For decades, the line between science fiction and military research has been thinner than we think. In this episode of Mind Shift, host Kate takes listeners from her own firsthand experience with the legendary Monroe Institute to the bizarre, real-life intersections of military, Hollywood, and the ongoing search for the limits of human consciousness. What happens when government-backed psychic experimentation collides with the rise of artificial intelligence? The answer is stranger, and more urgent, than any movie plot.

This episode explores the transformation of military psychic research from the Cold War’s Gateway Experience into today’s cutting-edge AI-powered technologies. Kate uncovers how Hollywood seized the narrative through satire, how the Monroe Institute continues to thrive, and why researchers and the military are still invested in probing the mysteries of the mind. If you’ve ever wondered what happened to remote viewers, psychic spies, and the pursuit of human potential, this episode will open your mind to both the history and future of consciousness exploration.

"Whether the Gateway techniques actually allow consciousness to transcend space and time or simply produce compelling subjective experiences that help people grow and heal, might be less important than the fact that people are still exploring these possibilities." ~Kate

Today on Mind Shift:

·     Kate’s visit to the Monroe Institute and its modern, high-tech approach to exploring consciousness

·     How Gateway Experience has evolved—plus the surprising demographic of today’s participants

·     The emotional stories fueling new waves of interest in out-of-body experiences and spiritual contact

·     The closing of the CIA’s Stargate program—and the strange paths research took afterward

·     Jon Ronson’s “The Men Who Stare at Goats” and Hollywood’s fascination with psychic soldiers

·     Real-life army visions of new-age warrior monks, “invisibility” training, and mind-over-matter experiments

·     The unsettling transition from new-age research to controversial psychological warfare

·     How current AI research mirrors the ambitions of past psychic programs—analyzing data at telepathic-like speed

·     The role of brain-computer interfaces and attempts to “weaponize” thought

·     Ongoing ethical questions: Are we expanding human capacity, or blurring humanity and machine?

·     The Monroe Institute’s commitment to personal growth and healing, not just superhuman capabilities

·     Why questions about consciousness matter more than ever in a digitally dominated world

Mentioned Resources:

·     Lt. Col. Wayne McDonnell’s 1983 Gateway Experience analysis

·     The Monroe Institute monroeinstitute.org

·     Jon Ronson’s book: The Men Who Stare at Goats

·     Lt. Col. Jim Channon and the 1st Earth Battalion Operations Manual

·     Major General Albert Stubblebine

·     Reports on the CIA’s Stargate program

·     Current research into AI and military applications of neural technology

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