter was his markmanship, and he lets the arrow fly into Flagg. Flagg is not killed, he simply vanishes. Too ashamed to stay in Delain, Thomas and his man servant bid Peter, newly crowned King, and go in search of Flagg. It’s interesting to note that Flagg is a recurring character in Stephen King’s books, including The Stand.

3. <a href="http://photobucket.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://2img.net/h/i149.photobucket.com/albums/s58/RigbyDumbledore/dragondiagram.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting"></a>



Part Four: COMC and You

I have just started my magical education at Hogwarts experience, and I have lot of basic magic to learn. Care of Magical Creatures is an important part of my education. I am interested in becoming an Auror, and as dark wizards are often surrounded by dark creatures, I will need a complete knowledge of all magical creatures. In order to be a complete witch or wizard it is important to know which creatures are harmless, or if they are dangerous, how to protect myself. The class helps to identify and care for a wide assortment of magical creatures, teaching us the proper way to handle all matter of beasts. The class could also be helpful to me if I decided to go in to Magical Healing Arts, as this class will teach me how to use the magical properties of some creatures. Having grown up in the Muggle world there are so many creatures that I have never even heard of, or that I thought were make-believe. I believe that this class is complementary to Defense Against Darks Arts and Herbology, as all three can help defend against the weapons of dark wizards. So far I have already increased my knowledge of dragons, which were once mythological beings to me, and I can hardly wait to see what the new term will bring!

Sources: Once again, Wikipedia saves the day! And Google Image search for the pics.

PART ONE: MYTHOLOGICAL CREATURES

1. Fluffy the three-headed dog is based on the Greek Mythological creature Cerberus. For this question, present a short factfile on Cerberus, making sure to include the following information:

Full appearance: An enormous three-headed dog with a snake tail and a serpent mane.

Role: Guarding the gates of the Underworld making sure that the dead would not leave and the living would not enter.

'Owner': Hades, God of the Underworld

A myth involving Cerberus: Cerberus was overcomed several times and one of those times was by the Sybil of Cumae that lulled Cerberus to sleep with drugged honeycakes so to allow Aenes to break into the Underworld.

Anything else you want to add: Cerberus is also named Kerberos and it is the son of the hundread-headed giant Typhon and the half-woman half-snake creature Echidna.



2. Describe the appearance of the Greek Sphinx.

The Greek Sphinx, a demon of destrcution and bad luck is a woman with pawa, claws and breasts of a lion with a serpent’s tail and eagle wings.

3. What are the origins of the word 'sphinx'?

The word "sphinx" comes from the Greek Σφινξ — Sphinx, apparently from the verb σφινγω — sphingo, meaning "to strangle".

4. Who solved the Sphinx' riddle?

Oedipus the mythical king of Thebes, son of Laius and Jocasta, who unknowingly killed his father and married his mother.

PART TWO: CREATURE CREATION

1. Why are new creatures created and how often do you create them?

Creating a new creature is a very danger and long process I usually take one year till I sucessfully create a new one.
Most of the creature creators do it for money big bussiness men are willing to pay them to create new creatures that are more stonger, work harder, have a better endurance and have low costs of maintenance.
To me, though, it’s different. I create new creatures to improve the already existing species, trying to peferct them. Man has managed to vanish many creatures and to endanger other many. By perfecting these creaures I ensure they have a better chance of surving in the middle of man’s destruction.

2. Describe the last creature that you created, and was the creation successful?

The last creaure I created was the “Beeyer”. Borned from the crossing of a drone and a blast-ended-skrewt this creature possesses: a tail that explodes but grows again, a body hard as a crab shell, wings with thorns and are light-brown and light-purple coloured.
This was a very sucessful creation because besides creating a new strong being this specie protects the already existing bee species.

3. Why might some people be opposed to the creation of new creatures in a laboratory situation? Think in terms of ethics.

I do understand people who are against creatures creation and manipulation because on the process of the creation many creaures die, new imperfect ones are borned and then eliminated. It’s a violation of the animals rights but every good new creation has its costs and demands some sacrifices.

