Contents   Main Background Info The Topics Related Issues Interactive Glossary For More Info Search Guest Book About the Site   Glossary Agent Also called the sender; in ESP experiments, it is the person who is attempting to transmit the information to the subject, or receiver. In regards to psychokinesis or poltergeists, it is the person who is causing the phenomena.   Alchemy The practice of transmuting base metals into precious metals.   Altered State of Consciousness A state of consciousness that is different from the normal waking state. The term refers to such states as sleeping, dreaming, hypnosis, trance, sensory deprivation, extreme relaxation, and meditation.   American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR) Created in Boston shortly after the creation of the Society for Psychical Research in Britain; it, too, is aimed at investigating paranormal phenomena.   Anomalous Phenomena Phenomena that science, in its present state of knowledge, is unable to explain.   Apparition The visual manifestation of a deceased person (commonly referred to as a 'ghost') or of a living person, known to be beyond the sensory range of the percipient. 6   ASPR See American Society for Psychical Research.   Astral Body Also referred to as a doppelganger, double, or etheric body; a term used by occultists, spiritualists and theosophists to refer to a supposed "double" of the person's physical body; the astral body is believed to be separable from the physical body during astral projection (out of body experience) and at death. 7   Astral Projection See Out-of-Body Experience.   Astrology Divination using celestial bodies: the sun, moon, planets, and stars.   Aura A field of energy believed by some to surround living creatures. Certain clairvoyants claim to be able to see the aura (generally as a luminous, colored halo).; see also Kirlian Photography. 7   Autoganzfeld A computerized version of the ganzfeld experiment.   Malcolm Bessent A skilled psychic, Bessent has participated in many parapsychology experiments; his greatest scores have come from precognition experiments.   Bias The presence of patterns or flaws which cause arbitrary tendencies in data, compromising their validity (example: an unbalanced die with a tendency to favor one number). 6   Biofeedback Also called direct mental interaction with living systems; refers to feedback given to a person about their physical state, such as heart rate, blood pressure, etc; biofeedback is used to help people learn how to control their body's automatic processes; see also Bio-PK.   Bio-PK Also called biofeedback, direct mental interaction with living systems; psychokinesis on living systems.   William Braud A researcher as the Mind Science Foundation, Braud has conducted several experiments into biofeedback and bio-PK.   Call Term used ti indicate a subject's response in an ESP test.   Chiromancy Divination from the lines on people's hands.   Clairaudience The ability to ascertain information through the hearing of sounds or voices.   Clairvoyance The ability to ascertain information about objects or events at remote locations without the use of the normal senses.   Collective Apparition An apparition seen by several people at the same time.   Collective Unconscious A theory put forward by psychologist Carl Jung which states that there exists a universal human consciousness which holds the collective memories, experiences, and wisdom of the human race, and which certain people are able to tap.   Correlation A statistical measure of the relation between an event and a variable; in positive correlations, the two factors vary in the same direction; in negative correlations they vary in opposite directions.   Crisis Apparition A term used to describe the seeing of an apparition of a person who is at that time experiencing a crisis or some type of trauma or injury, or is near death or at the moment of death.   Cryptomnesia The idea that our minds hold memories of every experience we have ever had, and though these memories may sink into the subconscious, they are able to resurface during hypnosis, bringing with them the force of original truth and not memory; thus the paranormal feeling that often accompanies the resurfacing of such memories.   Decline effect A tendency towards diminishing results over the course of an experiment or an experimental session. 6   Deja Vu The sensation you are doing something you have done before.   Direct Hit A term used to describe a successful guess or description on the part of the subject in an ESP test.   Direct Mental Interaction with Living Systems (DMILS) See Biofeedback.   Discarnate Entity Theory A theory in regards to hauntings which claims that there exists some physical aspect of the body, such as a soul, that survives the body after death.   Divination The interpretation of various signs or symbols in order to obtain a knowledge of future events.   Divining Rod The tools used by dowsers, often a forked twig.   Dowsing The ability to find underground water, oil, coal, minerals, archaeological sites, or lost or missing persons and objects using a divining rod or pendulum.   Duke University Parapsychology Laboratory Also called the Institute for Parapsychology or the Rhine Research Center; founded by Dr. J.B. Rhine in 1930; one of the largest centers in the United States for parapsychological research.   