Uploaded July 2024 | Updated September 2026, 16 hours ago
Can time symmetry in physics, combined with exceptional violations of the 2nd law of thermodynamics, and the “quantum handshake” transactional interpretation of Quantum mechanics, open up main stream physics to the possibility of retro-causation? Could it help to explain the many paradoxes left open in modern physics? and is there experimental evidence for it?
Today we have the extraordinary possibility of retro-causation to get our heads around: the apparently impossible phenomenon of events in the present causing changes in the past, or future events having an effect in the present depending on how you want to look at it. Today we’ll be approaching this topic via the context of time symmetry in physics. As far back as 1947 French quantum physicist Olivier Costa de Beauregard, began to question the usual interpretation of time in quantum mechanics, intuiting that something was missing from the model for the many paradoxes in Quantum Mechanics to remain unexplained. And then, with others get on board over the years, in the 80’s, John G Kramer, agreed that the missing ingredient was found in time symmetry and he proposed a ‘quantum handshake’ between the waves passing forward and backward in time at the moment of collapse; in this Transactional Interpretation of quantum mechanics, Kramer claimed he had solved the paradoxes.
My guest today has put together this research, a re-interpretation of the 2nd law of thermodynamics based on violations where Entropy exceptionally does not hold, and theorisation about quantum correlates to consciousness to create a new theory of retro-causation, which he thinks can be tested. He is Daniel Sheehan, Author and Professor of Physics at the University of San Diego, specialist in plasma physics, violations of the 2nd Law thermodynamics and Retro-causation. He is the founder the Quantum Retro-causation symposia that met at The University of San Diego.
What we discuss:
00:00 Intro.
09:00 Time dilation: the twin paradox.
12:20 Time symmetry: reversible time functions in physics equations.
13:20 Violations of the 2nd Law, the Entropic arrow of time.
18:20 Wheeler’s bizarre altered double slit experiment.
23:15 Wheeler’s ‘Participatory Universe’.
26:00 The history of retro-causation research.
29:15 Bergmann and Lebowitz ‘Two-State Vector Formalism’ theory 1964
31:00 Kramer’s “Quantum Handshake” Transactional interpretation of QM.
35:30 Sheehan’s theory of retrocausation.
36:45 The assumption of quantum processes acting in the brain.
39:00 Issues with quantum consciousness hypotheses.
42:00 Macroscopic quantum systems.
50:00 Precognitive retro-causation experiments: Graff & Cyrus
51:45 Triple blind experiments - blind ‘even to the universe’.
55:00 Is the subject finding out what actually happened important to the result?
57:00 Emotional charge in the future, influencing the past.
59:00 Are some events in the future already fixed?
01:01:30 Global Consciousness aggregate effects in physical systems.
01:02:30 Time symmetry allows the transmission into the past of important.
01:05:00 Wider science reception of such a paradigm shifting ideas as retro-causation.
01:05:00 Getting over our Second law biology habits.
References:
Vladislav Capek & Daniel P. Sheehan, “Challenges to The Second Law of Thermodynamics: Theory and Experiment”.
amazon.com/Challenges-Second-Law-Thermodynamics-Fundamental/dp/1402030150
Stephen Wolfram, “Computational Foundations for the Second Law of Thermodynamics”
writings.stephenwolfram.com/2023/02/computational-foundations-for-the-second-law-of-thermodynamics
John Wheeler - Altered double double slit “Delayed Choice” experiment.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler%27s_delayed-choice_experiment
Bergmann and Lebowitz ‘Two-State Vector Formalism’ theory 1964
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-state_vector_formalism
Kramer’s “Transactional interpretation”
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transactional_interpretation
Quantum biology episode
Dale E Graff, Patricia S. Cyrus, ‘Perceiving the future news: Evidence for retrocausation’ Paper
researchgate.net/publication/317282694_Perceiving_the_future_news_Evidence_for_retrocausation
Global Consciousness project at Princeton, Roger Nelson.
https://noosphere.princeton.edu/
“The question is more important than the answer”, author unknown.
“Order is a state of mind, not a state of matter” On Entropy, Daniel Sheehan.
