Astrology vs, Astronomers?

Question

Astrologers, Vs,,Astronomers,,?
why is it when some people r interested in astrology, all of a sudden,, a suppose Astronomer, has to put their 2 cents in as for instance,, how ridiculous, you astrologers r to compare us Astronomers, to you! some seem to even attact with words like were no where even close to astrologers, and some of us r offended when you compare us Astonomer's to your astrological views,,as we astronomers dont believe in you astrologers, as we r two seperate and not of the same! Well, I am sorry to hurt some of you astronomers, but the truth is your wrong!! reasons being,is that Astonomy is the branch of natural science that studies the celestial bodies, The word is a combination of astron, greek for "star" & nomos, greek for "law
Astrology was formerly part of astronomy, with astological determinations being viewed as a practical application"of astronomical knowledge. Prior to modern period, all of the great astonomers were also astologers, like Tycho Brahe&Johanne

Several 100 yrs.ago the 2 fields began to diverge, & today there r 2 distinct communities: astrologers, who r largely ignorant of astronomy, & astronomers, who know almost nothing about astrology. For the most part, contemporary astronomers despise astrology as a medieval superstition. This is not, however, because astrology fails to pass empirical test of validity, but because astronomers reject astrology out of hand. When skeptics have actually subjected astrology to empirical test, they have found sometimes to their dismay correlations between celestial&terrestrial phenomena.Astologers r more often than not woefully ignorant of astronomy, This ignorance is sometimes compounded by n attitude that condems all science as narrow minded & spiritually dead, theres a handful of astrologers who explore astronomy for potential astrological insights, like Michael & Margaret Erlewine,who offers astrophusical Directions a starting point for astrolgers n pursuing this line of research Now what

Answer 1

Astrology is an interpretation of effects of heavenly objects on earth and human beings... most of them are derived fron centuries old belief and wisdom

Answer 2

You know, just because you believe one thing, does not mean that you have to disbelieve the other.
I am studying Biomedical Science at University and therefore believe in the theory and practical application of the Scientific viewpoint. However! I have also got the room to believe in other things, things that might not necessarily be all that scientific. A scientist's job could be to possibly research this topic further. t would make an interesting thesis question.

Thousands of years ago, people in ancient times used to look into the sky and noticed the path of the sun and the moon and the planets also. Specifically, they recognised a pattern of movement in correlation with the stars.
Whether you believe this or not, such a link does exist. Maybe no the more favoured in the world of Astronomy, but it would be a fool to say there is no link. A look at history shows this to be true.

Although, in today's society we have segregated the two topics into a scientific one and one taken with a grain of salt.

Regardless of this, Astrology and Astronomy have a certain complimentary relationship.

It is said, that in ancient Babylonia the same person would act as the Astronomer (for predicting celestial phenomena) and then the Astrologer (for the interpreting).

To quote an Astrological/Astronomical paper,

"The primary goal of astronomy is to understand the physics of the universe. Astrologers use astronomical calculations for the positions of celestial bodies along the ecliptic and attempt to correlate celestial events (astrological aspects, sign positions) with earthly events and human affairs. Astronomers consistently use the scientific method, naturalistic presuppositions and abstract mathematical reasoning to investigate or explain phenomena in the universe. Astrologers use mystical/religious reasoning as well as traditional folklore, symbolism and superstition blended with mathematical predections to explain phenomena in the universe. The scientific method is not consistently used by astrologers".

Reading the abovementioned, you cannot deny the aspect of each discipline in the other, varying degrees of course.

My advice, is to not have such a suspicious opinion when it comes to one area or another. It might also help to delve into the unknown.

Answer 3

Actually, Astrology does not stand to empirical tests. At all.

In fact, there are stronger forces at work between you and your computer screen when you read about Jupiter then there actually exists between you and Jupiter. Gravity and Electromagnetism are both ridicously low between you and the planet due to the distances between you.

And can "spiritually dead" be used to described Science?

Yes. Because everything in science has to have evidence. If anything is taken on Faith it's bad science. If by "Sprirtually Dead" you mean relying entirely on Rational Empirical Evidence then I wear that badge proudly.Everything has to have evidence, if it doesn't it's tossed out by definition.

For a theory to have scientific merit it has to have 3 qualities:
1.) It has to be derived entirely from unbiased observation and/or repeatable expirementation. Can Astrology claim that? No two astrologist can even agree on compatability charts let alone repeat any expirements.
2.) It must be possible to make accurate predictions about natural phenomina based on the theory. Astronomy and Astrophysics covers pretty much everything you can see in a telescope when looking upwards. Astrology takes a stab at peoples personalities and as a Picses I can tell you Astrology is completely off.
3.) It must be possible to prove it wrong with evidence. Can anything be shown to you that would prove that everything you knew about Astrology was wrong? I'm betting not and scientifically that's a horrible sign. Meanwhile if I saw a planet in the sky suddenly change orbit then something I knew about Astromony is definitly wrong.

In conclusion, Astrology is probably a fun little hobby and a fun way to meet people but is about as scientifically valid as a Ren and Stimpy cartoon.

Answer 4

Um, you just answered your own question. 2 POINTS! If you believe in magic you aren't a scientist. Astronomers are scientists. Astrology is magic. Therefore, no, astronomers don't believe in astrology.

Answer 5

You're joking, yes?

There is no evidence for any truth in astrological predictions, whatosever.

Astronomy on the other hand produces extreme predictions which are tested and found to be true millions of times per day.

I doubt that NASA even bothered about Neil Armstrong's birth sign. The concept of doing so is completely ridiculous.
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Answer 6

1

Answer 7

Where is your question?

You are not going to convince people who have been indoctrinated with "Astrology is bad." all their lives with a rant, let alone those who have been indoctrinated with "Astrology is evil." I find the lack of objectivity of those who viciously attack any reference to astrology to be appalling. These same people have no difficulty expropriating astrological works such as ephemerides and tide tables.

Edit:
Anyone who has honestly looked at astrology knows that it has used scientific methodology for centuries and that psychological attributes of people are but one of the areas the science is applied to.

Answer 8

Currently, one is a science and the other a superstition. We used to believe that 'bad air' caused disease, now we know better.

Answer 9

I'll definitely go for 'Astronomy'....