ESP See Extrasensory Perception.   ESP Cards Also called Zener cards; a deck of cards comprised of five cards containing a circle, a square, a plus sign, a squiggly line, and a star, each included five times for a total of 25 cards; developed by J.B. Rhine and Karl Zener for the purpose of testing ESP.   Experimenter effect In general, the unintended influence of experimenters upon their experimental results. In parapsychology this effect may be mediated by interpersonal factors, such as their manner of relating to subjects; or it may sometimes involve psi., e.g., unintended telepathic communication of information to subjects. 6   Extrasensory Perception (ESP) The ability to acquire information without using the ordinary senses of the body and without depending on logical inference. The term includes other phenomena such as telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition.   Faith Healing Healing that is associated with prayer or belief in a Divine Power. 7   Feedback In psi tests, information about the outcome of each trial, provided either in an ongoing fashion, or once the test is finished; see also Biofeedback. 6   Focus The person around whom poltergeist activity centers; see also Agent.   Forced-Choice Method An ESP-test method in which the subject is given a set number of possible targets to choose from.   Free-Response Method An ESP-test method in which the subject is allowed to freely describe any and all impressions or imagery of the target that arise during the test.   Ganzfeld An experimental technique in which the subject is placed into an altered state of consciousness (through sensory deprivation) in order to facilitate ESP; typically tests for telepathic ability.   Uri Geller Famed Israeli psychic, Geller is best known for his metal bending tricks; despite many claims that he is merely an experienced conjurer, no methods of fraud have yet been successfully proven regarding his abilities.   General Extrasensory Perception (GESP) A term used in laboratory experiments to avoid the confusion of having to label a certain experimental result as being caused by telepathy, clairvoyance, or precognition.   Ghost See Recurrent Localized Apparition.   Goat Name given to a subject in a psi test who does not believe in psi; see also Sheep, Sheep-Goat Effect.   Haunting Paranormal phenomena such as apparitions, unexplained sounds, or object movements that are consistent with a particular location or apparition.   Hit See Direct Hit.   D.D. (Daniel Douglas) Home A famous medium in the nineteenth century, Home's many psychic talents have to this day remained inexplicable by skeptics and critics.   Charles Honorton A parapsychologist who is well known for confronting critics head-on; has successfully refuted many skeptical claims against the findings of parapsychology and helped to establish its validity as a science; developed the experimental procedure known as the ganzfeld.   Institute for Parapsychology See Duke University Parapsychology Laboratory.   Kirlian Photography A photographic method involving a high frequency electric current, discovered by Russian Semyon Kirlian; Kirlian photographs often show colored halos or auras surrounding objects. 7   Nina Kulagina A Russian woman who is perhaps one of the best known psychokinetics in recent times; she was able to move various small items, and no possible methods of fraud have yet been discovered.   Macro-PK An observable psychokinetic effect on an object; see also Psychokinesis, Micro-PK.   Magic(k) Concerns the pursuit of knowledge of the world and the universe as well as the mysteries of life; also the use of powers to temporarily alter reality.   Maimonides Dream Laboratory Has contributed much to parapsychology through several experiments done to test ESP in the dream state; such experiments were the predecessors to the ganzfeld; closed in 1978 due to a lack of funds.   Mean Chance Expectation (MCE) The results of a psi test that one can expect to be caused by chance; see also Statistical Significance.   Medium One who is supposedly able to communicate with the dead.   Mentation Thoughts, images, or feelings described by the subject during a free-response ESP session. 6   Mesmerism The belief in Franz Anton Mesmer's theory in the power of "animal magnetism" and the use of magnets to guide healing forces; may involve a trance state during which paranormal abilities are facilitated.   Meta-Analysis An analytical method that combines similar experiments in a field (originally used in psychotherapy and behavioral sciences) to determine if the collective results obtained by various independent researchers demonstrates a real and quantifiable effect; this method has been extremely successful in proving that the results of many parapsychological experiments are genuine and cannot be easily dismissed as chance, incompetence, or fraud.   Micro-PK The psychokinetic ability to change the probability of random events; not directly observable; see also Psychokinesis, Macro-PK.   Mind Science Foundation A small research laboratory located in San Antonio, Texas, the Mind Science Foundation conducts several experiments in biofeedback and bio-PK.   