Stormlight - Chemistry, Physics, or Simply Magic?

[Eternal Khol]

9 hours ago, Dawnbearer said:

This still doesn't explain why, for example, Szeth's clothing frosts over when he uses Stormlight. Honestly this sort of looks like Sanderson might need to review his facts...

Let me think

Shardblades form water droplets because the apparent chill condenses water vapor. This chill (I think) could either come from investiture (innate investiture??) or from the spren. Either way it probably has something to do with the spren bond, which I honestly am yet to read much about. But the fact that both the blade and the droplets remain solid and liquid rather than returning to a gas indicates that something is maintaining the chill AND/OR something is buffing the pressure. My guess, again, is spren or investiture (since we decided investiture is a third essence like matter or energy, and I wouldn't be surprised if spren somehow had control over phases.)

But...Adhesion??? I've only read WoK, but I don't remember if frost forms when Kaladin uses Windrunner Surgebinding, so if not then maybe the frost has to do with the Honorblade being the source of Szeth's Windrunner abilities...

Okay, I was just looking at the Arcanum and this was all I got:

Questioner

When Szeth Surgebinds, frost forms on his clothing. Why?

Brandon Sanderson

Ehhh, I’ll get around to talking about that eventually.

Figment chat (Jan. 19, 2015)

And I found this in a forum here:

"Brandon has RAFO'd the question, saying he'll get around to it eventually. It's possible that it involves the unusual thermodynamic properties of Investiture, where there's a fourth law that Brandon doesn't want to talk about yet. We know for example that there are reactions in allomancy where energy that should be present goes 'somewhere' and it's going to play a role in future books. Something similar could be at work and it's seen around Windrunners because of the nature of their powers. I only remember seeing it around Kaladin (and later the Lopen) when he swears a new ideal and it's affecting Szeth during normal surgebinding for... some reason. I can't remember, does it not happen at all in WoR? Because if it does happen in both books, it's probably related somehow to the 'dangerous amounts of stormlight' thing and the relatively shallow bond the Honorblades have."

The part I highlighted in green reminds me of the inexplicable lack of heat that should have been emitted from the deposition, so either Brandon needs to refresh his knowledge of phase changing or he is being remarkably clever in implementing this disappearing of energy. Also Brandon not wanting to talk about Szeth's frost yet might have to do with the unknown fourth law of 'Investodynamics'.

Okay (I'm totally improvising this response, so it's all over the place), so now I'm thinking that this probably has to do with Investiture, considering that we don't fully understand it yet.

My house is too noisy to think up a solid conclusion...I'll come back later to see if anyone can help me straiten things out or point out if I missed anything.

 

P.S. I just found confirmation that investiture is a third essence in the universe

It works. but not the Shardblade part.

 

when gases go from high density to low density they get cold.

an example would be a Co2 Cartridge that gets cold and frosty as it is being drained.

when someone uses a lashing on something, the stormlight in them is going from a high concentration to a lower concentration and that could make the dew/frost.

Or even just the stormlight leaking from them could do it, if they were holding enough 

Edited May 3, 2020 by Eternal Khol

[Master_Moridin]

This quote might be of interest to the discussion here. (Bolding for emphasis)
 

Quote

 

He held out a hand and summoned Oathbringer. It dropped into his hand, steaming and frosted,

-Way of Kings, Chapter 56

 

 

[Master_Moridin]

20 hours ago, Eternal Khol said:

It works. but not the Shardblade part.

 

when gases go from high density to low density they get cold.

an example would be a Co2 Cartridge that gets cold and frosty as it is being drained.

when someone uses a lashing on something, the stormlight in them is going from a high concentration to a lower concentration and that could make the dew/frost.

Or even just the stormlight leaking from them could do it, if they were holding enough 

So I figure I should put together some examples because it...doesn't seem to just be what you suggest.

So, varyingly there's references to Radiants feeling cold when Stormlight...does something.

Grabbing the quotes would be excessive, so I'm just going to give some examples.

When Kaladin/Szeth infuse something, they feel cold as the Stormlight leaves them. Varying descriptions of skin feeling chilled, feeling a chill, and frost forming on them/their clothes or even in the air around them (the latter from Szeth Lashing the platform near the end of the WoK Prologue.

There are also references to feeling cold and frost forming when they Lash themselves, alongside descriptions of the Light leaving them (but no specifying of where the Light is going.)

Frost also forms on Kaladin's fingers at one point when he draws Stormlight in from a gem.

Kaladin feels a "jolt of coldness" through him upon impact after falling a great height. His Stormlight is described as coming out of his body in a visible burst.

At a couple points when Stormlight heals him frost forms on his skin and he feels the Stormlight drain from him, at one point specifying a bit later that he felt cold from the Stormlight he consumed. There's some language that seems to link the Stormlight that's seen flowing out of the wound as being what heals him, but it's unclear.

There are no references to frost in context of any other Radiants (save instances of Oath swearing). I want to say I remember scenes where Shallan feels cold, though I cannot find any atm.

Interesting thing to note: Kaladin notes that Stormlight he senses feels warm, and when it's inside of a Radiant it feels warm to them.

[Dawnbearer]

On 5/2/2020 at 4:28 PM, Eternal Khol said:

when gases go from high density to low density they get cold.

an example would be a Co2 Cartridge that gets cold and frosty as it is being drained.

I thought this had to do with the energy being consumed by the phase change from the liquid in the cartridge to the gas that is released...but it would still make sense I think that a gas becoming less concentrated would consume heat as well, just to a much smaller degree (unless the Stormlight is really concentrated when stored, which, come to think of it, it probably is).

So yes, I think this makes sense. Now I want to hear what Sanderson has to say about this, because his response to the question about frosting sounds like there might be more to it. 

20 hours ago, Master_Moridin said:

Interesting thing to note: Kaladin notes that Stormlight he senses feels warm, and when it's inside of a Radiant it feels warm to them.

Maybe along with light the Stormlight radiates heat energy...? Which must be overruled by the use of heat when the Stormlight is used and thus depressurized.

Either way I think chill from use of a pristine, radiant magical energy source that can be stored in gemstones and changes the fabric of multiple realms is pretty epic. Honor's magic system is very elegant.

Thank you for gathering examples Moridin, that was helpful.