Shadows of Self Tour (San Diego Edition)

[karsen]

Pro-lurker here, just reporting my questions from the San Diego signing. I read him my questions word for word but I wasn't able to record his answers. I hastily wrote them down in shorthand so these are paraphrased (except the second answer, which was very short).

Q- What is the difference between innate investiture and kinetic investiture?

A (paraphrased)- Kinetic investiture is energy/power that is being actively (currently) used. Innate investiture is when a person is a conduit to/from the Spiritual realm.

Q- Is there a similarity between fallen Elantrians caught in transformation and dead shardblades?

A (exact)- "Yes, there is a distinct similarity."

Q- Any plans to release another interlude writing video?

A (paraphrased)- Yes. Since he will be writing it anyways and enjoyed the last one, he will probably do another for this book.

[leinton]

Okay! In an attempt to do a better signing report, I live tweeted most of it. I missed a lot of questions in the Q&A section, but none of the questions I missed had any relation to the comsere. There’s a good chance a recording of it will come out, as the person next to me was recording, but I failed to ask whether they were recording for themself or for a group like 17s.

 

So, onto the actual report! *looks at livetweet* holy smokes, batman! That’s a lot of tweets!

 

Brandon’s lecture: Brandon discussed his trip to Sharjah, one of the United Arab Emirates. Basically, he went there because he got a free trip to go to a place he’d never been. He had no idea if there would be people actually lining up to to to a signing of his, but there were definitely plenty of fans of his books. He then moved this to the topic of the Koreans, and their relationship with the Chinese written language. Apparently, the reason the Koreans have an alphabet is because one of the kings decided he wanted a language that the commoners could easily learn, to increase the literacy of his countries. So, he had a group of secret scholars who helped him write a new written language, presented it to the council thing, and they were all “noooo we can’t have an easy written language, then the commoners won’t be as obvious because of literacy!” but the language came into use. Despite several attempts to illegalize it.

 

Brandon then went on to say that this theme, the theme of the elite trying to silence the common folk, was common throughout history, and that our nerd culture is doing this. The elitism of the nerd community was harmful to both women and to newcomers, and that made him really sad. So he made a plea to us that we stop and think before we shame other people within nerd communities for our love of nerdy things. He says this does not mean we should stop criticizing literature or games, just that the community needs to be more accepting.

Q&A: Like I said, I did not record most of the Q&A. There were some of the regular questions I see every signing. Who’s your favorite character, for example. The two questions I do remember are mine, and the question of the guy standing next to me, as both were somewhat cosmere related.

 

I asked if there were storms on Roshar other than the Highstorms and the Weepings. He said that there were, but that Highstorms dominated the weather patterns so much that they were few and far between. They are more common the further west you go, but they don’t get much stronger than San Diego storms. On top of that, they are most frequent in Roshar’s “summer”, as the Highstorms are less frequent.

 

The guy next to me asked if humans were all created on Scadrial. Now, I thought I knew this answer. Then Brandon through a curveball.

 

Humans did not all originate from Yolen.

 

Sure, all the cosmere important humans did. However, Brandon specifically said that there were humans on other plants as well as Yolen. This is fascinating to me, as I did not know this before. I thought all human evolution stuff had happened on Yolen.

 

Reading: You may have heard this already from previous reports, but Brandon has asked that no record be made public of his readings for this tour until the end of the tour. As such, I will not say anything about it, except to say this: If you are on the fence about going to a signing, then you should definitely go to the signing. It is worth it.

 

My signing: So I was 92 in line. Got to talk to some people about Hoid, and got to introduce a couple of others to the greater cosmere stuffs.

 

I wore my mistcloak. Brandon took my picture, and I may end up on his blog. I’m really happy about this.

 

Onto my questions.

 

I first asked Brandon if crem was made out of calcium carbonate. He said no, that it was a darker material, and wouldn’t directly correlate to any rocks on Earth. I followed up by asking where it comes from. His response: “That’s one of the greater mysteries. Far in the future, scientists on Roshar will start asking that same question.” He then did that face he always does when he’s being mysterious. As usual, it was glorious.

 

I asked if Highstorms have rotation, noting that the way they’re described, they do not sound like storms on Earth. He said that they do not, and that they are unlike Earth storms in their structure. They do not have an eye, unless you count going to see the Stormfather in them.

 

He was impressed that I asked this question, so I told him that I have an earth science background, and that he would possibly get more questions like this in England, relating more to the geology of Roshar. Despite me not asking a question about this specifically, he told me that the entire planet of Roshar is on a single plate. Roshar, he said, was specifically sculpted to look the way it does. It will also not last forever, due to erosion and deposition.

