120-655: In the fictional world of Terry Pratchett 's Discworld series of novels, the Nac Mac Feegle (also sometimes known as Pictsies , Wee Free Men, the Little Men or "Person or Persons Unknown, Believed to be Armed") are a type of fairy folk. They appear in the novels Carpe Jugulum , The Wee Free Men , A Hat Full of Sky , Wintersmith , I Shall Wear Midnight , Snuff , and The Shepherd's Crown . At six inches tall, they are seen as occasionally helpful thieves and pests. All Nac Mac Feegles have hair that
240-577: A batch distillation basis (as opposed to a Coffey or column stills, which operate on a continuous basis). Traditionally constructed from copper , pot stills are made in a range of shapes and sizes depending on quantity and style of spirit. Geographic variations in still design exist, with certain kinds popular in parts of Appalachia , a region known for moonshine distilling. Spirits distilled in pots commonly have 40% ABV, and top out between 60 and 80% after multiple distillations. Poorly produced moonshine can be contaminated, mainly from materials used in
360-724: A humanist . He was a Distinguished Supporter of Humanists UK (formerly known as the British Humanist Association) and an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society . Pratchett wrote that he read the Old Testament as a child and "was horrified", but liked the New Testament and thought that Jesus "had a lot of good things to say ... But I could never see the two testaments as one coherent narrative". He then read On
480-476: A kelda . When a Clan's kelda dies, another is imported from a different clan. The new kelda chooses her husband, known as the Big Man, from among her adopted Clan when she arrives, and soon begins the lifelong task of begetting the next generation, often up to one hundred tiny baby Feegles at a time. Depending on how long the kelda has been kelda, the majority of the tribe will either be her brothers-in-law (i.e.,
600-708: A knighthood for "services to literature" in the 2009 UK New Year Honours list. He was previously appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire , also for "services to literature", in 1998. He formally received the accolade at Buckingham Palace on 18 February 2009. Pratchett commented in the Ansible science fiction/fan newsletter, "I suspect the 'services to literature' consisted of refraining from trying to write any", but added, "Still, I cannot help feeling mightily chuffed about it." On 31 December 2008, it
720-428: A telegraph ) are programmed to repeat the name of its creator's deceased son; the sentiment in the novel is that no one is ever forgotten as long as their name is still spoken. A June 2015 web server survey reported that approximately 84,000 websites had been configured with the header. Pratchett's humanist funeral service was held on 25 March 2015. In 2015, Pratchett's estate announced an endowment in perpetuity to
840-490: A thermal immersion circulator , like a sous vide stick is ideal because it comes with a temperature controller. The liquid is kept heated at about 50 °C (122 °F) which slowly evaporates the ethanol to 40% ABV that condense on the inner walls of the outer vessel. The condensation that accumulates in the bottom of the vessel can then be diverted directly down through a filter containing activated carbon . The final product has approximately twice as much alcohol content as
960-427: A 5-foot-long (1.5 m) copper tube wound in spiral form. The tube first goes up to act as a simple column, and then down to cool the product. Cookware usually consists of a 30-litre (6.6 imp gal; 7.9 US gal) plastic wine bucket. The heat source is typically a thermal immersion circulator (commonly runs at 1200 W), like a sous vide stick because it is hard to find 300 W immersion heaters , and it
1080-743: A BBC television documentary, Terry Pratchett: Choosing to Die , about assisted suicide. It won the Best Documentary award at the Scottish BAFTAs in November 2011. In September 2012, Pratchett told an interviewer: "I have to tell you that I thought I'd be a lot worse than this by now, and so did my specialist." In the same interview he said that the cognitive part of his mind was "untouched" and his symptoms were physical (normal for PCA). However, in July 2014 he cancelled his appearance at
1200-449: A bank of six monitors to ease writing. When he travelled, he always took a portable computer, originally a 1992 Olivetti Quaderno , with him to write. In a 1995 interview with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates , Pratchett expressed concern about the potential spread of misinformation online. He felt that there was a "kind of parity of esteem of information" on the internet, and gave the example of Holocaust denial being presented on
1320-535: A book about his experiences if he thought anyone would actually believe them". The first Discworld novel, The Colour of Magic , was published in hardback by Colin Smythe Ltd in 1983. Pratchett gave up working for the CEGB to make his living through writing in 1987, after finishing the fourth Discworld novel, Mort . His sales increased quickly and many of his books occupied top places on bestseller lists; he
SECTION 10
#17327917818031440-534: A children's book accounts for the readability of the Nac Mac Feegle's speech in the Tiffany Aching books". Nac Mac Feegle tend to have human names, usually abbreviated and with some sort of modifier (Rob Anybody, Daft Wullie, Big Aggie, Wee Jock), though their respect for inheriting and repeating famous names limits them a bit (No'-as-big-as-Medium-Sized-Jock-but-bigger-than-Wee-Jock-Jock). Besides
1560-418: A cow standin' in a field, mindin' its own business, next minute the grass is rustlin'. Some little bugger shouts " Hup, hup, hup! " and the poor beast goes by, voom!, without its legs movin'; backwards, sometimes. They're stronger than cockroaches. You step on a pictsie, you best be wearin' thick soles ." Fighting is likewise a group effort of the clan. When encountering a foe much larger than themselves, (which
1680-619: A few more books yet", and added that while he understood the impulse to ask "is there anything I can do?", in this case he would only entertain such offers from "very high-end experts in brain chemistry". Discussing his diagnosis at the Bath Literature Festival in early 2008, Pratchett revealed that by then he found it too difficult to write dedications when signing books. In his later years Pratchett wrote by dictating to his assistant, Rob Wilkins, or by using speech recognition software. In March 2008, Pratchett announced he
1800-567: A fund of lore, stories, and ideas they can draw upon.) Male Feegles are in dread of losing their kelda because there will be no one 'tae take care o' us'. To help her with this, she is given, before leaving her birth clan, a bottle of water from her mother's leather cauldron—which, of course, contains some of the water from her mother's cauldron, and so on. Theoretically, (and on the Discworld theories of this nature tend to work, even if they are not actually right, owing to narrative causality ),