Can time symmetry in physics, combined with exceptional violations of the 2nd law of thermodynamics, and the “quantum handshake” transactional interpretation of Quantum mechanics, open up main stream physics to the possibility of retro-causation? Could it help to explain the many paradoxes left open in modern physics? and is there experimental evidence for it?
Today we have the extraordinary possibility of retro-causation to get our heads around: the apparently impossible phenomenon of events in the present causing changes in the past, or future events having an effect in the present depending on how you want to look at it. Today we’ll be approaching this topic via the context of time symmetry in physics. As far back as 1947 French quantum physicist Olivier Costa de Beauregard, began to question the usual interpretation of time in quantum mechanics, intuiting that something was missing from the model for the many paradoxes in Quantum Mechanics to remain unexplained. And then, with others get on board over the years, in the 80’s, John G Kramer, agreed that the missing ingredient was found in time symmetry and he proposed a ‘quantum handshake’ between the waves passing forward and backward in time at the moment of collapse; in this Transactional Interpretation of quantum mechanics, Kramer claimed he had solved the paradoxes.
My guest today has put together this research, a re-interpretation of the 2nd law of thermodynamics based on violations where Entropy exceptionally does not hold, and theorisation about quantum correlates to consciousness to create a new theory of retro-causation, which he thinks can be tested. He is Daniel Sheehan, Author and Professor of Physics at the University of San Diego, specialist in plasma physics, violations of the 2nd Law thermodynamics and Retro-causation. He is the founder the Quantum Retro-causation symposia that met at The University of San Diego.
What we discuss:
00:00 Intro.
09:00 Time dilation: the twin paradox.
12:20 Time symmetry: reversible time functions in physics equations.
13:20 Violations of the 2nd Law, the Entropic arrow of time.
18:20 Wheeler’s bizarre altered double slit experiment.
23:15 Wheeler’s ‘Participatory Universe’.
26:00 The history of retro-causation research.
29:15 Bergmann and Lebowitz ‘Two-State Vector Formalism’ theory 1964
31:00 Kramer’s “Quantum Handshake” Transactional interpretation of QM.
35:30 Sheehan’s theory of retrocausation.
36:45 The assumption of quantum processes acting in the brain.
39:00 Issues with quantum consciousness hypotheses.
42:00 Macroscopic quantum systems.
50:00 Precognitive retro-causation experiments: Graff & Cyrus
51:45 Triple blind experiments - blind ‘even to the universe’.
55:00 Is the subject finding out what actually happened important to the result?
57:00 Emotional charge in the future, influencing the past.
59:00 Are some events in the future already fixed?
01:01:30 Global Consciousness aggregate effects in physical systems.
01:02:30 Time symmetry allows the transmission into the past of important.
01:05:00 Wider science reception of such a paradigm shifting ideas as retro-causation.
01:05:00 Getting over our Second law biology habits.
References:
Vladislav Capek & Daniel P. Sheehan, “Challenges to The Second Law of Thermodynamics: Theory and Experiment”.
amazon.com/Challenges-Second-Law-Thermodynamics-Fundamental/dp/1402030150
Stephen Wolfram, “Computational Foundations for the Second Law of Thermodynamics”
writings.stephenwolfram.com/2023/02/computational-foundations-for-the-second-law-of-thermodynamics
John Wheeler - Altered double double slit “Delayed Choice” experiment.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler%27s_delayed-choice_experiment
Bergmann and Lebowitz ‘Two-State Vector Formalism’ theory 1964
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-state_vector_formalism
Kramer’s “Transactional interpretation”
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transactional_interpretation
Quantum biology episode
Dale E Graff, Patricia S. Cyrus, ‘Perceiving the future news: Evidence for retrocausation’ Paper
researchgate.net/publication/317282694_Perceiving_the_future_news_Evidence_for_retrocausation
Global Consciousness project at Princeton, Roger Nelson.
https://noosphere.princeton.edu/
“The question is more important than the answer”, author unknown.
“Order is a state of mind, not a state of matter” On Entropy, Daniel Sheehan.
