Prof. Amy Lupin

You put your quill down and close your copy of Spellman’s Syllabary, satisfied that you’ve finished translating the ancient runes before you. We’d be interested to hear what you’ve just translated - was it for an assignment, some independent research or perhaps ancient runes spotted in the wild? We’re also curious about the translation itself. Please share your translation (and its context) in 100 words minimum by 11:59 PM HOL time on 31 July for 10 rubies.

You page through your copy of Spellman’s Syllabary and come across a chapter detailing a different set of runes used by a remote Wizarding community. You notice that the style of the runes are very different from the ones you learned about in your Ancient Runes class. We’d like you to create a graphic showing what some of these runes look like (please keep it to 600 x 600 pixels). Alternatively, you can describe their appearance in 80 words minimum. Post your runes below by 11:59 PM HOL time on 31 July for 10 rubies.

Solutions sent by: Ellie Vernez Luna Ravenlong River Fenwick

Solution sent by: Ellie Vernez River Fenwick

Poetry is magical. Words get transformed into meaning, evoking thoughts and feelings. Transforming one word into another can also be magical. Wave your wand (or rather, use your writing tool of choice) and reveal each word. Each word differs from the previous word by a single letter (eg. theme → thyme). Clues are provided to help guide this process. Send your solution to me via PM (subject: Light Reading Word Ladder) by 23:59 HOL-time on 30th April to earn 10 rubies.

Thank you! :D

The board of Nimbus Enterprises has met to discuss the last quarter. They would like to express their gratitude for everyone’s hard work. - A big thank you to those who participated. I thoroughly enjoyed each of your submissions. Congratulations to River Fenwick, CEO of AstroMed Supply, for getting the highest rating, followed closely by Scarlet Robloutain, CEO of Nimbus Voyager. View the quarterly report

Our sources reveal that the priority shipments for Week 6 were as follows: High: Morrin (If lives are endangered, the galactic accords mean aid shipments automatically get top priority.) Medium: Taren Low: Gimel - The Interstellar Trade Commission thanks you for your efforts in transporting much-needed shipments to various parts of the galaxy.

During these weeks together, you’ve got to know each of the crewmembers. All of them have a valuable role to play on the ship, and the ship wouldn’t have gotten as far as it has without their dedication and commitment. The captain has asked you to recognise one of the crewmembers who has gone over and above their responsibilities and give them special commendation. For this task, we’d like you to pick a crewmember and describe how they’ve contributed to the functioning of the ship and/or its crew. Include their name, their role, their rank/rating (if applicable) and any other details you’d like to share. Post your recommendations below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

The ship has been underway for some time now. Intergalactic space flight regulations require ships to run drills at least once per month so that the crew can be prepared for any emergency. Seconds (even milliseconds) count in an emergency so it’s important that each crew member is extremely familiar with how to respond in an emergency. For this task, we’d like you to pick one emergency a ship might have to deal with (eg. life support malfunctioning, a breach in the ship’s hull) and describe what the crew needs to do in that scenario, bearing in mind that different roles may have to carry out different tasks. Post your emergency protocols below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

The captain has been quite busy of late, so he’s delegated one of his responsibilities to you. Each head of a division (eg. IT engineering, medical) writes logs throughout the day, both for record keeping and to keep the higher ups informed of any developments. The logs are also a way to highlight any requests – while they’ll typically get filtered through to the supplies officer, some of the less straightforward requests need to go through the captain as they have the final say. The captain typically goes through these logs individually and marks them as “acknowledged”, “more information requested”, “denied” accordingly. For this task, we’d like you to write 5 logs that might appear in the captain’s queue. Also mark each log as if the first mate has gone through them. The above examples are suggestions – you’re welcome to come up with your own actions. Post your logs and actions taken below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Our sources reveal that the priority shipments for Week 5 were as follows: High: Iris (The scientists have some very influential backers for their research who have paid to extradite the shipment.) Medium: Orion Low: Xyris - Week 6 Planet: Gimel Resource: Steel A company in Gimel seeks to get their asteroid mining operation off the ground and need specialised steel tools in order to do so. Planet: Morrin Resource: Mixed shipment Authorities have expressed concern over the lack of communication from an outpost in Morrin. They’ve requested a mixed shipment be sent to the outpost to help address a range of possible issues they might be facing. Planet: Taren Resource: Tungsten Taren's guild of explorers has been enlisted to explore a new planet in the system. They want to take as many precautions as they can, including using tungsten for radiation shielding for their crafts and spacesuits. Post your chosen shipping assignment below by 23:59 PM on Friday, 28 February.

Our sources reveal that the priority shipments for Week 4 were as follows: High: Hyacinth (The plants on Hyacinth are very sensitive to atmospheric conditions. It’s essential the plants are preserved as the botanists’ research could have implications for the rest of the galaxy.) Medium: Pletten Low: Elara - Week 5 Planet: Iris Resource: Beryllium A team of scientists need a shipment of Beryllium in order for highly specialised equipment to be manufactured so that they can carry out their research. Planet: Orion Resource: Copper An outpost in Orion is experiencing intermittent issues with their communications array and have requested a shipment of copper so that they can sort it out. Planet: Xyris Resource: Lead A company in Xyris have made advancements in spacesuit designs. They now seek a shipment of lead so that factories can be built and the designs rolled out. Post your chosen shipping assignment below by 23:59 PM on Friday, 21 February.

