353 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
353 lines
10 KiB
Plaintext
Newsgroups: sci.skeptic
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From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
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Subject: Astrology References
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Message-ID: <1992Nov30.035126.18494@rosevax.rosemount.com>
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Organization: Rosemount, Inc.
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Date: Mon, 30 Nov 1992 03:51:26 GMT
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Lines: 344
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A while back, somebody was lamenting the fact the scientists just
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don't take astrology seriously, so they never do any studies to find
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out if it works.
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Aside from the fact that nothing is keeping the astrologers from doing
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such studies, I posted a reply stating that plenty of research had
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been done, and the results were negative.
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References were then requested.
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Most of these references are "second hand" in that I haven't read the
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actual papers, only summaries in other books and magazine articles.
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If I have misrepresented either the protocol or results of any of the
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following, feel free to correct me.
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I have not included references on the Gauquelin mars effect, which has
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been covered by other threads in far greater detail.
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Here are the references I've collected so far -- in no particular
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order:
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Gauquelin, M.
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Zodiac and Personality: An Empirical Study
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Skeptical Inquirer, 6:3, 57
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1982
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Compiled personality profiles from biographies of 2000 sports figures,
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actors, scientists, and writers. Compared these profiles with
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personality traits associated with the sign of the sun, moon, and
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ascendant according to eight astrology texts. No correlation was
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found using either the sidereal or tropical zodiac.
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Press, N., Michelsen, N.F., Russel, L., Shannon, J., Stark, M.
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The New Yourk Suicide Study
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Journal of Geocosmic Research, 2, 23-47
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1978
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Examined records of suicides in NYC from 1969 to 1973. Selected all
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suicides who were born in NYC and for which birth data was available.
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This resulted in 311 suicide cases. For each of these, a control
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subject was randomly chosen who was born in the same borough and
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year. The suicides and matching controls were divide into three
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groups according to year of suicide.
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A computer program was used to test 100,000 different astrological
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factors in each of the 622 birth charts for significance between
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suicide and control groups. None of the factors consistently
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correlated with the suicide cases.
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Culver, R.
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Sun Sign Sunset
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Pachert
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1979
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Van Deusen, E.
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Astrogenetics
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Doubleday
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1976
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Culver, R., Ianna, P.
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Astronomy Quarterly, 1, 147
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1977
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The above three references examined the correlation between sun sign
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and over 60 occupations. The results of all three were negative -- no
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correlation was found between occupation and sun sign.
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Dean G., Mather, A.
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Recent Advances in Natal Astrology
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p113
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The Astrological Association
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1977
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Silverman, B., Witmer, M.
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Astrological Indicators of Personality
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Journal of Psychology, 87, 89
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1974
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Per Dalen,
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Season of Birth
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American Elsevier Publishing
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1975
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Pellegrini, R.,
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The Astrological Theory of Personality
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Journal of Psychology, 85, 21
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1973
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The above 4 references all found no correlation between sun sign and
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personality traits as measured by standardized psychological tests,
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mostly the California Personality Inventory (CPI). However, Pellegrini
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found a slight correlation between the CPI femininity index and season
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of birth.
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Illingworth, D., Syme, G.
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Birthday and Femininity
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Journal of Social Psychology, 103, 153
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1977
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Tyson, G.
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Astrology or Season of Birth: A 'Split-Sphere' Test
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Journal of Psychology, 95, 285
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1977
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These two studies found no correlation between sun sign and
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personality traits measured by the CPI, including the femininity
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index.
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Mayes, B., Klugh, H.
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Birthdate Psychology: A Look at Some New Data
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Journal of Psychology 99, 27
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1978
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Compiled natal charts and results of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
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Inventory and the Leary Interpersonal Check List for 196 subjects.
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Compared 13 personality traits with sun signs, signs and houses of the
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moon and 8 planets, and with five planetary aspects. No correlations
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were found.
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Mayo, J., White, O., Eysenck, H.
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An Empirical Study of the Relation between Astrology Factors and
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Personality
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Journal of Clinical Psychology, 105, 229
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1979
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Jackson, M.
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Extroversion, Neuroticism, and Date of Birth: A Southern Hemisphere
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Study
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Journal of Psychology, 101, 197
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1979
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These two studies found correlations between astrological factors and
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the Introversion/Extroversion index of the Eysenck Personality
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Inventory.
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Veno, A., Pammunt, P.
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Astrological Factors and Personality: a Southern Hemisphere
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Replication
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Journal of Psychology, 101, 73
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1979
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Failed to duplicate the correlation found above.
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Pawlik, K., Buse, L.,
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Self-attribution as a Differential Psychological Moderating Variable
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Zeitschrift fur Sozilpsychologie, 10, 54
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1979
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Showed that the correlation above could be explained by the fact that
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some of the subjects knew what the expected results would be for their
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astrological signs.
