“More than that, George. Look at the edges.” Murdoch pointed. Embedded in each frame was a tiny, repeating pattern of squares—like a digital watermark, though that word wouldn’t exist for a century. He called it a “frame verification pattern,” or for shorthand, (Latin for “free, twisted image”—his own invented term).

Later, while testing the lens under a gas lamp, Murdoch noticed a faint flicker. He jury-rigged a device: a magnifying lantern, a rotating shutter from a magic lantern, and a hand-crank. When he spun the lens assembly, a ghostly image projected onto his laboratory wall—a man running, then freezing, then running again.

Murdoch smiled. “Or from a past that hasn’t happened yet. Either way, the truth moves forward—one frame at a time.”