 

I asked if a person who had enough spikes to have all the allomantic powers would be considered a Mistborn. Brandon said that they probably would be called a Mistborn.

 

Finally, I asked about neurodivergence in the cosmere. First I asked if Steris is autistic. Brandon said she is definitely on the spectrum, but more toward where Asperger’s used to be. Not nearly as far along in the spectrum as Renarin. I asked if Wayne has PTSD, to which he said he absolutely does.

 

I thanked him for his time, and also thanked him for putting me in The Wheel of Time, and that was the end of my San Diego Signing for Shadows of Self.

[Argent]

I am really glad you cleared that Kinetic vs. Innate Investiture bit. Was "Innate" the word he used?

[Argent]

The fact that evolved - or were created - on worlds other than Yolen is definitely interesting. Not a game changer yet, since we barely know anything about such ancient times, but interesting nonetheless.

 

The Highstorms lacking rotation... I sounds like they just kind of pour out of the Origin and travel across the planet. Excited about Roshar being specifically and manually sculpted in its shape. I wonder about the reasoning behind this - leave a message, similarly to how Preservation left its footprint in the world? A signature? A whim? Something about how the realms interact?

[skaa]

I asked if Highstorms have rotation, noting that the way they’re described, they do not sound like storms on Earth. He said that they do not, and that they are unlike Earth storms in their structure. They do not have an eye, unless you count going to see the Stormfather in them.

 

Hmmm... Brandon once said that the highstorm was based on Jupiter's Great Red Spot. While the GRS is indeed unlike Earth storms, it definitely rotates.

 

Oh well, so much for my theory. I think Satsuoni's theory might actually be correct in light of this revelation, except I'm not sure how a explosion-based highstorm model could account for the highstorm moving continuously around Roshar.

[Argent]

Hmmm... Brandon once said that the highstorm was based on Jupiter's Great Red Spot. While the GRS is indeed unlike Earth storms, it definitely rotates.

 

Yes and no. Jupiter's storm is what inspired him to create the highstorms - "wouldn't be cool to have a world absolutely ravaged by superstorms?" kind of thing.

[leinton]

Brandon specifically said the Highstorms have no rotation tonight. That was the focus of my question. I asked because rotational storms, such as hurricanes, have a very different structure than what is described. Jupiter's red spot is thought to be a hypercane, which is essentially a large hurricane of tremendous power, and cannot happen on Earth as it is today. As such, at the edge of the storm, it should be at its weakest, getting continuously stronger (with some small sections of weakness) until you get to the stormwall, which is near the center of the storm, where it is at its strongest. Then you break through to the eye, you get a calm day. Then you break into the other side of the storm, hitting the storm wall, and the storm gets progressively weaker.

 

This is not how highstorms are described. Highstorms have a form closer to that of a frontal storm, yet no front can hold the amount of power that a highstorm holds. It's not physically possible. A storm with that much energy would not form a front. It never made sense to me that it would have the structure of a hurricane, but this is the first time I've remembered to ask this question.

[vineyarddawg]

Are we spoilering book stuff in this thread?  Spoiler block just in case (1st-era Mistborn spoilers)

 

We know that Ruin and Preservation actually created the humans on Scadrial, right?  So could that count as "humans not just evolving on Yolen?"  Or since one would assume that Ruin and Preservation were originally from Yolen before the shattering of Adonalsium, would that count as humans on Scadrial having "evolved" from (or probably more properly, created in the form of) the Yolish form of  human?

Edited October 9, 2015 by vineyarddawg

[skaa]

Brandon specifically said the Highstorms have no rotation tonight. That was the focus of my question. I asked because rotational storms, such as hurricanes, have a very different structure than what is described. Jupiter's red spot is thought to be a hypercane, which is essentially a large hurricane of tremendous power, and cannot happen on Earth as it is today. As such, at the edge of the storm, it should be at its weakest, getting continuously stronger (with some small sections of weakness) until you get to the stormwall, which is near the center of the storm, where it is at its strongest. Then you break through to the eye, you get a calm day. Then you break into the other side of the storm, hitting the storm wall, and the storm gets progressively weaker.

 

This is not how highstorms are described. Highstorms have a form closer to that of a frontal storm, yet no front can hold the amount of power that a highstorm holds. It's not physically possible. A storm with that much energy would not form a front. It never made sense to me that it would have the structure of a hurricane, but this is the first time I've remembered to ask this question.

 

You might want to check Satsuoni's theory (that I linked to above). He was the first (that I know of) who proposed a non-rotary model of the highstorm, and I'm curious what others think of it.

