Astrology, Science Or Superstition? PDF Download

Author: Hans Jurgen Eysenck
Publisher: St Martins Press
ISBN: 9780312058067
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 243

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Book Description
Uses modern statistical methods to explain the mechanisms by which the planets might well have a significant influence on life on earth, proposing a new branch of science, cosmobiology

Author: Alexander Boxer
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 039363485X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 305

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Book Description
An illuminating look at the surprising history and science of astrology, civilization’s first system of algorithms, from Babylon to the present day. Humans are pattern-matching creatures, and astrology is the universe’s grandest pattern-matching game. In this refreshing work of history and analysis, data scientist Alexander Boxer examines classical texts on astrology to expose its underlying scientific and mathematical framework. Astrology, he argues, was the ancient world’s most ambitious applied mathematics problem, a monumental data-analysis enterprise sustained by some of history’s most brilliant minds, from Ptolemy to al-Kindi to Kepler. Thousands of years ago, astrologers became the first to stumble upon the powerful storytelling possibilities inherent in numerical data. To correlate the configurations of the cosmos with our day-to-day lives, astrologers relied upon a “scheme of heaven,” or horoscope, showing the precise configuration of the planets at a particular instant in time as viewed from a particular place on Earth. Although recognized as pseudoscience today, horoscopes were once considered a cutting-edge scientific tool. Boxer teaches us how to read these esoteric charts—and appreciate the complex astronomical calculations needed to generate them—by diagramming how the heavens appeared at important moments in astrology’s history, from the assassination of Julius Caesar as viewed from Rome to the Apollo 11 lunar landing as seen from the surface of the Moon. He then puts these horoscopes to the test using modern data sets and statistical science, arguing that today’s data scientists do work similar to astrologers of yore. By looking back at the algorithms of ancient astrology, he suggests, we can better recognize the patterns that are timeless characteristics of our own pattern-matching tendencies. At once critical, rigorous, and far ranging, A Scheme of Heaven recontextualizes astrology as a vast, technological project—spanning continents and centuries—that foreshadowed our data-driven world today.

Author: Roy Willis
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000183599
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 177

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Book Description
Mainstream science has long dismissed astrology as a form of primitive superstition, despite or perhaps even because of its huge popular interest. From daily horoscopes to in-depth and personalized star forecasts, astrology, for many, plays a crucial role in the organization of everyday life. Present-day scholars and scientists remain baffled as to why this pseudo-science exercises such control over supposedly modern, rational and enlightened individuals, yet so far they have failed to produce any meaningful analysis of why it impacts on so many lives and what lies behind its popular appeal. Moving beyond scientific scepticism, Astrology, Science and Culture finally fills the gap by probing deeply into the meaning and importance of this extraordinary belief system. From the dawn of pre-history, humankind has had an intimate connection with the stars. With its roots in the Neolithic culture of Europe and the Middle East, astrology was traditionally heralded as a divinatory language. Willis and Curry argue that, contrary to contemporary understanding including that of most astrologers astrology was originally, and remains, a divinatory practice. Tackling its rich and controversial history, its problematic relationship to Jungian theory, and attempts to prove its grounding in objective reality, this book not only persuasively demonstrates that astrology is far more than a superstitious relic of years gone by, but that it enables a fundamental critique of the scientism of its opponents. Groundbreaking in its reconciliation of astrologys ancient traditions and its modern day usage, this book impressively unites philosophy, science, anthropology, and history, to produce a powerful exploration of astrology, past and present.

Author: John D. McGervey
Publisher: Ivy Books
ISBN: 9780804105323
Category : Mathematics
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
Life can be unpredictable. And the more you can predict, the more control you will have over your own life. From calculating the health risks of smoking a pack of cigarettes a day to deciding on the best investments for your money, probabilities play a part in nearly all aspects of everyday life. Now, physics professor John D. McGervey puts all the facts and figures at your fingertips to help you make savvy, informed choices at home, at work, and at play. You will learn how the author believes you can: * Increase your chances of winning blackjack, contract bridge, horse racing, sports betting, and more * Get the most for your dollar when investing or buying insurance * Judge the risks of such common activities as smoking, using drugs, owning a handgun, and driving without a seat belt * Avoid faulty gambling systems and identify misleading statistics that can be used to draw you into poor investments * And much more. Inside you'll find a lively, entertaining, enlightening approach to minimizing your risks and maximizing your results -- simple strategies designed to give you the edge in life.