1920-520: A gnome in The Light Fantastic . Twoflower is disappointed, believing he should be dressed in brightly coloured clothes and "more sort of... jolly". Rincewind explains: "He's six inches high and lives in a mushroom, of course he's a bloody gnome." Gnomes are able to make a good living as rat-catchers, because as well as being able to chase the rats into spaces where humans cannot, they can make several good meals, and indeed warm clothes, from
2040-661: A human, they find it easy to go unseen when they wish to do so. The Nac Mac Feegle males treat witches with a nervous mix of fear and respect. All witches, regardless of age, are called "hags". A very important witch, such as Mistress Weatherwax, is acknowledged as the "hag o' hags". Feegles seem to know enough about witches to spot and respect a good one, and just as they accept that their keldas know things they do not, they are willing to believe that "the haggin'" has its own secrets. They comically fear witches who know about them, with large amounts of dread being reserved for "the Foldin' o'
2160-509: A lang time." The Nac Mac Feegle take pride in being able to get into, or out of, anywhere (although getting out of pubs presents something of a difficulty). In A Hat Full of Sky , they claim "the crawstep" is "all in the ankle, ye ken". Those who have actually witnessed "the crawstep" report that the Mac Feegles simply stick one leg straight out in front of them, wiggle their foot, and are suddenly gone. The Ramtops have many legends about
2280-514: A mechanic, and Eileen Pratchett (1922–2010), a secretary, of Hay-on-Wye . His maternal grandparents came from Ireland. Pratchett attended Holtspur School, where he was bullied for his speech impediments . He was bothered by the head teacher, who, he said, thought "he could tell how successful you were going to be in later life by how well you could read or write at the age of six". Pratchett's family moved to Bridgwater , Somerset, briefly in 1957. He passed his eleven plus exam in 1958, earning
2400-612: A number of critical observations. Eileen Donaldson, writing in The Gothic Fairy Tale in Young Adult Literature: Essays on Stories from Grimm to Gaiman , notes that Pratchett "satirizes our expectation of fairy-folk (wings, flowers, and "tinklyness") through the Feegles who curse, drink, fight, steal, cause chaos and are feared by everyone". Lawrence Watt-Evans notes that one's "first impression
2520-802: A number of game adaptations of his books. He favoured games that are "intelligent and have some depth", citing Half-Life 2 (2004) and fan missions for Thief as examples. The red army in Interesting Times prompted comparisons to the 1991 puzzle game Lemmings . When asked about this connection, Pratchett said: "Merely because the red army can fight, dig, march and climb and is controlled by little icons? Can't imagine how anyone thought that ... Not only did I wipe Lemmings from my hard disk, I overwrote it so I couldn't get it back." He described The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (2006) as his favourite video game, saying that he used many of its non-combat-oriented fan-made mods , and contributed to
SECTION 20
#17327917818032640-1060: A part of the Nebula Award ceremony. In 2016 the SFWA named Pratchett the recipient of Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award , given for "significant impact on the science fiction or fantasy landscape". He received the NESFA Skylark Award in 2009 and the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2010. In 2011 he won Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association , a lifetime honour for "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature". The librarians cited nine Discworld novels published from 1983 to 2004 and observed that "Pratchett's tales of Discworld have won over generations of teen readers with intelligence, heart, and undeniable wit. Comic adventures that fondly mock
2760-568: A person's imagination (although they cannot use it to travel within a world—for this, we are assured, they have "feets"). Though they do not exclusively dwell on the Discworld plane, this is where they are most commonly spotted. Or, to be more accurate, where the highest concentration of their victims exist. As the Big Man of the Chalk Hill Gang, Rob Anybody, proudly states: "We've been robbin' an' runnin' aroound on all kinds o' worrlds for
2880-488: A place at High Wycombe Technical High School , where he was a key member of the debating society and wrote stories for the school magazine. Pratchett described himself as a "non-descript" student and, in his Who's Who entry, credited his education to the Beaconsfield Public Library. Pratchett's early interests included astronomy . He collected Brooke Bond tea cards about space, owned
3000-407: A rat. Gnomes also tend to be surprisingly strong for their height, described as "the strength of a man compressed into a body six inches tall". Gnomes are also featured in the short story Theatre of Cruelty , in which a children's entertainer forces them to perform as a Punch and Judy show. This story also reveals the existence of gnomes dogs and alligators . The Nac Mac Feegle have inspired
3120-752: A regional newspaper under the pseudonym Patrick Kearns. After various positions in journalism, in 1979 Pratchett became press officer for the South West Region of the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) in an area that covered three nuclear power stations . He later joked that he had demonstrated "impeccable timing" by making this career change so soon after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in Pennsylvania , US, and said he would "write
3240-484: A registered distillery is illegal in many countries. Currently in the United States, there are four states that allow the production of moonshine for personal consumption ( Alaska , Arizona , Massachusetts , and Missouri ). Additionally, North Dakota law permits the production of moonshine for personal consumption up to the federally legal amount—which is zero gallons; entailing that production of any amount
3360-740: A result of excise laws and became meaningful in the United States only after a tax passed after the Revolutionary War outlawing non-registered stills with the Tariff of 1791 , or the Excise Whiskey Tax of 1791. This tax led to the Whiskey Rebellion lasting between 1791 and 1794, where the tax went unpaid by the rebels and was met with violent protest. This tax lasted until 1802, when it was repealed. Another tax
3480-504: A serious and ultimately fatal illness to choose to die peacefully with medical help, rather than suffer". Pratchett was selected to give the 2010 BBC Richard Dimbleby Lecture , Shaking Hands With Death , broadcast on 1 February 2010. Pratchett introduced his lecture on the topic of assisted death (he preferred this to the term "assisted suicide"), but the main text was read by his friend Tony Robinson because his condition made it difficult for him to read. In June 2011, Pratchett presented
