Parapsychology is the study of paranormal psychological phenomena such as telepathy, clairvoyance, and psycho-kinesis. The term was coined in 1889 by philosopher Max Dessoir. Some key events and figures in the history of parapsychology include Franz Mesmer's work with animal magnetism in the late 18th century, the rise of spiritualism in the 19th century, and J.B. Rhine's experimental research on ESP at Duke University in the 1930s. Parapsychology studies a variety of claimed psychic abilities such as remote viewing, telepathy, precognition, psychokinesis, and near death experiences.