Miss The incorrect guessing of a target in an ESP test.   Robert Morris Currently the head of the Koestler Parapsychology Laboratory at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland; one of the world's leading parapsychologists.   Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Used by some experimenters to determine a subject's dominant personality traits and thereby reveal clues as to whether or not the subject is likely to demonstrate ESP.   Near-Death Experience (NDE) Unusual experiences often reported by people after being rescued from the brink of death.   Negative psi Tendency of a subject to persistently guess wrong, or below the expected chance outcome; see also Goat.   Noise One of two results in any experiment; that which shows up in the experimental data but is not something the experimenter is concerned with, for example, in an ESP experiment, the noise is the number of correct guesses due to chance, or possibly the unknown factors that may cause a person's ESP ability to vary during the experiment; see also Signal.   Occultism Esoteric systems of belief and practice that assume the existence of mysterious forces and entities. 7   Out of Body Experience (OBE) Also called astral projection; a fully conscious experience in which a person's consciousness seems to be outside of the physical body; believed to result when the astral body separates from the physical body.   PA See Parapsychological Association.   Paranormal Phenomena which seem to defy the known laws of science.   Parapsychology Refers to the experimental and quantitative study of paranormal phenomena; the modern equivalent of psychical research.   Parapsychological Association (PA) Formed in 1956 to serve as the international organization of professional researchers investigating psi phenomena.   PEAR Laboratory See Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Laboratory.   PK See Psychokinesis.   Placebo Effect Healing effects which are based on the person's own self-healing capacity, but which is triggered by the belief that they are receiving an active medication. 6   Poltergeist Also called recurrent spontaneous psychokinesis; large-scale psychokinetic phenomena thought to be due to a living person; phenomena includes unexplained noises or the movements of objects; see also Psychokinesis.   Precognition The ability to ascertain information about future events without the use of the normal senses and without logical inference.   Harry Price A psychical researcher in the nineteenth century, Price is credited with investigating several cases of hauntings; he was the first to use technological tools during his ghost hunts.   Pat Price A retired police commissioner and an extremely gifted psychic; participated in many psi experiments, primarily remote viewing experiments.   Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research (PEAR) Laboratory Located at Princeton, New Jersey, the PEAR lab is one of the greatest contributors to psychokinesis research.   PRL See Psychophysical Research Laboratories.   Projective psi Psi phenomena which imply an influence of the person on the external world. 6   Psi A term parapsychologists use to generically refer to all kinds of psychic phenomena, experiences, or events that seem to be related to the psyche, or mind, and which cannot be explained by established physical principles.   Psi-Mediated Instrumental Response (PMIR) The theory proposed by Rex Stanford that psi activity is used to serve one's needs, despite the person's lack of a conscious awareness of such needs.   Psychic One who possess psi ability.   Psychic healing The healing of one person by another, brought about by purely mental means, i.e., without the use of any known mechanical, chemical or energetic means. 6   Psychical Research See Parapsychology.   Psychokinesis (PK) The ability to affect objects, events, or people without using the usual intervention by the muscular system; see also Macro-PK, Micro-PK, Bio-PK.   Psychometry The ability to sense the history and associations of an object.   Psychophysical Research Laboratories (PRL) Located in Princeton, New Jersey, the PRL has conducted various parapsychological experiments, most notably with the creation of the autoganzfeld, but recently had to shut down due to lack of funding.   Hal Puthoff Parapsychologist known for popularizing the remote viewing experiment; see also Russell Targ.   Random Number Generator (RNG) Also called a random event generator; an electronic system which generates true random numbers, based upon a known probabilistic process (such as electronic noise or radioactive decay). RNGs are to be distinguished from Pseudo-RNGs (e.g., the RND function of certain computer languages) which are algorithms simulating truly probabilistic processes. 6   Receiver See Subject.   Receptive psi Psi phenomena in which the person receives some information from the environment, or from other people, without the use of any of the known senses. 6   Recurrent Localized Apparition Also called ghost; Refers to the viewing of the same apparition in the same location by many different people.   Recurrent Spontaneous Psychokinesis (RSPK) See Poltergeist.   