3600-466: A significant source in some areas. Radiators used as condensers may contain lead at the plumbing joints, and their use has resulted in blindness or lead poisoning from tainted liquor. This was a deadly hazard during the Prohibition -era United States. Consumption of lead-tainted moonshine is a serious risk factor for saturnine gout , a very painful but treatable medical condition that damages
3720-456: A small publishing company, Colin Smythe Ltd. Pratchett mentioned that he had written a manuscript, The Carpet People . Colin Smythe Ltd published the book in 1971, with illustrations by Pratchett. It received strong, although few, reviews and was followed by the science fiction novels The Dark Side of the Sun (1976) and Strata (1981). In the 1970s and 1980s, Pratchett published stories in
Nac Mac Feegle - Misplaced Pages Continue
3840-400: A still. To cut costs, stainless steel vessels are often replaced with plastic stills , vessels made from polypropylene that can withstand relatively high heat. The preferred heat source for plastic stills or spiral stills is sous vide sticks; these control temperature, time, and circulation, and are therefore preferred over immersion heaters . Multiple units can be used to increase
3960-492: A study of farmers in Cocke County, Tennessee , observes: "One could transport much more value in corn if it was first converted to whiskey. One horse could haul ten times more value on its back in whiskey than in corn." Moonshiners such as Maggie Bailey of Harlan County, Kentucky , Amos Owens of Rutherford County, North Carolina , and Marvin "Popcorn" Sutton of Maggie Valley, North Carolina , became legendary. Once
4080-537: A style described as "more that of urban cowboy than city gent". Concern for the future of civilisation prompted him to install five kilowatts of photovoltaic cells (for solar energy ) at his house in 2007. Pratchett had an observatory built in his back garden and was a keen astronomer from childhood. He made a 2005 appearance on the BBC programme The Sky at Night . Pratchett started to use computers for writing as soon as they were available to him. His first computer
4200-632: A substantial public donation to the Alzheimer's Research Trust (now Alzheimer's Research UK , ARUK), filmed three television programmes chronicling his experiences with the condition for the BBC , and became a patron of ARUK. Pratchett died on 12 March 2015, at the age of 66. Pratchett was born on 28 April 1948 in Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire , England, the only child of David (1921–2006),
4320-411: A tainted distillate burns with a yellow flame. Practitioners of this simple test also held that if a radiator coil had been used as a condenser, then there would be lead in the distillate, which would give a reddish flame. This led to the mnemonic , "Lead burns red and makes you dead," or simply, "Red means dead." Manufacturing of spirits through distilling, fractional crystallization , etc. outside
4440-539: A telescope and wanted to be an astronomer, but lacked the necessary mathematical skills. He developed an interest in science fiction and attended science fiction conventions from about 1963–1964, but stopped a few years later when he got his first job as a trainee journalist at the local paper. His early reading included the works of H. G. Wells , Arthur Conan Doyle , and "every book you really ought to read", which he later regarded as "getting an education". Pratchett published his first short story, "Business Rivals", in
4560-518: A two-part documentary series about his illness, Terry Pratchett: Living With Alzheimer's . The first part was broadcast on BBC Two on 4 February 2009, drawing 2.6 million viewers and a 10.4% audience share. The second, broadcast on 11 February 2009, drew 1.72 million viewers and a 6.8% audience share. The documentary won a BAFTA award in the Factual Series category. On 26 November 2008, Pratchett met Gordon Brown , then Prime Minister of
4680-474: A writer, was born there in 1976. In 1993 the family moved to Broad Chalke , a village west of Salisbury , Wiltshire. Pratchett was the patron of the Friends of High Wycombe Library. In 2013 he gave a talk at Beaconsfield Library, which he had visited as a child, and donated the income from the event to it. He also visited his former school to speak to the students. Pratchett often wore large black hats, in
4800-593: A year. His 2011 Discworld novel Snuff became the third-fastest-selling hardback adult-readership novel since records began in the UK, selling 55,000 copies in the first three days. As of 2023, Pratchett's works have sold more than 100 million copies in 43 languages. Pratchett married Lyn Purves at the Congregational Church, Gerrards Cross , on 5 October 1968. They moved to Rowberrow , Somerset, in 1970. Their daughter Rhianna Pratchett , also
4920-629: Is a mix of Morporkian (English), the Glaswegian dialect ("Crivens! Whut aboot us, ye daftie") and elements of Irish and Scottish Gaelic , for example Tir-far-thóinn and geas . The kelda in Wee Free Men states that "in our tongue you'd be Tir-far-thóinn" (an alternative name for Tír na nÓg ), suggesting that in private their speech may be closer to Irish or Scottish Gaelic. This is also hinted at in Wintersmith, where Nanny Ogg's Place
Nac Mac Feegle - Misplaced Pages Continue
5040-420: Is disassembled from an electric water boiler . A plastic still is a device for distillation specially adapted for separating ethanol and water . Plastic stills are common because they are cheap and easy to manufacture. The principle is that a smaller amount of liquid is placed in an open smaller vessel inside a larger one that is closed. A cheap 100 W immersion heater is typically used as heat source, but
5160-585: Is easier to bend the universe around the story." In the acceptance speech for his Carnegie Medal, he said: "Fantasy isn't just about wizards and silly wands. It's about seeing the world from new directions", pointing to the Harry Potter novels and The Lord of the Rings . In the same speech, he acknowledged benefits of these works for the genre. Moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor , traditionally made or distributed illegally . The name
5280-563: Is full of secrets ( hiddlins ) they are not expected to understand. They are warriors , hunters and foragers ; Nac Mac Feegle foraging consists of taking anything that is not nailed down (if it is nailed down, they will prise it loose and take the nails as well), up to and including quite large cows if enough foragers can be gathered to do the lifting. If one were to see a sheep rise off the ground six inches and move backward rapidly, four Feegles are sure to be responsible. As Nanny Ogg testifies: " Four; one under each hoof, I seen em do it. You see
