20 Facts about Astrology

Twenty interesting facts about astrology:
# Seventy-five per cent of astrology readers are women, according to a study by the website, stariq.com.
# Astrologers claim that the moon has the same effect upon humans, as it does upon the ocean. If the moon can affect the huge tides it cannot fail to affect the human body, which consists of 75 per cent water. The moon is also associated with provoking deep emotions and humans when the emotionally charged are brought to tears. The moon's powers are also thought to affect women's monthly menstrual cycles.
# A third of Americans believe in astrology. Executives and professionals are the fastest-growing group of believers, according to a study by USA Today.
# After the American president, Ronald Reagan was shot, his wife Nancy employed an astrologer to forecast his future safety.
# The most famous astrologer is Nostradamus, who is said to have predicted events such as the Second World War, the assassination of the American President John F. Kennedy and, most recently, the attack on the World Trade Centre.
# A search for astrology on google.com brings up nearly 2 million websites.
# The Zodiac was originally a natural agricultural calendar that dated the sowing of crops, harvesting, etc. by the rising and setting of the stars (especially Sirius), and the Pleiades or other recognisable constellations
# The Kepler College of Astrological Arts and Sciences in Seattle, USA, is the first institution in the western hemisphere to issue BA and MA degrees in Astrological studies. The first courses started in July 2000. They cost $5000 a year and consist of a home study programme with a one-week symposium at the Seattle campus once a term. The college is named after Johannes Kepler, the noted German mathematician and astronomer who also practiced astrology.
# The words, astrology and horoscope are the most searched topics on the Internet, according to a 1999 study by searchterms.com.
# Astrology is thought to be both a science and an art. It claims scientific status because it requires mathematics and an understanding of Astronomy. It is an art because interpretation is necessary to bring the different aspects together and formulate an idea of the individual's character traits and tendencies
# In the middle ages, a number of Catholic popes were intimately familiar with astrology: Sixtus IV was the first pope to draw and interpret a horoscope, Julius II choose his coronation date astrologically, and Leo X and Paul III relied heavily on astrologers for advice.
# Adolf Hitler is thought to have used an astrologer throughout the Second World War.
# The practice of astrocartography looks at how you are affected by your geographical location. It is believed that, by comparing your birth chart to different areas in the world, the area where you will be most successful and happy can be determined.
# According to a 1999 survey, Americans spend $100 million a year on astrology. · Astrology offers an explanation for crop circles. The crop circles occur in cereal and grain, which is the signature of Virgo. Virgo, is the grain mother who feeds and nourishes the earth, not only with crops but with the new direction of our beliefs, she asks that we exercise discernment.
# There are 6,000-8,000 professional astrologers in the United States.
# German astrologer, Frau Elsbeth Ebertin, was given Hitler's birth chart by a female fan in 1924. She accurately predicted that he would become Fuhrer.
# Science presents many arguments against astrology. It is argued that your genetic characteristics are developed from conception and not birth. Astrologers, according to scientists, ignore matters such as the gravitational force of non-solar bodies e.g: asteroids and comets, the motion of the sun in respect to other stars and the wobble in the earth's rotation axis, which has by now shifted the sun signs by 1 or 2 constellations.
# Former White House Chief of Staff Donald Regan said: "It's common knowledge that a large percentage of Wall Street brokers use astrology."
# A research group into the critical study of astrology has been set up at Southampton University. PhD students attached to the group are currently researching alcoholism's link to Jupiter, the correlation between prostitutes and their date of birth and also the link between women's infertility and correlations of Jupiter and Saturn.

Fast facts about Astrology

Public Acceptance

* One-third of Americans believe in astrology (USA Today 6/20/00), with the fastest growing segment among executives and professionals (USA Today, 1996).
* According to The Harris Poll, nearly 41 percent of adult Americans believe in astrology (The Harris Poll, #52 9/13/00).
* An eight year, worldwide study by Roper Starch reported a 30 percent increase in the belief in astrology (USA Today, 1996).
* In 1976, 17 percent of Americans believed in astrology. In 1998 that number jumped to 37 percent (biz.journals.com, 3/3/00).

The Market

* 75 percent of astrology consumers are women (StarIQ registrants).
* An estimated 80 percent of women make most of the household purchasing decisions (Harris Interactive 2000).
* Americans spend $100 million on astrology each year (Business 2.0, 3/1/99).
* An estimated 38 million people spend approximately $44 billion annually on new age products and services including astrology (New Age Cities, 12/00).
* There are 6,000–8,000 professional astrology practitioners in the United States (based on membership to the National Council for Geocosmic Research, NCGR).
* A growing academic community of psychologists, statisticians, stock market analysts and professional astrologers effectively uses individually calculated astrological data for purposes beyond diversion (based on membership lists from the International Society for Astrological Research and NCGR).
* Astrology products are unique because they cut across normal demographic lines. Research indicates that astrology users span the spectrum from blue-collar National Enquirer readers on one end, to white-collar Psychology Today readers on the other.

Astrology and the Internet

* "Astrology" and "horoscope" are consistently among the most searched topics on the Internet (searchterms.com, 1999).
* Astrology provides completely personalized information that can be created and delivered electronically at any frequency (hourly, daily, weekly, etc.).
* Astrology allows for vertical market application and the creation of specific subject matter to target audiences.
* A simple search for "astrology OR horoscope" on AltaVista returns over three million web pages (AltaVista).
* Time Inc.'s Pathfinder.com reported that "astrology" was the fifth most searched and "horoscope" the seventh most searched word on the site (Time.com, 6/19/98).