[karsen]

The kinetic description is nearly word for word, but he was speaking too fast for me to get the innate part down that well. He spoke about innate specifically for a couple short sentences, but innate is basically investiture as we've always understood it so far.

[Argent]

Right, I wanted to verify that he called it "innate" instead of "inert" or something else.

[leinton]

Are we spoilering book stuff in this thread?  Spoiler block just in case (1st-era Mistborn spoilers)

 

We know that Ruin and Preservation actually created the humans on Scadrial, right?  So could that count as "humans not just evolving on Yolen?"  Or since one would assume that Ruin and Preservation were originally from Yolen before the shattering of Adonalsium, would that count as humans on Scadrial having "evolved" from (or probably more properly, created in the form of) the Yolish form of  human?

 

Also in spoilers, just in case (never hurts, right?).

 

Brandon didn't say this explicitely, but from the context of the conversation I was making the assumption that he was talking pre-shattering.

 

edit: Addition for a reply to Skaa

 

I suppose that could be accurate, but it seems to be contradicted by evidence in WoR

 

There's a pretty good chance there is only one Highstorm that just wraps around the world, to be specific.

Edited October 9, 2015 by leinton

[Yata]

Right, I wanted to verify that he called it "innate" instead of "inert" or something else.

To be honest when I read for the first time "Kinetic Investiture", I thought that it will be a "Potential Investiture" for what he called "Innate Investiture".

Like the kinetic and potential energy, the meaning is quite the same with the two type of Investiture.

[skaa]

There's a pretty good chance there is only one Highstorm that just wraps around the world, to be specific.

That's my main objection to it as well, as I mentioned above. But I don't have enough knowledge of weather phenomena to even imagine another alternative. I guess I'll just wait for a better theory to come up.

Edited October 10, 2015 by skaa

[Argent]

Which is one of the reasons I want to make sure "innate" is his term, not our interpretation.

[RShara]

We actually figured out how highstorms affected Roshar geography a while back...lemmee see...

Ah here it is

http://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/6912-hidden-things-in-map-of-roshar/page-31?hl=fractal

[WeiryWriter]

Somebody just posted the general Q&A from this signing on youtube:

 

[halo6819]

I was the guy filming next to you! I haven't gotten a chance to post my video yet, but its coming. 

 

The reading part will be posted after the UK tour finishes up.

 

I asked a followup to my where did humans come from because I was still confused as to why Preservation had to "create" humans on Scadrial if Scad wasn't the birthplace of humans and Brandon said that Preservation was attempting to copy something he had seen before. 

 

I'll post again when my video's are up, though as you said, nothing very exciting in the Q&A

[Titan Arum]

I'm late to this party, but the meteorological implications of highstorms greatly interests me as weather is a hobby of mine. While we may not have an Earth-storm equivalent, the closest type of powerful storm we do have that reminds me of highstorms and does not rotate is something called a derecho.

 

Simply, a derecho is: 

a widespread, long-lived, straight-line wind storm that is associated with a land-based, fast-moving group of severe thunderstorms.

(emphasis mine). 

 

I'd now be curious to see if Brandon was indeed influenced by the physics of derechos when he created the idea of highstorms. 

Edited October 13, 2015 by Titan Arum

[Elbereth]

I'm late to this party, but the meteorological implications of highstorms greatly interests me as weather is a hobby of mine. While we may not have an Earth-storm equivalent, the closest type of powerful storm we do have that reminds me of highstorms and does not rotate is something called a derecho.

 

Simply, a derecho is:  (emphasis mine). 

 

I'd now be curious to see if Brandon was indeed influenced by the physics of derechos when he created the idea of highstorms.

Post it in the Ultimate List!

[halo6819]

Here is the link to my video of the event. Part Four, the reading from 'Oathbringer' will go up on the 24th in accordance to Brandon's wishes.

 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkofJDqiXZYqLn8P9tJtAvdcUWQ0cDaPI

[signspace13]

Excited about Roshar being specifically and manually sculpted in its shape. I wonder about the reasoning behind this - leave a message, similarly to how Preservation left its footprint in the world? A signature? A whim? Something about how the realms interact?

Rosa's super continent is in the shape of a fractal the result of a complex spacial math equation/algorithm, it was like adonalsium saying, "ha look I'm smart!" (or just Brandon)

[Synth]

Referring to the Wayne page, just how does the link indicate that Wayne has PTSD?

Edited December 3, 2017 by Synth

[BeskarKomrk]

9 hours ago, Synth said:

Referring to the Wayne page, just how does the link indicate that Wayne has PTSD?

@Synth I think you may have responded in the wrong thread. I don't see anything about Wayne here (and it's from a while ago, so it's probably not an active discussion).