5400-523: Is given as Tir Nani Ogg , exhibiting Goidelic-type head-initial compounding . They also use the Yan Tan Tethera in counting occasionally. In Carpe Jugulum , their speech is almost undecipherable and has to be translated by Nanny Ogg ; however, by the time they meet Tiffany Aching , they are somewhat more understandable to "bigjobs". In reality, since the books featuring the Nac Mac Feegle are targeted at young adults, "the simpler language of
5520-577: Is illegal. Popular offerings for the Maya deity and folk saint Maximón include money, tobacco, and moonshine. Moonshine is by tradition usually a clear, unaged whiskey, once made with barley mash in Scotland and Ireland or maize corn mash in the United States, though plain sugar became just as common in illicit liquor during the last century. The word originated in the British Isles as
5640-487: Is later revealed to be a Feegle (see above)) and Paul Kidby's illustration of Buggy Swires in The Art of Discworld is indistinguishable from the pictsies on the cover of The Wee Free Men . However, as yet no gnome has shown evidence of the Nac Mac Feegle's fairy abilities like the crawstep (the ability to cross into dreams and parallel dimensions), or of their bee-like social structure. Rincewind and Twoflower meet
5760-479: Is most anything the Nac Mac Feegle pick a fight with,) the clan will stack themselves up like a pyramid, until the top one is high enough to punch the enemy or, preferably, head-butt them. Once an enemy is brought to the ground, the entire clan will spring into action, attacking the foe as a single, united force. As stated in The Folklore of Discworld , " once they go down, it's all over bar the kicking ." Among
5880-461: Is red and skin that is heavily tattooed and covered with (blue) woad . Their tattoos identify their clan. They do not possess wings. According to Pratchett, "They speak a mixture of Gaelic, Old Scots, Glaswegian, and gibberish." They are strong and resilient. The males are rowdy and spend their time drinking, fighting, and stealing. They are also very superstitious. In The Art of Discworld , Pratchett identifies The Little Grey Men and Down
6000-468: Is risky to disassemble the immersion heater from an electric water boiler because it may cause electrical injury . The spiral burner is popular because, despite its simple construction and low manufacturing cost, it can provide 95% ABV . A pot still is a type of distillation apparatus or still used to distill flavored liquors such as whisky or cognac , but not rectified spirit because they are poor at separating congeners . Pot stills operate on
6120-496: Is that they're a cross between Smurfs and soccer hooligans". Stephen Briggs ' audiobook rendering of the Nac Mac Feegle has been cited as a strong point of his work. Terry Pratchett Sir Terence David John Pratchett OBE (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English author , humorist , and satirist , best known for the Discworld series of 41 comic fantasy novels published between 1983 and 2015, and for
SECTION 50
#17327917818036240-410: Is used during and after the fermentation process to determine the potential alcohol percentage of the moonshine, whereas an alcoholmeter is used after the product has been distilled to determine the volume percent or proof. A common folk test for the quality of moonshine was to pour a small quantity of it into a spoon and set it on fire. The theory was that a safe distillate burns with a blue flame, but
6360-519: The Daily Mail in which he denied that he had found God, and clarified that he believed the voice had come from a memory of his father and a sense of personal elation. In August 2007, Pratchett was misdiagnosed as having had a minor stroke a few years before, which doctors believed had damaged the right side of his brain. In December 2007, he announced that he had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease , which had been responsible for
6480-529: The Bookseller's Pocket Yearbook (2005), in 2003 Pratchett's UK sales amounted to 3.4% of the fiction market by hardback sales and 3.8% by value, putting him in second place behind J. K. Rowling (6% and 5.6%, respectively), while in the paperback sales list Pratchett came 5th with 1.2% and 1.3% by value (behind James Patterson (1.9% and 1.7%), Alexander McCall Smith , John Grisham and J. R. R. Tolkien ). He has UK sales of more than 2.5 million copies
6600-622: The University of South Australia . The Sir Terry Pratchett Memorial Scholarship supports a Masters scholarship at the university's Hawke Research Institute. In 2023, several stories published in a regional newspaper in the 1970s and 1980s under the pen name Patrick Kearns were discovered to have been authored by Pratchett. They were published as A Stroke of the Pen: The Lost Stories in October 2023. Pratchett received
6720-501: The University of Warwick in 1999, the University of Portsmouth in 2001, the University of Bath in 2003, the University of Bristol in 2004, Buckinghamshire New University in 2008, the University of Dublin in 2008, Bradford University in 2009, University of Winchester in 2009, The Open University in 2013 for his contribution to Public Service and his last, from the University of South Australia , in May 2014. Pratchett
6840-519: The afterlife , and that any Feegle who is killed has simply been reincarnated into the world where they have already lived before. They reason that Discworld, with the sunshine, flowers, birds, trees, things to steal and people to fight, must be some sort of heaven, because "a world that good couldn't be open to just anybody". They consider it a kind of Valhalla , where brave warriors go when they are dead. So, they reason, they have already been alive somewhere else, and then died and were allowed to come to
6960-555: The apocalyptic comedy novel Good Omens (1990), which he co-wrote with Neil Gaiman . Pratchett's first novel, The Carpet People , was published in 1971. The first Discworld novel, The Colour of Magic , was published in 1983, after which Pratchett wrote an average of two books a year. The final Discworld novel, The Shepherd's Crown , was published in August 2015, five months after his death. With more than 100 million books sold worldwide in 43 languages, Pratchett
7080-469: The right to die public debate and his Humanist values. Pratchett's Discworld novels have led to dedicated conventions, the first in Manchester in 1996, then worldwide, often with the author as guest of honour. Publication of a new novel was sometimes accompanied by an international book signing tour; queues were known to stretch outside the bookshop as the author continued to sign books well after
7200-661: The "Top 200". Pratchett's highest-ranking novel was Mort , number 65, but he and Charles Dickens were the only authors with five in the Top 100 (four of his were from the Discworld series). He also led all authors with fifteen novels in the Top 200. An asteroid ( 127005 Pratchett ) is named after Pratchett. In 2013, Pratchett was named Humanist of the Year by the British Humanist Association for his campaign to fund research into Alzheimers, his contribution to
