Lift's ability - not so one of a kind?

[Sculpur]

So I noticed as striking similrity and I had to make an account here in order to share my thoughts.

 

There was a WoB, if I am not mistaken, that Lift's ability to expand food for surges instead of stormlight is unique. Supposedly a boon from the Nightwatcher (is that a fact or an assumption)? But, similar ability has actually been observed before in the cosmere (perhaps the WoB was only regarding Roshar and surges). It's the way the Idrian royal family changes hair length and color. Siri explains that she needs to get some food after playing withat that ability for a while, because it exhausts her. However, Vasher claims the ability is a lite version of the Returned's appearance-changing - for which they need nothing more then their devine breath. So, perhaps whatever was done to Lift in (cosmere) scientific terms was similar to however that one Godking managed to produce progeny? And further on, perhaps that means that other magic systems could bypass the need for investiture?

[gjustice99 she/her]

There is a MAJOR difference. Eating food so that your body can regenerate ATP from glucose is WAY different than metabolizing food into stormlight. If you were to run around for a while then when you got tired you would get hungry too, which is what is happening in the case of the idrian royalty.

[natc]

There is a MAJOR difference. Eating food so that your body can regenerate ATP from glucose is WAY different than metabolizing food into stormlight. If you were to run around for a while then when you got tired you would get hungry too, which is what is happening in the case of the idrian royalty.

Does magically changing your hair color even use ATP?

That's one hell of an unnatural chemical reaction.

[Sculpur]

Does magically changing your hair color even use ATP?

That's one hell of an unnatural chemical reaction.

I assumed it doesn't, considering the Returned do it without ever needing food (or so we are told). Even if it does, that means that the said ability was somehow changed to fit the chemical processes in the human body, which seems like the same difference.

[gjustice99 she/her]

Does magically changing your hair color even use ATP?

That's one hell of an unnatural chemical reaction.

It takes energy to grow your hair, which is when she gets tired, also the fact that Brandon himself specifically states that the ability is unique, then it is. 

Edited April 14, 2015 by gjustice99

[natc]

No amount of ATP alone is just going to make hair grow like that. Though they probably need it.

[Arook he/him]

Ya hair growth requires physical energy to function but the color change does not. It does sound like a similar ability. Lift is able to change physical energy directly into investiture. Were the royal family is able to change the color of their hair and its lenght . That is really just greater control of their bodies then everyone else. Although there is no reason to believe that endowment could not give that ability.

[Elsecaller3414 she/her]

Maybe the whole idea with the hair has to do with growth.  Teenagers going through a growth spurt eat a lot of food, because they need the basic materials to even grow.

[Edgedancer he/him]

Lift's ability reminds me more of a combination from feruchemical Bendalloy and Nicrosil (assuming it works how the MAG claims).