Podcast Summary: "Is Time Really Linear?"

New Thinking Allowed Audio Podcast
Guest: Julia Mossbridge
Host: Emmy Vadnais
Release Date: March 16, 2026

Episode Overview

In this thought-provoking episode, cognitive neuroscientist Julia Mossbridge joins co-host Emmy Vadnais to explore the nature of time, consciousness, love, and their interconnectedness through the lens of quantum physics. Central to the discussion is Mossbridge’s research on the "Causally Ambiguous Duration Sorting" (CADS) effect, which investigates whether events in the present can be influenced by the future—challenging the conventional, linear view of time often held in both science and everyday life.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Origins and Motivation for the Research

• Julia’s Background: Trained in neuroscience but heavily influenced by physics due to her father’s profession and studies of key quantum experiments like the double slit.
  • "So my training's in neuroscience, not physics...But the explanation for why a single particle...would show an interference pattern when you're not detecting which of the two slits it would go through struck me as a little assumptive." (04:41)
• Questioning Assumptions: Julia was struck by the assumption that interference patterns are spatial rather than temporal, prompting her to design experiments to test if particles can interfere with themselves across time.

2. Explaining the Double Slit Experiment

• Clear Description for Listeners:
  • The double slit experiment shows wave-particle duality, where single particles (like photons) create interference patterns as if they go through both slits, but collapse into particle-like behavior when measured (09:30–14:55).
  • Mossbridge's unique take: "Why do we assume that it's interference over space? Why can't it be interference over time?" (07:32)
• Experimental Setup: She manipulated the future availability of photons by randomly determining how long the emitter/detector setup would continue after each initial measurement window.

3. The CADS Effect: Causally Ambiguous Duration Sorting

• Methodology:
  • For each trial, "the first 30 seconds...I'm just going to measure. But at 30 seconds, I'm going to randomly select how long this thing will be on in the future." (16:18)
  • The experimental variable is the future ‘on time,’ chosen randomly after the first 30 seconds, testing for retrocausal effects.
• Findings:
  • "Indeed, I showed that depending on the future number of photons available for interference, the interference pattern in the now looked different." (15:09)
  • This controversial result suggests present events can be influenced by future decisions, a phenomenon akin to presentiment in parapsychology.

4. Controversy and Interpretation

• Skepticism in Physics:
  • Many physicists dismiss time-reversed (negative T) solutions as unphysical. Julia notes, "Physics professors and physics teachers habitually tell their students to ignore any negative T results to equations...So it's kind of funny." (18:28)
• Causality and Ambiguity:
  • Mossbridge avoids overstating her findings: "There could be another reason that's inscrutable to us...That's why I use terms like causally ambiguous..." (21:26)
  • Roger Penrose advised simplifying her experiment to a single slit, underscoring that the effect isn’t about interference patterns but something more fundamental. (23:37)

5. The Fundamental Nature of Photons and Bosonic Particles

• Distinct Properties:
  • "Photons are more like stories. Photons are more like packets of energy that are like stories that they're more like mental things." (28:30)
  • Bosonic particles (photons, Higgs boson) can occupy the same quantum state and spacetime coordinate, unlike fermions.
• Implications for Mind–Matter Interaction:
  • Mossbridge suggests bosonic particles might mediate interactions between mind and matter, blurring lines between the physical and the mental.

6. Consciousness: Definitions and Challenges

• Ambiguity in Terminology:
  • Julia resists loose usage of 'consciousness', calling for precise definitions, distinguishing between cosmic/universal consciousness and the neuroscientific sense of conscious awareness. (30:34)
  • "If you hold like I do that the foundation of the universe is non physical...like a transcendent thing like love... then the question becomes uninteresting." (33:14)

7. Universal Love and the Informational Substrate of the Universe

• Love as Fundamental:
  • Julia equates universal love with the "informational substrate of the universe," proposing that love is the connecting principle in physics, underlying all relationships between particles. (35:19, 36:19)
  • "If love is that which connects, then all of physics is about love. It's about relationship." (36:19)
  • Everyday human experience of unconditional love is related to accessing this universal substrate.

8. Time: Beyond Linearity

• Multifaceted Nature:
  • She describes three components of time: psychological (mental), physical, and an informational substrate that generates both. (46:22)
• Non-linear Metaphor:
  • "It appears to be woven like a braid." (48:15)
  • The duration of a system—its future extent—affects its present, just as breadth, width, and depth are all necessary to define a box’s volume.
• Memory, Precognition, and ‘Braid-Pulling’:
  • Memory and precognition might be ways of intentionally "pulling up" strands of this braid to the present (50:11).
  • The metaphor connects with karma in the sense of a personal thread or trajectory rather than judgment (51:27).

9. Research Impact and Broader Implications

• Ongoing Inquiry:
  • Mossbridge continues to reflect on her findings and deepen her intuitive understanding, emphasizing openness to being ‘wrong’ and letting the empirical data guide her. (52:13)
  • The metaphorical ‘braid’ of understanding thickens with continued research and engagement. “And it’s love that’s thickening it.” (52:15)
• Practical Takeaway:
  • "Just knowing that, like, just because we can only see this moment doesn't mean this moment is the only thing that matters. When people say, live in the moment...the moment contains the past and the future." (54:11)
  • The best place to receive information—past, present, or future—is in your embodied self.

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On causality in time:
  • "It's pretty weird to say...that a single particle can interfere with itself over time." — Julia Mossbridge (07:46)
• On experimental results:
  • "I showed that depending on the future number of photons available for interference, the interference pattern in the now looked different." (15:09)
• On physicists' attitudes:
  • "We don't see that, therefore we're not going to see that...if someone's talking about that, we don't see that." (18:28)
• On defining love:
  • "Love is that which connects. We don't really have a name, a generic name for that which connects...If love is that which connects, then all of physics is about love." (36:19)
• On time as a braid:
  • "It appears to be woven like a braid." (48:15)
• On embodiment:
  • "The best address for any information to get to you is in your body." (55:08)
• On trans-temporal influence:
  • "I have in the past sat there with my lab notebook and literally wrote down stuff that I was like, okay, future self, thanks." (53:06)
• On her mission:
  • "More of: love, I hope." — On what she hopes her research helps the world to do (53:52)

Important Timestamps

• [04:41] Julia explains her motivation for investigating interference over time.
• [09:30–14:55] Clear, layperson’s explanation of the double slit experiment and her temporal twist.
• [16:18] Description of the experimental setup involving future time manipulation.
• [18:28] Discussion on physicists' rejection of retrocausality.
• [21:26] The importance of scientific humility and ambiguity in interpreting effects.
• [28:30] Julia’s musings on the nature of photons and bosonic particles.
• [33:14] Universal love as substrate of the universe; consciousness definitions.
• [36:19] Love as a foundational force in physics—all about connection.
• [48:15] Time as a braid: new metaphor for temporality.
• [53:06] Personal practices: dialogue with one’s future self.
• [54:11] Everyday applications—the moment contains past and future.
• [55:08] The importance of the embodied self as antenna for information.

Conclusion

Julia Mossbridge’s research and insights invite listeners to question the basic assumptions about time, causality, and the fabric of the universe itself. With a blend of scientific rigor, playful curiosity, and a focus on love as both a scientific and emotional connector, Mossbridge blurs the lines between physics, psychology, and spirituality. Her work underscores the revolutionary possibility that the future can affect the present—not only in quantum experiments, but also in how we live and love day to day.

For further exploration, Mossbridge recommends her book "Have a Nice Disclosure" and invites continued inquiry into the physics of love and the nature of time and consciousness, hinting at more discoveries to come from her ongoing experiments and reflections.