Uploaded March 2020 | Updated September 2026, 20 hours ago
The phenomenon of time is one of the most familiar yet one of the most perplexing aspects of our existence. Questions surrounding it are legion and it now appears ripe for scientific revolution and redefinition. Perhaps its most vexing feature is that, whereas the central equations of physics are time-symmetric (that is, they admit both time-forward and time-reversed solutions), our everyday experience is time-asymmetric, unidirectionally toward the future [1-3].
The various forms of precognition (e.g., presentiment, premonition) stand as counter-examples to this temporal unidirectionality. Although there is no consensus scientific explanation for it, precognition likely does not involve new physics; rather it requires that currently accepted physics be interpreted in a more forthright manner.
In this talk, I will introduce the rudiments of time's symmetry and asymmetry, then propose an explanation for precognition in terms of currently-accepted physics. New research directions will be suggested, including non-biologic systems that might demonstrate this phenomenon. Potential scientific, cultural and commercial ramifications will be discussed.
1) Sheehan, D.P. (Editor), Frontiers of Time: Retrocausation - Experiment and Theory, AIP Conference Volume 863, (AIP Press, Melville, NY, 2006).
2) Sheehan, D.P. (Editor), Quantum Retrocausation: Theory and Experiment, AIP Conference Volume 1408 (American Institute of Physics, Melville, NY, 2011).
3) Sheehan, D.P. (Editor), Quantum Retrocausation III, AIP Conference Volume 1841 (American Institute of Physics, Melville, NY, 2017).
Bio: Daniel Sheehan is a Professor of Physics at the University of San Diego. His interests include experimental plasma physics, the foundations of thermodynamics, planetary formation, nanotechnology, and the physics of time.
Recorded at the Society for Scientific Exploration Conference in Broomfield, Colorado 2019.
Special thanks to our Patreon Explorers for providing the support we need to keep our video content freely available online: Dr. CMC Toporow, Kathleen Erickson, Mark Crewson, Mark Urban-Lurain, Roger Nelson, Gene Thomas, and Sandy Wiener.
Want to support our commitment to open access scientific research? Become a patron yourself: patreon.com/user?u=23234339
Or take your support of our 501(c)(3) nonprofit even further by becoming an SSE member: scientificexploration.org/join
The SSE provides a forum for original research into cutting edge and unconventional areas. Views and opinions belong only to the speakers, and are not necessarily endorsed by the SSE.
The phenomenon of time is one of the most familiar yet one of the most perplexing aspects of our existence. Questions surrounding it are legion and it now appears ripe for scientific revolution and redefinition. Perhaps its most vexing feature is that, whereas the central equations of physics are time-symmetric (that is, they admit both time-forward and time-reversed solutions), our everyday experience is time-asymmetric, unidirectionally toward the future [1-3].
The various forms of precognition (e.g., presentiment, premonition) stand as counter-examples to this temporal unidirectionality. Although there is no consensus scientific explanation for it, precognition likely does not involve new physics; rather it requires that currently accepted physics be interpreted in a more forthright manner.
In this talk, I will introduce the rudiments of time's symmetry and asymmetry, then propose an explanation for precognition in terms of currently-accepted physics. New research directions will be suggested, including non-biologic systems that might demonstrate this phenomenon. Potential scientific, cultural and commercial ramifications will be discussed.
1) Sheehan, D.P. (Editor), Frontiers of Time: Retrocausation - Experiment and Theory, AIP Conference Volume 863, (AIP Press, Melville, NY, 2006).
2) Sheehan, D.P. (Editor), Quantum Retrocausation: Theory and Experiment, AIP Conference Volume 1408 (American Institute of Physics, Melville, NY, 2011).
3) Sheehan, D.P. (Editor), Quantum Retrocausation III, AIP Conference Volume 1841 (American Institute of Physics, Melville, NY, 2017).
Bio: Daniel Sheehan is a Professor of Physics at the University of San Diego. His interests include experimental plasma physics, the foundations of thermodynamics, planetary formation, nanotechnology, and the physics of time.
Recorded at the Society for Scientific Exploration Conference in Broomfield, Colorado 2019.
Special thanks to our Patreon Explorers for providing the support we need to keep our video content freely available online: Dr. CMC Toporow, Kathleen Erickson, Mark Crewson, Mark Urban-Lurain, Roger Nelson, Gene Thomas, and Sandy Wiener.
Want to support our commitment to open access scientific research? Become a patron yourself: patreon.com/user?u=23234339
Or take your support of our 501(c)(3) nonprofit even further by becoming an SSE member: scientificexploration.org/join
The SSE provides a forum for original research into cutting edge and unconventional areas. Views and opinions belong only to the speakers, and are not necessarily endorsed by the SSE.