7320-860: The "aftershot," and are also typically discarded. Alcohol concentrations at higher strengths (the GHS identifies concentrations above 24% ABV as dangerous ) are flammable and therefore dangerous to handle. This is especially true during the distilling process, when vaporized alcohol may accumulate in the air to dangerous concentrations if adequate ventilation is not provided. Contaminated moonshine can occur if proper materials and techniques are not used. The prolonged consumption of impure moonshine may cause renal disease , primarily from increased lead content. Analysis of Georgia moonshine samples revealed potentially toxic levels of copper, zinc, lead, and arsenic. A review of twelve arsenic poisoning cases found contaminated moonshine responsible for about half, suggesting it may be
SECTION 60
#17327917818037440-456: The "foreshot" – the first 50–150 millilitres (1.8–5.3 imp fl oz; 1.7–5.1 US fl oz) of alcohol that drip from the condenser. Because methanol vaporizes at a lower temperature than ethanol, it is commonly believed that the foreshot contains most of the methanol, if any, from the mash. However, research shows that methanol is present until the very end of the distillation run. Despite this, distillers will usually collect
7560-432: The "stroke". He had a rare form of posterior cortical atrophy (PCA), a disease in which areas at the back of the brain begin to shrink and shrivel. Describing the diagnosis as an "embuggerance" in a radio interview, Pratchett appealed to people to "keep things cheerful" and proclaimed that "we are taking it fairly philosophically down here and possibly with a mild optimism". He stated he felt he had time for "at least
7680-506: The 2001 Carnegie Medal from the British librarians , which recognised The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents as the year's best children's book published in the UK. Night Watch won the 2003 Prometheus Award for best libertarian novel. Four of the five Discworld novels that centre on the trainee witch Tiffany Aching won the annual Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book in 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2016. In 2005, Going Postal
7800-669: The Arms", "the Pursin' o' the Lips", and the "Tappin' o' the Feets", followed by "the Explainin". One witch nearly panics them when she harangues them in their own dialect, which they called "the knowin' o' the speakin". The fearlessness of Nac Mac Feegle warriors in combat is derived from their religious belief that they cannot be killed, because they are already dead; they believe that they are in
7920-537: The Bright Stream , both by "BB", the nom-de-plume of Denys Watkins-Pitchford , as possible inspiration, featuring fairies that could talk to creatures, but "there was nothing tinkly about them; they lived in a world of dangers". The Guardian notes that "The Nac Mac Feegle embody the stereotypical Scotsman to great comic effect". The Nac Mac Feegle are often confused with pixies , because they refer to themselves as Pictsies . According to their own history,
8040-590: The Discworld Conventions have adopted Orangutan Foundation as their nominated charity, which has been acknowledged by the foundation. One of Pratchett's most popular fictional characters, the Librarian , is a wizard who was transformed into an orangutan in a magical accident and decides to remain in that condition as it is so convenient for his work. Pratchett, who was brought up in a Church of England family, described himself as an atheist and
8160-447: The Discworld because they have been so good. Thus, they do not mourn the loss of Mac Feegles who have died in battle on the Discworld, according to The Wee Free Men : "Oh, they've gone back to the land o' the livin'. It's nae as good as this one, but they'll bide fine and come back before too long. No sense in grievin'." Indeed, any grieving a Feegle might do over fallen family members is never about their actual death, but rather over
8280-678: The High Wycombe Technical School's magazine in 1962. It is the tale of a man named Crucible who finds the Devil in his flat in a cloud of sulphurous smoke. "The Hades Business" was published in the school magazine when he was 13, and published commercially when he was 15. Pratchett earned five O-levels and started A-level courses in Art, English and History. His initial career choice was journalism and he left school at 17, in 1965, to start an apprenticeship with Arthur Church,
8400-582: The Nac Mac Feegle rebelled against the wicked rule of the (or possibly "a") Queen of the Fairies, and were therefore exiled from Fairyland . According to everyone else (including the Nac Mac Feegle themselves if they forget this story), they were kicked out for causing fights and being drunk at two in the afternoon. The Nac Mac Feegle have an innate ability to cross dimensions, which they call "the crawstep". There appears to be no limit on what worlds they can cross into like this, including worlds that exist only in
8520-460: The Nac Mac Feegle, the Disc is home to a range of small creatures called gnomes . Ranging in size from six inches to two feet, they are, Pratchett says, more or less interchangeable with the Feegles. A gnome is a pictsie living underground, while a pictsie is a gnome fighting. Despite this, there remains some ambiguity as to whether the more general gnomes, such as Buggy Swires , should be considered of
8640-575: The Nac Mac Feegle. One, similar to the legend of Wayland's Smithy , says that if you leave sixpence and an unshod horse at a certain Feegle cairn overnight, then in the morning the coin will be gone, and you will never see your horse again either. Another says that if you leave a saucer of milk out for the pictsies, they will break into your house and take everything in the drinks cabinet. Despite their usual policy of non-contact with bigjobs (humans), Feegles have been known to hire out their services. One of
8760-526: The Origin of Species , which "all made perfect sense ... Evolution was far more thrilling to me than the biblical account." He said that he had never disliked religion and thought it had a purpose in human evolution . In an interview Pratchett cites a quotation from the protagonist in his novel Nation , "It is better to build a seismograph than to worship the volcano", a statement Pratchett said he agreed with. Pratchett told The Times in 2008: "I believe in
8880-493: The UK, and asked for an increase in dementia research funding. Pratchett tested a prototype device to address his condition. The ability of the device to alter the course of the illness has been met with skepticism from Alzheimer's researchers. In an article published in 2009 Pratchett stated that he wished to die by assisted suicide (a term he disliked) before his disease progressed to a critical point. He later said that he felt "it should be possible for someone stricken with
