History and Terminology
B. P. Wiesner and Robert H. Thouless first proposed the term "psi" in 1942 as a more general term to include both extrasensory perception and psychokinesis. The original terminology proposal divided psi into psi-gamma, for cases of cognition, and psi-kappa, for cases of action. These terms were later modified into "passive psi" and "active psi".
In 1952, John W. Campbell proposed the term "psionics", from psi (‘psyche’) and the ending -onics from electronics (machine), which implied that the paranormal powers of the mind could be made to work reliably.
Read more about this topic: Psionics
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