\u27Those Who Cling in Queer Corners To The Forgotten Tongues and Memories of an Elder Day\u27: J.R.R. Tolkien, Finns and Elves

Abstract Those Who Cling in Queer Corners To The Forgotten Tongues and Memories of an Elder Day\u27 J.R.R. Tolkien, Finns and Elves Dr. Andrew Higgins In this paper I will explore how several historic, literary and mythic associations of the Finnish people with elements of magic, the supernatural and the \u27other\u27 influenced J.R.R. Tolkien in imbuing the character and language of his own Elves with a similar quality of magic and \u27arresting strangeness\u27.I will explore several characterisations of the Finns, the People of Kalevala, Tolkien would have encountered in his early study of the Kalevala, several Old Norse and Anglo-Saxon texts as well as other characterisations drawn from more contemporary treatments of the supernatural elements of the Finns in Victorian and Edwardian sources.I will argue that the greatest influence of this connection can be see in two key elements of Tolkien\u27s mythology: first in Tolkien\u27s use of the Finnish language to create a phonetic sound-sense for his own invented language for the Elves of Qenya/Q(u)enya which would evoke a sense of \u27a forgotten tongue\u27. Secondly, in Tolkien\u27s early attempt to incorporate into his own mythology the character of the artisan Volundr, in his Anglo-Saxon characterization Weland, known to be both a son of a Finnish King and a \u27prince of Elves\u27 and who has survived to be one of the few known characters of the lost English mythology Tolkien was seeking to reimagine and repurpose. My paper will show how the literary constructions and mythic representations of the otherness and supernatural qualities of the Finns played its part in inspiring Tolkien to imbue his own Elves with a similar \u27queer\u27 and \u27strange\u27 quality in both their character, history and language who by the third age of Middle-earth did \u27cling in queer corners\u27 while remembering \u27the memories of an elder day\u27 until they were called back to Valinor

Investigating multiple elves and halos above strong lightning with the fluorescence detectors of the Pierre Auger Observatory

ELVES are being studied since 2013 with the twenty-four FD Telescopes of the Pierre Auger Observatory, in the province of Mendoza (Argentina), the world’s largest facility for the study of ultra-high energy cosmic rays. This study exploits a dedicated trigger and extended readout. Since December 2020, this trigger has been extended to the three High levation Auger Telescopes (HEAT), which observe the night sky at elevation angles between 30 and 60 degrees, allowing a study of ELVES from closer lightning. The high time resolution of the Auger telescopes allows us to upgrade reconstruction algorithms and to do detailed studies on multiple ELVES. The origin of multiple elves can be studied by analyzing the time difference and the amplitude ratio between flashes and comparing them with the properties of radio signals detected by the ENTLN lightning network since 2018. A fraction of multi-ELVES can also be interpreted as halos following ELVES. Halos are disc-shaped light transients emitted at 70-80 km altitudes, appearing at the center of the ELVES rings, due to the rearrangement of electric charges at the base of the ionosphere after a strong lightning event

Modeling the chemical impact and the optical emissions produced by lightning-induced electromagnetic fields in the upper atmosphere: the case of halos and elves triggered by different lightning discharges

Halos and elves are Transient Luminous Events (TLEs) produced in the lower ionosphere as a consequence of lightning-driven electromagnetic fields. These events can influence the upper-atmospheric chemistry and produce optical emissions. We have developed different two-dimensional self-consistent models that couple electrodynamical equations with a chemical scheme to simulate halos and elves produced by vertical cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning discharges, Compact Intra-cloud Discharges (CIDs) and Energetic In-cloud Pulses (EIPs). The optical emissions from radiative relaxation of excited states of molecular and atomic nitrogen and oxygen have been calculated. We have upgraded previous local models of halos and elves to calculate for the first time the vibrationally detailed optical spectra of elves triggered by CIDs and EIPs. According to our results, the optical spectra of elves do not depend on the type of parent lightning discharge. Finally, we have quantified the local chemical impact in the upper atmosphere of single halos and elves. In the case of the halo, we follow the cascade of chemical reactions triggered by the lightning-produced electric field during a long-time simulation of up to one second. We obtain a production rate of NO molecules by single halos and elves of 10$^{16}$ and 10$^{14}$ molecules/J, respectively. The results of these local models have been used to estimate the global production of NO by halos and elves in the upper atmopshere at $\sim10^{-7}$ Tg~N/y. This global chemical impact of halos and elves is seven orders of magnitude below the production of NO in the troposphere by lightning discharges

Study on multi-ELVES in the Pierre Auger Observatory

Since 2013, the four sites of the Fluorescence Detector (FD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory record ELVES with a dedicated trigger. These UV light emissions are correlated to distant lightning strikes. The length of recorded traces has been increased from 100 μs (2013), to 300 μs (2014-16), to 900 μs (2017-present), to progressively extend the observation of the light emission towards the vertical of the causative lightning and beyond. A large fraction of the observed events shows double ELVES within the time window, and, in some cases, even more complex structures are observed. The nature of the multi-ELVES is not completely understood but may be related to the different types of lightning in which they are originated. For example, it is known that Narrow Bipolar Events can produce double ELVES, and Energetic In-cloud Pulses, occurring between the main negative and upper positive charge layer of clouds, can induce double and even quadruple ELVES in the ionosphere. This report shows the seasonal and daily dependence of the time gap, amplitude ratio, and correlation between the pulse widths of the peaks in a sample of 1000+ multi-ELVES events recorded during the period 2014-20. The events have been compared with data from other satellite and ground-based sensing devices to study the correlation of their properties with lightning observables such as altitude and polarity