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Eysenck, H.,
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Astrology: Science or Superstition?
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Encounter, Dec 1979, p85
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Jackson, M., Fiebert, M. S.
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Introversion-Extroversion and Astrology
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Journal of Psychology, 105, 155
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1980
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Saklofske, D., Kelly, I., McKerracher, D.
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An Empirical Study of Personality and Astrological Factors
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Journal of Psychology, 110, 275
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1982
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These three studies found no correlation between astrological factors
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(sun and planetary) and personality, including the
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introversion/extroversion index of the Eysenck Personality Inventory.
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Culver, R., Ianna, P.
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Astrology: True or False, p215
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Prometheus
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1988
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A double blind test of astrologer John McCall was organized at the
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University of Virginia by Charles Tolvert and Philip Ianna. McCall
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claimed an 80 percent success rate in choosing the correct natal
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horoscope for a subject from three false ones. Twenty-eight subjects
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were chosen according to McCalls requirements (naturally born
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caucasians). McCall had 7 successes out of 28 trials, exactly the
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number predicted by chance.
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Silverman, Bernie I.,
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Contemporary Astronomy by J. Pasachoff, cf p437
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W. B. Saunders
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1977
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Kop, P., Heuts, B.
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Journal of Interdisciplenary Cycle Research 5, 19
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1974
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The above 2 studies found no correlation between marriage/divorce rate
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and sun sign combinations in the state of Michigan and the city of
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Amsterdam, respectively.
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John McGervey
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Physicist
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Case Western Reserve University
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Found that the sun signs of 6,000 politicians and 10,000 scientists
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were randomly distributed.
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Shawn Carlson
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A Double-blind Test of Astrology
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Nature, 318, 419
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1985
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116 adults filled out California Personality Index surveys and
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provided natal data. One set of natal data and the results of three
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personality surveys (one of which was for the same person as the natal
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data) were given to an astrologer who was to interpret the natal data
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and determine which of the three CPI results belonged to the same
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subject as the natal data.
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The San Francisco chapter of the National Council for Geocosmic
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Research recommended the 28 astrologers who took part. They approved
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the procedure in advance and predicted that they would select the
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correct CPI profiles in more that 50 per cent of the trials.
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Out of 116 trials, the astrologers chose the correct CPI 34 per cent
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of the time. This agrees with the random chance prediction of 1 of 3
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trails producing a correct choice.
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Horoscopes were prepared by professional astronomers for 83 subjects.
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Each subject was given three charts, one of which belonged to the
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subject. In 28 of 83 trials the subject chose the correct chart.
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This is the success rate expected for random chance.
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Dean, Geoffrey
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(trying to find reference)
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Astrological readings were done for a groups of subjects. The content
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of some of the readings were reversed (changed phrases describing the
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subject to their opposites).
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Subjects reported that both the reversed and normal readings applied
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95 per cent of the time.
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Gauquelin, M.
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L'Influence des Astres, Etude Critique et Experimentale
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Dauphin Press
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1955
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Found no correlation between occupation and the zodiac signs
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containing Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and the Moon at the
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time of birth.
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Gauquelin, M.
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The Cosmic Clocks, p84
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Henry Regnery Co.
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1967
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Found random distribution of the house containing Saturn for
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successful individuals, and the house containing Mars for murderers.
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Barth, J., Bennet, J.
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Leonardo 7, 235
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1974
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Found no correlation between occupation, medical problems, height,
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longevity, and the zodiac signs containing Mercury, Venus, Mars, and
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Jupiter at the time of birth.
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Culver, R., Ianna, P.
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Astronomy Quarterly, 1, 85
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1977
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Pretty much the same study and results as the previous reference.
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Additionally, no correlation was found between occupation, medical
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problems, etc. and angular separation (along the ecliptic) of planet
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pairs at time of birth.
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Dean, G.
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Does Astrology Need to be True? Part 1: A Look at the Real Thing
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Skeptical Inquirer, 11, 166
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1987
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Astrologers prepared horoscopes for subjects correct natal data.
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Reversed charts were then constructed from the correct charts by
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retaining the sun sign, but reversing all of the planetary aspects.
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Half of the subjects were given correct charts, the other half were
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given reversed charts. There was no correlation between the perceived
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accuracy of the charts and whether the subject was given a correct or
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reversed chart.
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Dwyer T.
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Unpublished word described in Dean, 1987.
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Horoscopes were prepared for correct natal data and for a birth date 5
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years and 6 months before the correct date, with the correct sun sign
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retained. Thirty subjects were given the correct and incorrect
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charts. Half of the subjects picked the correct chart, half chose the
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incorrect chart.
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--
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Grant Edwards |Yow! I am covered with pure
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Rosemount Inc. |vegetable oil and I am
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|writing a best seller!
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grante@aquarius.rosemount.com |
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