Author: Richard Tarnas
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 9780670032921
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 604

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Book Description
Seeks to demonstrate the existence of a direct connection between the planetary movements and human history, and examines such ancient and modern events as the French Revolution and September 11th.

Author: Rebecca Smethurst
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1841883832
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 63

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Book Description
'Bite-sized, cutting edge science delivered with enormous enthusiasm - all you need to travel the cosmos' CHRIS LINTOTT 'A lot of astrophysics is packed into this neat little book . . . I guarantee you will come away knowing your dark matter from your supermassive black holes' JIM AL-KHALILI This book is for anyone who wants to easily understand the mind-blowing fundamentals of our extraordinary, expanding universe. Written by Oxford astrophysicist Dr Becky Smethurst and composed of ten captivating, simple essays, it guides you swiftly through the galaxies, explaining the mysteries of black holes, dark matter and what existed before the Big Bang, presenting the evidence as to whether we really are alone, illuminating what we still don't know, and much more besides. If you have big questions about Space, this book will provide you with the answers in an engaging and succinct way.

Author: Marcia Moore
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 876

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Author: Nadia Smirnova-Mierau
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781076756749
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 343

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Book Description
How does astrology work? Is there physical mechanism behind planetary influences on us? Physics of astrology is a groundbreaking framework, making astrology tangible from physics perspective. It describes the mechanism by which celestial bodies affect us on a physical level. It expands your understanding of the bigger cosmic picture at play. This book finally answers many unanswered questions. Whether you are an astrologer, astrology student, astrology lover or a complete skeptic, this book will reveal simple and obvious physics of lunar and planetary effect on the way we feel and think. Each astrology birth chart has all the life circumstances laid out from the moment a baby takes its first breath. We just have to uncover them using astrological tools. Have you ever had your astrology chart done and professionally read by a good astrologer? Have you marveled at an amazing alignment between planetary movements and events in your life? Those who have, loose any doubts about astrology's validity. However, astrology has been treated as entertainment, to say the least, for a long time. This book proves Astrology is science. Don't be afraid of the word 'physics'. There will be NO FORMULAS AND NO EQUATIONS. We will use easy physics, adapted for both the left and the right brain. You will learn how planetary gravity and electromagnetism play with your head and more.

Author: Velayudhan A P
Publisher: Notion Press
ISBN: 9384391719
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 206

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Book Description
"Astrology was born as a cosmic and celestial observational concept. The invasion of irrelevances, superstitions and irrationalities have given it the concept of a vague myth; a mystical concept. This book reveals the flaws, exposes the malfunctioning and misuses by quacks and fakes. It proposes reforms in order to once again make Astrology a believable, consistent, near accurate and more importantly an acceptable science. It propounds tested and proven modules for practical Astrological usage. The book is not only meant for practising astrologers, but also the general public who are curious to know about other related subjects, vastu, palmistry and numerology."

Author: Alice Sparkly Kat
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
ISBN: 1623175313
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 338

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Book Description
Tapping into the political power of magic and astrology for social, community, and personal transformation. In a cross-cultural approach to understanding astrology as a magical language, Alice Sparkly Kat unmasks the political power of astrology, showing how it can be channeled as a force for collective healing and liberation. Too often, magic and astrology are divorced from their potency and cultural contexts: co-opted by neoliberalism, used as a force of oppression, or distilled beyond recognition into applications that belie their individual and collective power. By looking at the symbolic and etymological histories of the sun, moon, Saturn, Venus, Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter, we can trace and understand the politics of magic--and challenge our own practices, interrogate our truths, and reshape our institutions to build better frameworks for communities of care. Fearless, radical, and fresh, Sparkly Kat's Postcolonial Astrology ushers in a new wave of astrology revival, refusing to apologize for its magickism and connecting its power to the spirituality and politics we need now. Intersectional, inclusive, and geared towards queer and POC communities, it uses our historical and collective constructs of the planets, sun, and moon to re-chart our subconscious history, redefine the body in the world, and assert our politics of the personal, in astrology and all things.