Why do so many people doubt astrology?

Question

Astrology has been practiced for thousands and thousands of years throughout the world for a reason you know. Did you think the stars are just in the sky to look pretty?

If you don't believe in astrology I think it's likely because you've never really investigated. I can tell you right now that every time I read my star chart it has turned out to be accurate.

Answer 1

Barnum statements, never have trusted them. Then, it's about the proximity of objects in the Night Sky, so how do Low Orbit Satellites and the International Space Station affect things? Is that the reason youth today is so shallow?



Did you get a computerised print out, the combination of Barnum Statements and Pearl Programming?

Answer 2

Why should anyone have doubt? Does astrology do anything better than random chance? No. Does it have evidence that detected and measured? No. Does it pass testing? No. Is there consistency? No. Can astrology function without blind belief? No. Does it even out perform other fortune telling methods? No. So what does astrology do well? The uniqueness is the bias among fellow believers against each other. No other fortune telling system does this to such extremes. The question need to be why would anyone WANT astrology to be real? If you follow it, you give up a lot more than astrology returns.

Answer 3

Major scientific weaknesses of astrology are:



Heliocentric - not a Geocentric system or in other words, the planets revolve around the sun - not the earth as the original astrologers thought.



Missing Planets - early astrologers believed there were only seven planets. All horoscopes were based on this belief.



Missing Horoscopes of the Artic - Above the arctic circle (66 degrees latitude astrologers find it nearly impossible to calculate what constellation or zodiacal point is rising on the horizon. So they have no planetary influence to determine their lives.



Speed and Refraction of Light - When calculating the planetary positions astrologers make no allowance for the velocity of light. Neither do the astrologers allow for the deflection of starlight. Because of these inaccuracies precise astrological calculations are not possible.



Astrology has no answer to the problem of multiple births (for example; twins, triplets, quadruplets and etc.).



Different astrologers given different readings for the same person.



Astrologers have a problem with catastrophes where large numbers of people die at the same time.



And much more.



Astrology is unreliable and not worthy of anyone's trust.

Answer 4

In my junior year of high school (1963/64) I took a physics class and, to illustrate the inverse square law, we calculated the gravitational forces that will act on a baby, as it is being born. It turned out that the gravitational forces between a (hypothetical) baby and a (hypothetical) obstetrician delivering said baby are orders of magnitude greater than the forces due to the Sun, the Moon, Mars or Venus. After that homework assignment, I never again considered Astrology worthy of my time.



The fact that Astrology has been practiced for thousands of years, only illustrates how hopelessly ignorant our distant ancesters were, and how desperately human beings seek meaning from the patterns they observe in Nature.



Modern people know the genetics and epigenetics of their unique edition of a DNA molecule is what actually does influence their personal human nature.

Answer 5

" Why do so many people doubt astrology?"

Because it's bullshit. If someone even has the vaguest understanding of astronomy and physics, they'll see that astrology is nonsense.

James Randi once replicated an experiment to demonstrate how people can basically be "tricked" into thinking a horoscope is accurate. A number of students were asked their zodiac and given the appropriate horoscope to read.

They were then asked to grade how accurate they felt the horoscope was regarding their selves and a significant number, if not the majority, gave their horoscopes scores ranging from 4 to 5 (the maximum). Later they were asked to pass along their personal horoscope to the person behind them where the "trick" was revealed; they had all been given the same horoscope.

Answer 6

"Astrology has been practiced for thousands and thousands of years throughout the world for a reason you know."

Sure, because you can make a lot of money from rubes with a low-overhead operation, just by muttering some vague mumbo-jumbo.



"Did you think the stars are just in the sky to look pretty?"

They're in the sky because hydrogen, the main component of the universe, condenses into stars.

Answer 7

It's moronic, do you really think every single person born on the same day as you lives the same life? If you do you're an idiot if you don't then that shows star charts aren't accurate.



You (and everyone else that believes this crap) are gullible, you get a vague description (usually saying good things, you're strong, you're kind etc) and then think ooh, that applies to me, it must be true.

Answer 8

I don't even know where to begin, but let's just say the charts are off by 2 weeks, eh.

So, whatever is ascending or descending and things in your moon or sun, I'm not sure it's accurate at all.

Answer 9

Astrology has no consistency, can't pass testing, and morally it's a bigoted concept. It's magical thinking which the proponents refuse to take burden of proof.



Are you an astrologer? If not, can you tell us lay people how to "read" charts and maybe we'll change our minds.

Answer 10

I don't believe in astrology for many reasons but if you want a simple one how did Pluto (discovered in 1930) find its way into astrology? Now it is no longer a Planet will it be removed and if not will Eris, Makemake and the rest of the trans Neptunian objects be added into the tradition? Some are larger than Pluto.

Answer 11

because its not valid god warns against doing it



your own mine makes you think it is total accurate



it gives generic terms like your going to meet a tall handsome stranger



every time you go out in public you meet people who are tall or who you might consider handsome or good looking

Answer 12

You've already answered it yourself. It's because astrologers have been practicing it for thousands of years and they're still no good at it.

Answer 13

There are so many different sciences out there that one must pick what he or she can and go for it. To criticize another domain of study when one has never even entered it and studied it is common. This is one domain I have never studied so I am unable to judge it in any way. I imagine it to be very interesting for anyone who has had the luck to study it.

Answer 14

Education and decent intellects!



What more can any sensible person say?!

Answer 15

Since you are looking in the sky, notice that the constellations along the ecliptic ("zodiac") are not evenly spaced.

Answer 16

I cannot believe in stars.

Answer 17

For the same reason that so many people doubt religion...it can't be tested.

Answer 18

Guesswork led me to that conclusion.