9000-514: The amendment was repealed in 1933, laws focus on evasion of taxation on any type of spirits or intoxicating liquors. Applicable laws were historically enforced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives of the US Department of Justice , but are now usually handled by state agencies. Enforcement agents were once known colloquially as "revenuers". The earliest known instance of
9120-445: The biennial International Discworld Convention , citing his condition and "other age-related ailments". Pratchett died at his home from complications of Alzheimer's disease on the morning of 12 March 2015. He was 66 years old. The Telegraph reported an unidentified source as saying that, despite his previous discussion of assisted suicide, his death had been natural. After Pratchett's death, his assistant, Rob Wilkins, wrote from
9240-660: The books are the Long Lake Clan, who settled in Lancre in Carpe Jugulum (but were not named until A Hat Full of Sky ) and the Chalk Hill Clan who feature in the Tiffany Aching books. The Chalk Hill Clan had, until the arrival of their new kelda Jeannie from Long Lake, a superstition that anything written down could be used against you in a court of law, and each of them carried swords that glowed blue in
9360-430: The bottle contains water from the cauldrons of Nac Mac Feegle keldas since before history. By mixing a little of the water into her own cauldron, and drinking the result, the kelda can connect with the memories of those who have gone before her—and, more mysteriously, with those who are yet to come. (Compare with Reverend Mothers from Dune universe .) The males of the clan do not question this, accepting that keldaring
9480-498: The buzzards, Morag, owned by Officer Buggy Swires of the Ankh Morpork City Watch was trained by the Feegles, for the price of several crates of strong liquor . Among very few other things, they have the rare ability to scare Nanny Ogg 's cat Greebo. Nac Mac Feegles possess a eusocial culture similar to bees, termites and other social insects. The clan is made up of hundreds of brothers, and one mother, called
9600-498: The component parts have boiling points that differ by less than 25 °C (45 °F) from each other under a pressure of one atmosphere . A column still, also called a continuous still, patent still or Coffey still, is a variety of still consisting of two columns. A column still can achieve a vapor alcohol content of 95% ABV . A spiral still is a type of column still with a simple slow air-cooled distillation apparatus, commonly used for bootlegging. Column and cooler consist of
9720-468: The construction of the still . Stills employing automotive radiators as condensers are particularly dangerous; in some cases, glycol produced from antifreeze can be a problem. The head that comes immediately after the foreshot (the initial product of the still) typically contains small amounts of other undesirable compounds, such as acetone and various aldehydes . Fusel alcohols are other undesirable byproducts of fermentation that are contained in
9840-451: The development of at least one popular fan-made mod. Pratchett had a fascination with natural history that he referred to many times, and he owned a greenhouse full of carnivorous plants . He described them in the biographical notes on the dust jackets of some of his books, and elsewhere, as "not as interesting as people think". By Carpe Jugulum the account had become that "he used to grow carnivorous plants, but now they've taken over
9960-803: The editor of the Bucks Free Press . In this position he wrote, among other things, more than 80 stories for the Children's Circle section under the name Uncle Jim. Two of the stories contain characters found in his novel The Carpet People (1971). While on day release from his apprenticeship, Pratchett finished his A-Level in English and took the National Council for the Training of Journalists proficiency course. In 1968 Pratchett interviewed Peter Bander van Duren , co-director of
10080-400: The fact that he did not get to spend more time with them before they rejoined the land of the living. Despite carrying swords that are nearly as large as they themselves (which is not outlandish, given the already-documented history of Mac Feegle feats of strength), their preferred weapons are the boot and the head; this results in most Feegles' noses being broken. The Nac Mac Feegle language
10200-406: The fantasy genre, the Discworld novels expose the hypocrisies of contemporary society in an intricate, ever-expanding universe. With satisfyingly multilayered plots, Pratchett's humor honors the intelligence of the reader. Teens eagerly lose themselves in a universe with no maps." In 2003, BBC conducted The Big Read to identify the "Nation's Best-loved Novel" and finally published a ranked list of
10320-490: The foreshots until the temperature of the still reaches 80 °C (176 °F). Outbreaks of methanol poisoning have occurred from methanol accidentally produced in moonshine production or deliberately used to strengthen it. In modern times, reducing methanol with the absorption of a molecular sieve is a practical method for production. The Lucas test in alcohols is a test to differentiate between primary, secondary, and tertiary alcohols . It can be used to detect
10440-498: The formation of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing ( NASCAR ). Several former "runners," such as Junior Johnson , became noted drivers in the sport. Some varieties of maize corn grown in the United States were once prized for their use in moonshine production. One such variety used in moonshine, Jimmy Red corn, a "blood-red, flint-hard 'dent' corn with a rich and oily germ," almost became extinct when
10560-541: The greenhouse and he avoids going in". In 1995, a fossil of a sea-turtle from the Eocene epoch of New Zealand was named Psephophorus terrypratchetti in his honour by the palaeontologist Richard Köhler. In 2016, Pratchett fans unsuccessfully petitioned the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) to name chemical element 117, temporarily called ununseptium , as octarine with
10680-533: The intended finishing time. His fans were not restricted by age or gender, and he received a large amount of fan mail from them. Pratchett enjoyed meeting fans and hearing what they think about his books, saying that since he was well paid for his novels, his fans were "everything" to him. In March 2017, Beaconsfield Town Council commissioned a commemorative plaque dedicated to Pratchett for Beaconsfield Library. Pratchett said that to write, you must read extensively, both inside and outside your chosen genre and to
