[Angry Hill Troll]

I find Aule the most interesting of the Valar, and his children the most interesting as well...but then, I'm a physicist...

Hail and well met, Dain, fellow Aulendil. I am a physicist also, at least by education, although I have gone off in some slightly different directions since then.
I should explain my login name--it's the answer I got from the BD "Who were you in Middle-Earth page?" And it wasn't taken already! [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

Interesting comments from the Duck-Billed One also. I am struck by the similarity between Aulë's personality and Melkor's (at least in the very beginning of the story).

The description of Melkor wandering into the void:

for desire grew hot within him to bring into Being things of his own.

and of Aulë making the dwarves:

so greatly did Aulë desire the coming of the Children, to have learners to whom he could teach his lore and his crafts, that he was unwilling to await the fulfillment of the designs of Iluvatar.

Of course Aulë eventually makes up with Iluvatar, whilst Melkor becomes resentful and eventually evil.

Tolkien strikes me as taking the view that people driven to create things and/or enamored of technology seem to be likely to get into trouble. Given my choice of study in school, this is (obviously) a view I personally am somewhat in disagreement with.

To be fair to the dwarves, though, they don't seem to be more prone to turning evil than other races, certainly not humans (compare the Seven dwarf-lords to the Nine Nazgul).