4. Has anything ever gone wrong in the creation of a creature, and if so, what was the result?

Well, unfortunatly good results take time to achieve and many frustrated attempts in the process. A lot of mistakes are made and sometimes aberrations are created. There are times we end up with such useless, ugly and deformed beings that we have no choice but to eliminate them. However the worst is when highly dangerous creatures are created almost impossible to kill like the Chimera. The several crossings it took to create the Chimera resulted in such a vicious, mortal and agressive creature that there’s only one record of someone killing a Chimera which after died of exaustion.

5. How exactly are creatures created? Does it involve spells, potions, transfiguration or some other form of magic?

The creation of new creatures can involve almost any type of magic. We can use spells to simulate some situations and conditions ans see how the creatures react to them and what results from it. We have potions to affect creatures body system and see what kind of mutation results from it. Through transfiguration we can practise crossings and change body parts. There’s also the natural crossing/mating and having creatures hatching eggs of other creatures. There’s a lot we can do to create a new creature though we must be careful!

PART THREE: DRAGONS

1. Choose a breed of dragon from the Harry Potter books, and write a short essay of no more than 300 words and no less than 150 words on its appearance, characteristics, habitation and any other information you deem necessary.

Peruvian Vipertooth

The Peruvian Vipertooth is the smallest of all the known Dragons with some mere 15 feet. It is also the swifest in flight thanks to its wide wings. The Vipertooth possesses sharp ridges all the way through his back and his scales are smooth and copper-coloured. Contradictorily, the Peruvian Vipertooth eggs are bronze coloured as well as its offsprings, the copper colour only cames with time. Though it has short arms and legs the Vipertooth has an extremly long and powerful tail. Its horns in his head are also short to Dragon standards. It has very venomous fangs and though it feed mostly of goats and cows it possesses a liking for killing humans and human flesh. In the nineteenth century The International Confederation Of Wizards had to sent exterminators to reduce The Vipertooth population which had alarmingly increased. The Vipertooth is native from Peru possibly from the Eastern mountains.

2. Choose your favourite book/film about dragons and explain the dragon's history and role in the storyline.

I choose Reign of Fire. Man have dug to deep in into the Earth awakening an ancient beast, Dragons. Twenty years later Dragons had devastated the Earth having survived only a few humans as well as Dragons since the numbers of humans which they feed from had shortened. The movie unrolls with a quest of some humans trying to vanquish the last Dragons. Though treated as vicious blood-thisrty and destruction seekers beings Dragons are an important part of te plot.

3. Find a picture of a dragon, and use a Paint editing program to label its features and characteristics (eg. scales, wingspan, etc.)


PART FOUR: COMC AND YOU

In this section, you need to think about Care of Magical Creatures in relation to yourself. Write a short (200-350 words) essay on what CoMC means to you. Will it help you in your future magical career? How has it affected other areas of your study, for example animagus testing? What have you got out of learning this subject? Write on these prompts and anything else you might think of.

I love COMC! It’s my favourite Class in Hogwarts Experience. It fullfills my need to be in contact with nature. I love to learn about magical creatures and how to handle them. Besides I love to travel and I hope the my future magical career involves a lot of travelling and for those who always have their foot on the road a good knowlede of the creatures out there is vital!
I aim to be a curse breaker but if that’s not possible a job in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures namely in the Beast, Being and Spirit Divison will also be fine by me. I’ll need COMC very much and I intend to study it as hard as I can for it!
I have not yet started my Animagus training but I’m positive that when I do it will be a lot easier thanks to COMC. I’m also interesting in Creature creation processes which is a very dangerous things so we need a very goog COMC knowledge.
For all of this I want to thank our lovely COMC teacher for bringing us all this wonderful and interesting classes and for the all the riddles that put us to discover many creatures. Bottom of line COMC is one of the best and most usefull classes teached here in Hogwarts Experience.


