extrasensory perception

Any form of perception beyond and distinct from the known sensory processes. The main forms of ESP are clairvoyance (intuitive perception or vision of events and situations without using the senses); precognition (the ability to foresee events); and telepathy or thought transference (communication between people without using any known visible, tangible, or audible medium). Verification by scientific study has yet to be achieved.

The term was coined by the US parapsychologist J B Rhine. Experimental work in extrasensory perception is commonly done by a method of guessing the order of a pack of 25 cards containing five each of five symbols, and performing a statistical analysis of the results to discover whether more have been guessed right than can be accounted for by chance.