As a communications officer, you’re responsible for incoming and outgoing messages as well as for communications between crew. You also need help maintain related messaging equipment. Additionally, it’s up to you to establish protocols for interacting with other ships and the docks upon arrival at a new planet. For this task, we’d like you to write up the protocols for communicating with a ship that appears to be travelling head on towards your ship. Remember to be cordial and avoid antagonising the other ship at all costs. Your write-up should be at least 100 words. Post your communication protocols below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

A ship’s needs may evolve over time, and with it the need for more specialised can crew increase. The captain could hire additional crew at an upcoming destination, or it could be an idea to help train up the more junior crew members (or even those looking for a new role). For this task, we’d like you to describe in 100 words minimum how training works on your space ship. Are there practical and/or written exams? Are there ratings or ranks within a particular role or set of skills? Feel free to share anything else relevant. Post your training protocols below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Journeys aboard a space ship can take weeks, if not months. It’s important to help keep crew motivated and in good spirits. While it’s important to keep the ship operational, over time a crew can become like a family away from home, and it’s important to look out for each one of them. For this task, we’d like you to describe in at least 100 words what you plan on doing to help improve the crew’s wellbeing. Post your submissions below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

The priorities are random but are agreed upon by Sky and me prior to my posting those shipments.

It's only been in the last century that humans made space their permanent home. Other species have inhabited the galaxy for millennia. Your destination is home to a species that tends to keep to themselves and seldom go off-world. Your captain has instructed you to gather information about this species and about their language in case you encounter any of them. While most species speak Common, it always goes a long way if you can greet them in their own language. Most species also appreciate it if you’re willing to participate in their customs and traditions. For this task, we’d like you to describe this species, including their name, any prominent characteristics as well as some details on their language and customs. Also share words for "hello" and "thank you" – these can be in the form of symbols (graphics) as well. Post your submissions below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Keeping enough supplies to get you from point A to B and sometimes C can be tricky, especially in case you chance upon a stray asteroid or some pesky space pirates. Fortunately your ship's destination is a lush planet and has plenty of plants, some even with unique healing properties. You're excited by this, and decide to read up on these plants. For this task, you'll need to write a 100 word entry for one of these plants as though it came from the galaxy's database. Post your entries below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Keeping an entire ship fed is no easy task. A ship runs 24/7. Various crew members are on duty at different times. Depending on the ship, all hands are needed on deck during a hyperspace jump. For this task, you'll need to create a space-worthy dish for an upcoming meal. It can be a starter, main meal or a dessert, but it needs a galactic twist. Describe the dish in 100 words, or alternatively create a graphic of the dish (maximum 600 x 600 pixels) and include a short description of it. Post your dishes below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Our sources reveal that the priority shipments for Week 3 were as follows: High: Zeta (The new colony will play a pivotal role in the future of Zeta’s planetary system) Medium: Tavret Low: Deren - Week 4 Planet: Elara Resource: Aluminium Elara is celebrating 200 years since the “Grand Terraforming”. They have ordered a large shipment of aluminium to be used to construct a monument of metal flowers in the capital. Planet: Hyacinth Resource: Lead The botanists at the research station on Hyacinth need a shipment of lead so they can do running repairs on their atmospheric control equipment. Planet: Pletten Resource: Cobalt Pletten is updating its legendary Nova12 space station and has ordered a shipment of cobalt to manufacture a new battery array. Post your chosen shipping assignment below by 23:59 PM on Friday, 14 February.

Maintenance is just as important to keeping the ship (and profits) going as any other role. Equipment needs to be kept shipshape all throughout, lest any breakdowns happen, which could, in turn, create an emergency for the crew to deal with. Having a weekly routine to carry out maintenance would go a long way to ensuring the smooth running of the ship, and help make sure nothing gets missed. For this task, we’d like you to create a weekly routine that the maintenance crewperson (and their team) carries out. Please include at least 5 different items on the list and why they might be important. Minimum 100 words. Post your maintenance routines below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

There are a number of systems that ensure crew can live comfortably and safely on board, such as temperature regulation, oxygen production and recycling, water purification and recycling, and radiation shielding. During a routine inspection of one the systems, you notice a wire has come loose. You consult the manual to check where it goes as this is your first time working with this particular model. For this task, we’d like you to describe how this system works, including information such as how many machines and other apparatus form part of it and whether it needs manual intervention. Feel free to include any other relevant details. Minimum 100 words. Post your submissions below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Part of what helps make sure ships run smoothly is the IT infrastructure, including hardware and software. Various crew members may make use of dedicated consoles. For example, the pilot’s console naturally differs from the one life support engineers might use. The captain would need to be able to view all systems from their console. You’ve been asked to explore what you can do to make the ship’s operations more efficient. For this task, we’d like you to pick one of the consoles aboard the ship, and describe how you can improve or add to the interface to assist the crew member(s) using it. This could be a visual diagram that displays important information at a glance or details about a program or script that automates some of their work. You can either submit this as a written piece of 100 words minimum or as a graphic. Graphics should be no more than 600 x 600 pixels. Post your system improvements below by 23:59 HOL time on 28 February to earn 10 rubies.

Our sources reveal that the priority shipments for Week 2 were as follows: High: Arkan (Arkan is hoping to turn around its struggling economy with the hundreds of thousands of people the Intergalactic Festival of Radiance draws each year.) Medium: Rodendra Low: Cortal - Week 3 Planet: Deren Resource: Gold An exciting tech start up on Deren has put in a large order for gold. They need it to build the chips that will (according to them, at least) usher in a new era of advanced androids. Planet: Tavret Resource: Helium The imperial ship-building yards on Tavret have very nearly finished construction on the new royal fleet. They have requested extra helium supplies to pressurise the fuel tanks. Planet: Zeta Resource: Silver A new colony is being established on Zeta but an accident in transit means their solar panel array has suffered damage. They need a shipment of silver so they can replace the missing panels. Post your chosen shipping assignment below by 23:59 PM on Friday, 7 February.