10800-428: The kelda is to do the thinking. The Big Man is responsible for commanding his fellow Feegles and trying to maintain some semblance of order, but in truth the kelda decides what will be done and the Big Man works out the fine (for a Feegle's plans) details—although no Big Man shown so far would go on a serious expedition and not bring along the clan gonnagle, (who tend to be much brighter than the other male Feegles and have
10920-428: The kidneys and joints. The incidence of impure moonshine has been documented to significantly increase the risk of renal disease among those who regularly consume it, primarily from increased lead content. Contamination is still possible by unscrupulous distillers using cheap methanol to increase the apparent strength of the product. Moonshine can be made both more palatable and perhaps less dangerous by discarding
11040-520: The label. In Prohibition-era United States, moonshine distillation was done at night to deter discovery. While moonshiners were present in urban and rural areas around the United States after the Civil War , moonshine production concentrated in Appalachia because the limited road network made it easy to evade revenue officers and because it was difficult and expensive to transport corn crops. As
11160-406: The last grower died in 2000. Two ears of Jimmy Red were passed on to "seed saver" Ted Chewning, who saved the variety from extinction and began to produce it on a wider scale. There have been modern-day attempts on the state level to legalize home distillation of alcohol, similar to how some states have been treating cannabis , despite there being federal laws prohibiting the practice. For example,
11280-437: The levels of fusel alcohols . A quick estimate of the alcoholic strength, or proof, of the distillate (the ratio of alcohol to water) is often achieved by shaking a clear container of the distillate. Large bubbles with a short duration indicate a higher alcohol content, while smaller bubbles that disappear more slowly indicate lower alcohol content. A more reliable method is to use an alcoholmeter or hydrometer . A hydrometer
11400-463: The liquor was distilled, drivers called "runners" or "bootleggers" smuggled moonshine liquor across the region in cars specially modified for speed and load-carrying capacity. The cars were ordinary on the outside but modified with souped-up engines, extra interior room, and heavy-duty shock absorbers to support the weight of the illicit alcohol. After Prohibition ended, the out-of-work drivers kept their skills sharp through organized races, which led to
11520-442: The mousepipes so sadly that it will start to rain outside. A gonnagle tends to be somewhat more intelligent and level-headed than most other male Feegles, and often acts as an advisor to the Big Man. Some of them travel from clan to clan, making sure the old songs and stories are still remembered and sharing the new ones. Despite their criminal tendencies, the Nac Mac Feegle do possess a sense of honour. They see no sport in fighting
11640-542: The name applejack derives from the traditional method of producing the drink, jacking , the process of freezing fermented cider and then removing the ice, increasing the alcohol content. Starting with the fermented juice, with an alcohol content of less than ten percent, the concentrated result can contain 25–40% alcohol by volume (ABV). In some countries, moonshine stills are illegal to sell, import, and own without permission. However, enthusiasts explain on internet forums how to obtain equipment and assemble it into
11760-525: The official Terry Pratchett Twitter account: A T LAST, S IR T ERRY, WE MUST WALK TOGETHER. Terry took Death's arm and followed him through the doors and on to the black desert under the endless night. The End. Public figures who paid tribute included the British prime minister David Cameron , the comedian Ricky Gervais , and the authors Ursula K. Le Guin , Terry Brooks , Margaret Atwood , George R. R. Martin , and Neil Gaiman . Pratchett
11880-437: The point of "overflow". He advised that writing is hard work, and that writers must "make grammar, punctuation and spelling a part of your life". However, Pratchett enjoyed writing, regarding its monetary rewards as "an unavoidable consequence" rather than the reason for writing. Although during his early career he wrote for the science fiction and horror genres, Pratchett later focused almost entirely on fantasy, and said: "It
12000-493: The presence of lawyers . The Long Lake Clan have similar superstitions about writing and lawyers, but believe it's possible to beat them at their own game and are famed for their "verra com-plic-at-ed documents". Nac Mac Feegle clans tend to occupy ancient burial mounds . They avoid humans if at all possible, as they are worried this might lead to folklorists and archaeologists invading their privacy and writing things down. Since they can move approximately ten times faster than
12120-513: The proposed symbol Oc (pronounced "ook"). The final name chosen for element 117 was tennessine with the symbol Ts. Pratchett was a trustee for the Orangutan Foundation but was pessimistic about the future of orangutans . His activities included visiting Borneo with a Channel 4 film crew to make an episode of Jungle Quest in 1995, seeing orangutans in their natural habitat. Following Pratchett's lead, fan events such as
12240-540: The same God that Einstein did ... And it is just possible that once you have got past all the gods that we have created with big beards and many human traits, just beyond all that on the other side of physics, there just may be the ordered structure from which everything flows." In an interview on Front Row he described an experience of hearing his dead father's voice and feeling a sense of peace. Commentators took these statements to mean that Pratchett had become religious, but Pratchett responded in an article published in
12360-522: The same race. Gnomes and the Nac Mac Feegle share a lot of the same characteristics, such as immense strength, bellicose personality and the use of tamed birds as lookouts. However, they are also described by Wee Mad Arthur as "making and repairing shoes for hundreds of years" similar to several children's stories. In the Discworld Companion , Pratchett describes Wee Mad Arthur, an Ankh Morpork gnome, as an urbanised Nac Mac Feegle, (however, he
12480-404: The same terms as peer-reviewed research, with no easy way to gauge reliability. Gates disagreed, saying that online authorities would index and check facts and sources in a much more sophisticated way than in print. The interview was rediscovered in 2019, and seen by Pratchett's biographer as prescient of fake news . Pratchett was an avid video game player, and collaborated in the creation of
12600-406: The sons of the previous kelda) or her sons. Daughters are very rare and, on coming of age, leave to become kelda of another tribe, taking some brothers, probably including a gonnagle (see below) with her. Young keldas are slim, but older keldas are virtually spherical. They also enjoy the odd nip of Special Sheep Liniment (which on no account should ever be given to sheep). Essentially, the role of