Statistics and variability of the altitude of elves

From June 2008 to January 2016 nearly 800 elves have been recorded by a low-light camera in northeastern Spain. Elves occur in this region mainly over the lower-topped cold airmass maritime thunderstorms, peaking from November to January. Cloud-to-ground strokes still produce elves when maritime winter storms are carried inland, suggesting the cold season thunderstorm charge configuration favors strokes with large electromagnetic pulses. Altitudes of 389 elves were determined using optical data combined with a lightning location network. The overall median altitude was 87.1 km, near the typical OH airglow height, but average heights during individual nights ranged between 83 and 93 km. The lower elve nights (~84 km) occurred during slightly elevated geomagnetic conditions (Kp>3-, ap-index >10). Elve altitude often shifts by several kilometers during the night, apparently in response to changing background conditions in the upper mesosphere.Postprint (author's final draft

A comparative study on the use of information technologies in the development of students’ ability to comprehend what they listen to and watch

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of a computer-aided method called ELVES and video-aided instruction on the development of young students’ ability to comprehend what they listen to and watch. Using the video-aided instructions and computer-aided ELVES method, it also analyses the likelihood of the video-aided instruction method being used with different techniques, and compares the instructional methods involved with levels of student success of three different experimental groups. An analysis of the students’ post-test results shows a considerable difference in favour of the computer-aided ELVES method for achieving the target behaviours.The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of a computer-aided method called ELVES and video-aided instruction on the development of young students’ ability to comprehend what they listen to and watch. Using the video-aided instructions and computer-aided ELVES method, it also analyses the likelihood of the video-aided instruction method being used with different techniques, and compares the instructional methods involved with levels of student success of three different experimental groups. An analysis of the students’ post-test results shows a considerable difference in favour of the computer-aided ELVES method for achieving the target behaviours

Study on multi-ELVES in the Pierre Auger Observatory

Since 2013, the four sites of the Fluorescence Detector (FD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory record ELVES with a dedicated trigger. These UV light emissions are correlated to distant lightning strikes. The length of recorded traces has been increased from 100 μs (2013), to 300 μs (2014-16), to 900 μs (2017-present), to progressively extend the observation of the light emission towards the vertical of the causative lightning and beyond. A large fraction of the observed events shows double ELVES within the time window, and, in some cases, even more complex structures are observed. The nature of the multi-ELVES is not completely understood but may be related to the different types of lightning in which they are originated. For example, it is known that Narrow Bipolar Events can produce double ELVES, and Energetic In-cloud Pulses, occurring between the main negative and upper positive charge layer of clouds, can induce double and even quadruple ELVES in the ionosphere. This report shows the seasonal and daily dependence of the time gap, amplitude ratio, and correlation between the pulse widths of the peaks in a sample of 1000+ multi-ELVES events recorded during the period 2014-20. The events have been compared with data from other satellite and ground-based sensing devices to study the correlation of their properties with lightning observables such as altitude and polarity

“The Antithesis of the Traditional Elf:” Deconstructing Racial Representations in Dungeons and Dragons and R. A. Salvatore’s The Legend of Drizzt

This thesis examines the implications of subverting the appearance, characteristics, and morality of the fantasy race of the elves. This attempt at subversion exposes the limitations and liberations that some races have, particularly their ability to transcend their expected racial identity to establish a personal identity. Our long historical fascination with elves establishes them as a means to understand issues of particular times in the Anglo-Saxon culture, the Renaissance, Victorian England, and Tolkien. Dungeon and Dragons’ introduction of the drow in a popular game allows for exploration of how people understand these different races and what racial expectations linger in the cultural imagination. Comparing the traditional surface elves to the drow and Drizzt Do’Urden to Artemis Entreri in R. A. Salvatore’s The Legend of Drizzt series further allows an exploration of how we think about race and the limitations or freedoms we permit to different creatures. Scholars have examined the cultural and historical significance of the elves, explored how D&D works and reinforces cultural thinking about race, and have begun to examine Salvatore’s elves, but no in-depth work has yet been done on racial representations in these works. This thesis will help to fill this current research gap and further the conversation on racial representations in fantasy literature and popular culture

Fantasy Incarnate: Of Elves and Men

This essay proposes the idea of incarnation as a key to unlocking Tolkien’s conception of fantasy as set out in the \u27Origins\u27 section of On Fairy Stories. Tolkien\u27s intellectual context is explored and his conception of mythology as a blending of imagination and history examined. The essay also establishes the differences between mortal and Elvish fantasy and argues that Tolkien\u27s Elves engage in a different kind of incarnational art than do mortals. In conclusion it is claimed that in ‘Origins’ Tolkien reworked the speculations of mid-Victorian comparative philology into an aesthetic theory of artistic creation grounded upon the notion of incarnation