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SOURCES
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerberus
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/c/cerberus.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinx#Greek_sphinx
http://www.hp-lexicon.org/bestiary/dragons.html
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander

Part One: Mythological Creatures

1.

Full appearance: Cerberus was a large three-headed dog with a tail of a snake and a serpent mane.

Role: He guarded the gates to the underworld and made sure the dead could not leave and those who live could not enter.

'Owner': Hades

A myth involving Cerberus: Orpheus went to the Underworld to get back his dead wife, Eurydice. To get through the gates and return he played his lyre to entrance Orpheus into a deep slumber. Hades only allowed Orpheus to obtain his wife, if he could make it to the land of the living without once looking back to his wife. Of course, Orpheus thought it was a trick so he looked back at his wife to make sure it was her, but of course this made her disappear forever.

Anything else you want to add: Cerberus was overcome many times by various heroes. These heroes
Include Hercules, Orpheus, Hermes, the Sybil of Cumae, and Psyche.

A picture:

sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerberus
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/3449/orpheus.html

2. A sphinx has the body of lion with the head a person, along with wings.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinx#Greek_sphinx

3. The word “sphinx” comes from the Greek word sphingo, meaning “to strangle,”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Sphinx

4. Oedipus

http://www.angelfire.com/ma3/mythology/riddlesphinx.html


Part Two: Creature Creation


1. They are created when there is a necessity for the animal. Such as when there is an infestation of a wild plant and the plant is wanted rid off, new creatures are created to rid people of these unwanted plants. The creation of new creatures happens once every two to five years.

2. The last creature created was a harpy. It was a success. It was wanted to help guard the prisons of Azkaban now that the Dementors have switched sides. More copies of these creatures are being created as we speak.

3. Some people may think this is wrong due to the whole ‘playing the role of a god’ factor. They think it inhumane to play with life.

4. Yes, things have gone wrong before, mainly in the early process of creature creation. We were trying to build a new breed of dragon, but we failed. The dragon grew extra legs and feet, then shortly died of some deformed organs.

5. It first needs a transfiguration spell used on a rat then it will become a form of a younger version of that creature it is wanted to become and then a daily potion is given to insure the stability of its new form.


Part Three: Dragons

1. The Antipodean Opaleye is a breed of dragon, which is native to New Zealand and Australia. It is normally found in valleys in these places. It has shimmering, pearly scales. It is medium in size. Its eyes are glittery, multicolored, and it has no pupils. The flame it produces is a vivid red color. Its eggs are a pale grey color and it eats sheep.

http://www.hp-lexicon.org/bestiary/dragons.html

2. Smaug is the main antagonist in the J.R.R Tolkein’s The Hobbit. Smaug had laid waste to Dale and captured the Lonely Mountain with all its treasure. In the story a party of dwarves , Bilbo Baggins, and Gandolf set off to recapture the mountain and kill the dragon.

3.


Part Four: COMC and You

Care of Magical Creatures may help me later in animagus training. Knowing magical creatures will help me choose the animal I wish to be and the traits and behavior of the creature. Such as if I wanted to train to become a hippogriff, then I would need to know how it would interact with people and other animals, what it eats, and any other important factors that could help me disguise as that animal. I have not yet figured out what I would like my magical career to be, but if I choose a career as a dragon keeper or a Care of Magical Creatures professor this class could help. For the obvious one if I chose to be a Care for Magical Creatures professor I would first need to take the class to learn as much about the animals I would be teaching about. Also the class could help me learn about dragons, if I wanted to be a dragon keeper. In this class I have learned about Cerberus, sphinxes, and dragons.

The exam is now closed. Well done to everyone who submitted their answers! Your points are below.

GRYFFINDOR

KatieBellaTrix: 67
WaterLily: 70
WeasleyGirl: 5 (points from riddle PMed to me)

RAVENCLAW

Rigby Dumbledore: 66

HUFFLEPUFF

SLYTHERIN

Raistlin the Wizard: 70
drkangelcat: 51