Excitations in the Cognitive Field

[The Nameless One]

Kaladin's mother talks of everything in the world having a spren. However, there is a quote during one of the bridge assaults that challenges the idea of everything having a spren. Before the side bridge assault, Kaladin thinks that the reason that there are no fearspren around Bridge Four is that all the fearspren are around the other crews.

I purpose that both speakers are correct. All things have a cognitive aspect. However, spren, which manifest in the physical realm, are excitations in the cognitive field. Much like electrons are excitations in the electric field, or Higgs Bosons in the Higgs field. This is also the reason why spren of the same type are virtually identical, just like quantum particles.

This excitation is caused by the perception of individuals. It is enabled by the powers of Honor and Cultivation. This is why there is a limit to the amount of spren in an area; there is a limited amount of shardic power.

In the case of Kaladin and Syl, Kaladin's honorable actions increased the "quantum charge" of Syl. Kaladin can draw upon this increased charge for his surgebinding.

To sum up, spren are created/summoned when a strong cognitive aspect excites or taps into a cognitive ideal. The combined powers of Honor and Cultivation then allow the excitation to manifest in the physical realm. The exact ideal, amount of Cultivation, amount of Honor, etc determine the type of spren, similar to how mass, strong and weak nuclear forces, and charge determine the type of quantum particle.

Thoughts?

[blackmagic3]

Shallan's soulcasting incident is suggestive of everything on Rohshar having a spren, but I would guess that most of the spren that are seen in the WoK are the cognitive responses in the physical realm to physical changes and soulcasting is changing the spren's perception in the cognitive realm to effect a physical change.

[Shardbearer]

Doesn't Kaladin's mom tell him that spren are the nature of change?

[The Nameless One]

Shallan's soulcasting incident is suggestive of everything on Rohshar having a spren, but I would guess that most of the spren that are seen in the WoK are the cognitive responses in the physical realm to physical changes and soulcasting is changing the spren's perception in the cognitive realm to effect a physical change.

I would say that Shallan only thinks of the goblet as having a spren because she is inexperienced with soul casting.

Doesn't Kaladin's mom tell him that spren are the nature of change?

I would say that spren are not necessarily a change in the cognitive realm, but rather an increase.

From the Side Carry Chapter:

To their credit, there weren't any fearspren either - not that they didn't feel fear, they just weren't as panicked as the other bridge crews, so the fear spren went there instead.

Obviously, if everything, including fear had an actual spren, there would be fearspren in both places. Thus, when people refer to everything having a spren , it is really cognitive aspects that they are describing.

In the above quote, all of the bridge crews experience fear. The cognitive aspect of fear is increased. However, the powers of Honor/Cultivation are attracted to the largest excitation, allowing it to manifest in the cognitive realm.

[Meg]

Kaladin's mother talks of everything in the world having a spren. However, there is a quote during one of the bridge assaults that challenges the idea of everything having a spren. Before the side bridge assault, Kaladin thinks that the reason that there are no fearspren around Bridge Four is that all the fearspren are around the other crews.

I purpose that both speakers are correct. All things have a cognitive aspect. However, spren, which manifest in the physical realm, are excitations in the cognitive field. Much like electrons are excitations in the electric field, or Higgs Bosons in the Higgs field. This is also the reason why spren of the same type are virtually identical, just like quantum particles.

This excitation is caused by the perception of individuals. It is enabled by the powers of Honor and Cultivation. This is why there is a limit to the amount of spren in an area; there is a limited amount of shardic power.

In the case of Kaladin and Syl, Kaladin's honorable actions increased the "quantum charge" of Syl. Kaladin can draw upon this increased charge for his surgebinding.

To sum up, spren are created/summoned when a strong cognitive aspect excites or taps into a cognitive ideal. The combined powers of Honor and Cultivation then allow the excitation to manifest in the physical realm. The exact ideal, amount of Cultivation, amount of Honor, etc determine the type of spren, similar to how mass, strong and weak nuclear forces, and charge determine the type of quantum particle.

Thoughts?

 

 

Do spren "manifest" in the Psychical Realm? 

 

Q: Could Syl, or any other type of Spren, be seen in a photograph?

 

A: Excellent question, and I like the way you phrase it. Let's give this one a little more time before I get into the specifics of whether spren are manifesting physically or not.

 

AMA Reddit 15.04.13

 

I dare claim that there is no newer statement from BS about that question. 

 

Furthermore I think that spren =|= spren. 