12720-444: The starting liquid and can be distilled several times if stronger distillate is desired. The method is slow, and is not suitable for large-scale production. Fractional distillation is the separation of a mixture into its component parts, or fractions . Chemical compounds are separated by heating them to a temperature at which one or more fractions of the mixture will vaporize . It uses distillation to fractionate . Generally
12840-595: The term "moonshine" being used to refer to illicit alcohol dates to the 1785 edition of Grose's Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue , which was published in England. Prior to that, "moonshine" referred to anything "illusory" or to literally the light of the moon. The U.S. Government considers the word a "fanciful term" and does not regulate its use on the labels of commercial products, as such, legal moonshines may be any type of spirit, which must be indicated elsewhere on
12960-434: The warriors of each clan is a gonnagle; a bard or war - poet , whose job is to create terrible poetry that is recited during battles to demoralise the enemy, (see William McGonagall .) A well-trained gonnagle can even make the enemy's ears explode and is equipped with " mousepipes " ( bagpipes made from mouseskin, often with the ears still attached.) In A Hat Full of Sky , the gonnagle, Awf'lly Wee Billy Bigchin, can play
13080-481: The wattage. Also, sous vide sticks, commonly sold in 1200 W and generally temperature regulated up to 90 °C (194 °F) (ethanol boils at 78 °C (172 °F)), will evaporate the ethanol faster than an immersion heater , commonly sold in 300 W. Electrical injury may occur if immersion heaters are modified, as if a 35 °C (95 °F) thermostat is removed from an aquarium heater (because doing so may break its waterproofing ), or if an immersion heater
13200-510: The weak. They may take one cow from a man with a herd of fifty; however, they will not steal an old woman's only pig, or an old man's only pair of false teeth. They claim it was a difference of opinion over when to stop stealing that led to their exile by the Queen of the Fairies . As a rule, the Nac Mac Feegle will never steal from the truly poor. The Nac Mac Feegle clans that have appeared in
13320-533: Was a ZX81 ; the first computer he used properly for writing was an Amstrad CPC 464 , later replaced by an IBM PC compatible . Pratchett was one of the first authors to routinely use the Internet to communicate with fans, and was a contributor to the Usenet newsgroup alt.fan.pratchett from 1992. However, he did not consider the Internet a hobby, just another "thing to use". He had many computers in his house, with
13440-459: Was announced that Pratchett would be knighted (as a Knight Bachelor ) in the Queen's 2009 New Year Honours. Afterwards he said, "You can't ask a fantasy writer not to want a knighthood. You know, for two pins I'd get myself a horse and a sword." In 2010, Pratchett created his own sword from deposits of iron he had found in a field near his home as he believed a knight should have a sword. Ten honorary doctorates were conferred on Pratchett: from
13560-668: Was derived from a tradition of distilling the alcohol at night to avoid detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial distilleries have adopted the term for its outlaw cachet and have begun producing their own legal "moonshine", including many novelty flavored varieties, that are said to continue the tradition by using a similar method and/or locale of production. In 2013, moonshine accounted for about one-third of global alcohol consumption. Different languages and countries have their own terms for moonshine (see Moonshine by country ). The ethanol may be concentrated in fermented beverages by means of freezing. For example,
13680-467: Was donating $ 1 million (about £494,000) to the Alzheimer's Research Trust (later called Alzheimer's Research UK), and that he was shocked "to find out that funding for Alzheimer's research is just 3% of that to find cancer cures". He said: "I am, along with many others, scrabbling to stay ahead long enough to be there when the cure comes along." In April 2008, Pratchett worked with the BBC to make
13800-668: Was introduced with the Revenue Act of 1861 and Revenue Act of 1862 that heavily taxed the production of spirits leading to an increase in illegal distilling and in turn, increased action from revenue agents that enforced the taxes. Illegal distilling accelerated during the Prohibition era (1920–1933), which mandated a total ban on alcohol production under the Eighteenth Amendment of the Constitution . Since
13920-650: Was made an adjunct Professor in the School of English at Trinity College Dublin in 2010, with a role in postgraduate education in creative writing and popular literature. Pratchett won the British Book Awards ' "Fantasy and Science Fiction Author of the Year" category in 1994, the British Science Fiction Award in 1989 for his novel Pyramids , and a Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel in 2008 for Making Money . He won
14040-524: Was memorialised in graffiti in East London. The video game companies Frontier Developments and Valve added elements to their games named after him. Users of the social news site Reddit organised a tribute by which an HTTP header , " X-Clacks-Overhead: GNU Terry Pratchett ", was added to web sites' responses, a reference to the Discworld novel Going Postal , in which "the clacks" (a semaphore system, used as Discworld 's equivalent to
14160-569: Was shortlisted for the Hugo Award for Best Novel ; however, Pratchett recused himself, stating that stress over the award would mar his enjoyment of Worldcon . In the same year, A Hat Full of Sky won a Mythopoeic Award . In 2008, Making Money was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel . I Shall Wear Midnight won the 2010 Andre Norton Award , presented by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) as
14280-539: Was the UK's best-selling author of the 1990s. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1998 and was knighted for services to literature in the 2009 New Year Honours . In 2001, he won the annual Carnegie Medal for The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents , the first Discworld book marketed for children. He received the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement in 2010. In December 2007 Pratchett announced that he had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease . He later made
14400-505: Was the UK's bestselling author of the 1990s. According to The Times , Pratchett was the top-selling and highest earning UK author in 1996. Some of his books have been published by Doubleday , another Transworld imprint. In the United States, where his books are published by HarperCollins , Pratchett had poorer sales, marketing and distribution until 2005, when Thud! reached the New York Times bestseller list. According to
#802197