Astrology

In our time of extraordinary scientific progress, astrology seems to maintain its appeal for millions. It's very strange. Even though modern astrologers use computer programs and insist they've updated their profession-- which would seem to mean early astrologers got the wrong results-- the star charts used haven't really changed. They focus on the few dozen stars in the zodiacal constellations of the ancient Middle Eastern or Mediterranean cultures. We now know, of course, that the universe is vastly larger and more complex than those ancients could have possibly imagined.

So why hasn't a belief in astrology faded away? Well, many people use astrology for entertainment; they do not take it seriously. Others use it as a way to connect with people, romantically or otherwise. Some, however, still take astrology seriously. They insist the personality types they see in the world match those described under the twelve astrological signs. Personalities are not shaped by genetic tendencies and upbringing, they insist, but by the mysterious influence emanating from huge balls of plasma many light years away chosen arbitrarily by a group of people thousands of years ago who had no idea what they were seeing.

It's very strange.