Regression A technique used in hypnosis, involving suggesting to hypnotized persons that they are returning to an earlier time. Sometimes the regression occurs spontaneously, without suggestion. 7   Reincarnation The belief that we live successive lives through the transfer of our soul upon death.   Remote Viewing An ESP experiment involving one person trying to perceive objects or events at a distant location.   Retrocognition The ability to see into the past.   Dr. Louisa E. Rhine Wife of Dr. J.B. Rhine; played an instrumental part in the establishment of parapsychology as an experimental science.   Dr. J.B. Rhine Credited as the father of modern parapsychology; founded the Duke University Parapsychology Laboratory and helped establish parapsychology as an experimental science.   Rhine Research Center See Duke University Parapsychology Laboratory.   RNG See Random Number Generator.   William Roll Credited with first associating poltergeist phenomena with a living individual; coined the term recurrent spontaneous psychokinesis (RSPK).   RSPK See Poltergeist.   Run A set of trials in an ESP or PK test.   Helmut Schmidt Designed many revolutionary experiments into parapsychology, most notably the random number generator; designed many of his experiments with highly advanced technology so as to disprove many critics' claims of flaws in the experimental procedure.   Scrying Divination using a crystal, mirrors, bowls of water, ink, or flames to induce visions.   Sender See Agent.   Sheep Name given to a subject in a psi test who believes in psi; see also Goat, Sheep-Goat Effect.   Sheep-Goat Effect In a psi test, an effect in which those who believe in psi score better than chance would predict while those who do not believe in psi score lower than chance would predict; see also Goat, Sheep.   Signal One of two results in any experiment; the signal is the effect on the data caused by the experimental factor that one is investigating, for example, in an ESP experiment, the signal is the the number of correct guesses due to ESP; see also Noise.   Society for Psychical Research (SPR) Created in London in 1882; its purpose is to investigate a large array of psi phenomena; the first formal association of its kind.   Spiritualism A quasi-religious popular movement which developed in the 18th and 19th centuries, and which held that the soul survives bodily death, and that the living can communicate with the spirits of the deceased; see also Medium. 6   Spontaneous Cases Paranormal phenomena that occur in everyday life, unsought and unexpected. 7   Spontaneous Human Combustion Refers to cases in which a badly burned human body has been discovered in circumstances suggesting that the fire originated spontaneously in or on the body of the victim. 7   SPR See Society for Psychical Research.   Stanford Research Institute (SRI) Institute most known for its remote viewing experiments.   Statistical Significance A result is said to be statistically significant when it is highly unlikely that chance produced the result. To be considered significant, the chance probability must be less than 1 in 20 (5%, or 0.05); see also Mean Chance Expectation.   Ian Stevenson Stevenson is perhaps the world's leading authority on reincarnation cases.   Stigmata A term used to describe the sudden appearance of wounds or markings on a person's body.   Subject Also called the receiver; in ESP experiments, it is the person who is being tested for psi ability.   Ingo Swann A skilled astral traveler, Swann has participated in many parapsychology experiments, including remote viewing experiments.   Russell Targ Parapsychologist known for popularizing the remote viewing experiment; see also Hal Puthoff.   Target In ESP experiments, it is the object or event which the subject tries to perceive or guess; in PK experiments, it is the object, process, or system which the subject tries to influence. 6   Telekinesis See Psychokinesis.   Telepathy The ability to communicate directly through mind-to-mind contact and to perceive information directly from another's mind, without resorting to the use of the five known senses.   Toronto Society for Psychical Research This group is best known for their experiments with macro-PK; by discovering various criteria necessary for the facilitation of PK, they have reportedly been able to levitate a large table and perform other feats often associated with mediumship.   Transpersonal Psychology The study of experiences, beliefs and practices that suggest that the sense of self can extend beyond our personal or individual reality; transpersonal psychology differs from parapsychology in that it is more interested in investigating the transpersonal significance of paranormal phenomena (i.e., the ways in which they may give people a sense of connectedness with a larger, more universal or spiritual reality). 7   Traveling Clairvoyance See Out-of-Body Experience.   Trial A single attempt to demonstrate paranormal ability (e.g., one attempt to guess a card or one attempt to influence the fall of the dice); see also Run. 7   White Noise A hiss-like sound formed by combining all audible frequencies; used in the ganzfeld experiment.   Karl Zener Worked with J.B. Rhine to create the famous ESP cards.   Zener Cards See ESP Cards.   Subcontents