Shardlet

It all depends on how the transportation is accomplished, which of course, we don't know yet. If it is opening a portal of sorts, then it is definitely external. The surge opened acted externally to form the portal, however that may manifest. To my mind this would include transport via Shadesmar. If it was direct beaming, then it is not as clearly external.

To soulcast a substance, I would assume that that substance would have to be known. As such, I would assume that there is sufficient volcanic activity such that not only is obsidian known, it is well enough known that Dalinar could recognize it. With or major volcanic activity, it would take a massive amount of obsidian to make such a fortress. That would indeed suggest soulcasting or some other supernatural means for the production of at least the material to make the fortress.

That is not necessarily accurate. I suppose it depends on what you mean by stones. But sulfides will burn and carbonates release CO2 when sufficiently heated thus becoming oxides (calcination). So there are stones or minerals which burn when sufficiently heated. (Although, calcination is endothermic).

I don't doubt that obsidian exists on Roshar, especially in view of the quote you are referring to. Obsidian should show up anywhere that you have rapidly cooling high-silica content lava. But, it is nevertheless, not crystalline as well as opaque. Seems like neither of which would lend obsidian to successful stormlight storage.

Excellent. Many thanks, Weiry. So there are three instances of two gems being the same mineral, but having different impurities. Sapphire (corundum with titanium and iron), ruby (corundum with chromium), emerald (beryl with chromium and maybe vanadium), heliodor (beryl with iron and uranium), amethyst (quartz with iron), and smokestone (quartz with free silicon). Edit: @11thorderknight- not likely to refer to obsidian since it is amorphous (i.e., non-crystalline).

Thank you, Shardbearer. That is indeed the quote I was referring to when Brandon said he spent a substantial amount of time in gemstone selection. I will add it to the OP with an attribution to you as the quote hunter.

Yeah, and black diamond already has a cool name- Carbonado.

Idk, black diamond is an agglomeration of tiny crystals. Doesn't seem to quite fit the bill.

I was bouncing through things looking for gemsones which are crystallographically the same as well as primary composition but vary only in color (such as ruby/sapphire and heliodor/emerald) and I found that I could find nothing on smokestone. Smokestone is of course the gemstone associated with Nalan and the Skybreakers (sounds like a band, neh?) as well as the essence of exhalation and has opaque gas, smoke, and fog soulcasting properties. However, there appears to be no gemstone actually called smokestone. It is a color name and is not unusually used as the name of a street, but nothing for gemstones. The closest I could find is some jewelry on google images that is identified with gemstone (probably glass with some black pigment in it). So, did Brandon make a mistake (in all his research he reported on gemstone selection) or is there something special about smokestone? Could it be something on the order of atium where all the others have actual analogs except for that? What do y'all think? Edit: Here is the quote indicating that Brandon put forth a substantial effort in gemstone selection. Thanks to Shardbearer for hunting it down. http://www.theorylan...in.php?i=979#97 Quote

While a heliodor may also be red, I would note that there are other gems which mave the same basic composition and crystal structure but have different colors (and even different names). Such is the case with sapphire (Windrunners) and ruby (Dustbringers). Sapphires and rubies are identical except they have different impurities which lead to different colors. Brandon has indicated that these differences result in a filtration of stormlight (for soulcasting) in a similar manner to different molecular structures of metals filtering Preservations power on Scadrial. As such rubies and sapphires produce differing soulcasting effects. Therefore, ipso facto, a red heliodor should not have the same effect as an amber yellow heliodor because the molecular makeup is different in the same way a ruby and a sapphire are different. Edit: I would also note that a heliodor is a subset of beryl (along with morganite, emerald, goshenite, and aquamarine each having the same crystal structure but different impurities) ranging in color from yellow to yellow-green. Red beryl is typically referred to as beryl not heliodor.

If you ever want to get Kurkistan's attention, post a theory on FTL or time bubbles.

It seems that this is more like beaming that direct travel. If so, it would not precisely be FTL only effectively so (if it was that rapid). I don't see any velocity involved. There certainly doesn't appear to be acceleration and deceleration as I recall. Either would kill the people being transported.

No, hoser is recalling correctly. There was definitely a RAFO on whether Parshendi have gemhearts.

Ok.

There is also this which is a bit more fully described

They may be able to cause things to explode or burn by manipulation using both friction and division. It will be hard to say until we learn more about both. The most we've seen on any surgebinding is gravity and pressure and we have really only seen a few uses of that. We have not seen someone lash something to reduce or manipulate its gravitational attraction to the ground such that the surgebinder can lift or toss it (yes, we have seen gravitation be altered such that Roshar's gravity is completely overcome and Szeth alters his own gravity such that he is lighter. My point is, we have not seen all that the lashings are capable of).

I think that all surges are going to be external in effect rather than internal. In other words, they manipulate the forces in the world around them rather than manipulating the surgebinder themselves. In other words, to make a surgebinder appear strong, what actually happens is that the gravitational force affecting the thing the surgebinder is lifting is decreased or altered. The frictional forces of the ground or floor are altered and thus the surgebinder can slide or stick. So tineye style and telepathy seems unlikely to me.

I vote for none of the above. My personal idea is that division is the ability to manipulate molecular (not atomic) bonds. Thus, what once was a rock becomes dust. In the case of the Purelake vision, I think the KR is a Dustbringer who uses friction and division to make it easier for herself to move through the water by reducing friction and eliminating the polar bonds thus decreasing the viscosity (resistance to flow) of the water.

Actually you do get friction with both liquids and gases. http://www.princeton.edu/~asmits/Bicycle_web/frictionflows.html

I only said the quote is compelling. I am still inclined to think there is more to it than earshot though.

No, Jaconis is right. While friction definitely plays a role, the displacement of the water is a very significant role. Dustbringers also have division which is likely, in my mind, directed to manipulating molecular bonds. Water molecules are attracted to one another by polar bonds. Via a combination of defeating those polar bonds and reducing friction between one's self and the water, one would likely have a noticeably greater ability to move through water than without such forces even considering displacement.

Welcome, flowers. There are many here who agree with you, I among them.

That is possible. While it would be better than nothing, it seems rather clunky to leave her spren behind and have it come back if it has info to provide. Also the travel time would be less than desirable.

I am, at present, inclined to disagree. No great evidence one way or the other, so I reserve judgement.

I agree with Moogle that she is a Dustbringer using the friction surge. While surface tension would enable her to move easily on water, I don't see how it could help her to move through water as the quote says. On top of which, as Moogle pointed out, her armor glowed red. There are two red gemstones represented in the KR chart, ruby (Dustbringers) and garnet (lightweavers). Orders 8, 9, and 10 are not red. 8 is the closest, but that is amethyst which is purple. And the stormlight is always white. The only thing that gives stormlight color is when it is filtered through a gemstone (or perhaps in the case of the plate since stormlight likely plays a role in its glowing).