 

There are spren that seem attracted by emotions (fearspren, luckspren, painspren), by physical conditions of people ("alespren", rotspren, deathspren, exhaustionspren), by different weather conditions (rainspren, windspren) or by other circumstances (fire -> flamespren). 

 

 

Btw. here's the complete quote about Kaladin's mother and spren:

 

 

“Mother, look at this,” Tien said. Late-afternoon sunlight streamed through the leeside window, bathing the table. “From this side, the rock sparkles red, but from the other side, it’s green.”

“Perhaps it’s magical,” Hesina said. Chunk after chunk of longroot plunked into the water, each splash with a slightly different note.

“I think it must be,” Tien said. “Or it has a spren. Do spren live in rocks?”

“Spren live in everything,” Hesina replied.

“They can’t live in everything,” Kal said, dropping a peel into the pail at his feet. He glanced out the window, watching the road that led from the town to the citylord’s mansion.

“They do,” Hesina said. “Spren appear when something changes—when fear appears, or when it begins to rain. They are the heart of change, and therefore the heart of all things.”

“This longroot,” Kal said, holding it up skeptically.

“Has a spren.”

“And if you slice it up?”

“Each bit has a spren. Only smaller.”

Kal frowned, looking over the long tuber. They grew in cracks in the stone where water collected. They tasted faintly of minerals, but were easy to grow. His family needed food that didn’t cost much, these days.

“So we eat spren,” Kal said flatly.

“No,” she said, “we eat the roots.”

“When we have to,” Tien added with a grimace.

“And the spren?” Kal pressed.

“They are freed. To return to wherever it is that spren live.”

“Do I have a spren?” Tien said, looking down at his chest.

“You have a soul, dear. You’re a person. But the pieces of your body may very well have spren living in them. Very small ones.”

TWoK Chapter 37

 

 

I've emphasized what might be the most important parts though the full quote might be helpful.

 

 

In the above quote, all of the bridge crews experience fear. The cognitive aspect of fear is increased. However, the powers of Honor/Cultivation are attracted to the largest excitation, allowing it to manifest in the cognitive realm.

 

Manifest in the Cognitive Realm? Now I'm confused. 

 

I think your idea only works for those kinds of spren that are not generally around. When Kaladin's mother said that there are spren in everything, I think she meant those which are generally around, not those that become visible by chance like fearspren that seem to appear where they find the greatest amount of fear (as you said). 

 

 

 

Kaladin frowned at the spirit. Spren were all around; you just ignored them most of the time.

TWoK Chapter 2 

 

 

That might support my idea that spren =|= spren. Also I'm sure -- but I'm unable to find it at the moment -- that there was a statement from BS, that there are different spren, some more of honor and some more of cultivation (heavily paraphrased). 

 

I hope this is understandable.

[Leuthie]

Rock can see Syl.

Spren are Cognitive entities. They can be seen because our minds are a required element in decoding what comes through our Physical eyes. Often times our minds get it wrong; especially if some other info is thrown in from elsewhere.

Remember that Shallan can't see her Cryptic Spren...but she does draw them...and without even intending to. Her eyes don't receive any Spren info, but the part of her mind that draws stuff does.

[The Nameless One]

Rock can see Syl.

Spren are Cognitive entities. They can be seen because our minds are a required element in decoding what comes through our Physical eyes. Often times our minds get it wrong; especially if some other info is thrown in from elsewhere.

Remember that Shallan can't see her Cryptic Spren...but she does draw them...and without even intending to. Her eyes don't receive any Spren info, but the part of her mind that draws stuff does.

I think you're right, which pretty much deconstructs my idea. Here, have some rep. Edited June 5, 2013 by The Nameless One

[Phantom Monstrosity]

Brandon has said there are multiple kinds of spren, so really no single theory should encompass all of them.

http://www.reddit.com/r/Stormlight_Archive/comments/1bflq6/dreamworks_has_acquired_the_film_rights_for_the/

Well, it depends on how you're defining spren. In the books, they don't make a distinction, but there are several varieties. At the basic level, everything has an identity--a soul, you might say, but more than that. This is based on how it is viewed, and how long it has been viewed that way. Feces would have this, but wouldn't have a very strong cognitive identity because of its transitional nature.

Other types of spren, the type that characters see and interact with, are cognitive ideals or concepts which have taken on literal personification over time. These are usually related to forces or emotions, and don't relate to this particular topic.

And that's far more than I ever expected to say on this...

Edited June 5, 2013 by Phantom Monstrosity