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Useful websites for researchers into astrology

Abstract -- Almost all astrology on the Web is of little interest to scientific readers. News and chat sites feature social talk, superficial commentaries, and ephemeral news items. Astrology sites take the validity of astrology for granted and endlessly repeat the same unquestioned dogma. Skeptic sites tend to take the invalidity of astrology for granted and endlessly repeat the same old debunkings. As a result few sites are actually useful for researchers into astrology. Even the handful of sites that focus on scientific research tend to be incomplete or narrow or dated (some seem to have started out with good intentions only to be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of research now available), and none give you the comprehensive up-to-date overviews by experienced researchers that appear on the present site. Here we list the more useful sites that were active at December 2007. The total of unique sites on our list is now 98 vs 92 in July 2006. We welcome suggestions for inclusion.

At first sight astrology on the web is like asking for a glass of water and being handed the Pacific Ocean. Even if you restrict your Google search to URLs containing astrology and science, or astrology and research, you will still find a thousand or more sites requiring several full-time months to read. Astrology sites take the validity of astrology for granted and endlessly repeat the same unquestioned dogma. Skeptic sites tend to take the invalidity of astrology for granted and endlessly repeat the same old debunkings. Nearly all such sites are generally too busy with their own diversity to allow an in-depth scientific exploration of astrology.

Even the few sites that focus on scientific research into astrology tend to be incomplete or narrow or dated (some seem to have started out with good intentions only to be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of research now available), and none give you the comprehensive up-to-date overviews by experienced researchers that appear on the present site, rated "the most useful site for information on testing astrology" by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific website, and "the ultimate prophylactic against woolly thinking in astrological research" by the AstroDatabank website.

This article lists the more useful sites that were active at December 2007. There are four parts:

Part 1. Sites of general interest (N=39).
Part 2. Sites giving empirical test results (N=13).
Part 3. Pro-astrology sites with articles, data, references, resources (N=33).
Part 4. Skeptic sites with articles, links, references, podcasts (N=30).

Some sites appear under more than one heading. Total of unique sites is 98 vs 92 in July 2006. Hints on retrieving research findings are at the end of Part 2, with more in Finding info under Adroit Utilities on the home page.

Part 1. Sites of general interest

Astrology books for sale
http://www.astroamerica.com New and used astrology specialist. Search by author or title.
http://www.astrologyetal.com New and used astrology specialist.
http://www.bookfinder.com Just enter the title.
http://CheapestTextbooks.com/ Searches US booksellers for best price, new and used.
http://www.erraticimpact.com/ Finds books via Amazon and Powells.
http://www.pricegrabber.com/index.php/ Compare our prices.
Each of the above typically has over 1000 titles in stock. Complete lists can be downloaded from astroamerica, no sun sign annuals, and from Powells, includes sun sign annuals. Bookfinder automatically searches for books worldwide and can often find a title not listed by the others.

Astrology courses in academia
http://www.lamp.ac.uk/sophia/ The Sophia Centre for the Study of Cosmology in Culture, University of Wales at Lampeter. Previously at Bath Spa University near Bristol. Higher degree courses in cultural astronomy and astrology began at Bath Spa in 2004. Eleven students graduated in July 2005 with an MA in Cultural Astronomy. Recruitment was discontinued by the university in April 2006. In September 2007 the Sophia Centre moved to the University of Wales at Lampeter, where from January 2008 it will again be accepting students, but only for distance learning, mainly online supported by course packs, online seminars, and tutor contact by phone or email. There will be an optional residential period at Lampeter for a study school. Fee for the MA course is £3240 for students in the European Union, or £8856 overseas.
http://www.kent.ac.uk/studying/postgrad/courses/religious.html University of Kent at Canterbury. Details of their MA course in the study of mysticism and religion, which partly includes astrology, and their MA course in the cultural study of cosmology and divination, which emphasises astrology. Each course lasts one year full-time or two years part-time. Fee for a one-year full-time course is £3350 for students in the European Union, or £9400 overseas.
http://www.sophia-project.org.uk/ Details of courses funded by the British-based Sophia Trust from a million-pound bequest. "Latest News" has inactive links and is two years out of date.
http://www.kepler.edu/index.html Kepler College in Seattle, a liberal arts college that emphasises astrological studies. At BA level it offers five minors and two majors, namely Eastern and Western Astrological Traditions, and Mythology and Archetypal Astrology. MA courses are also available. A BA takes four years, fees including books are about $US11,000 a year. Website is large, detailed, and includes audiovisual excerpts from lectures, but graduate numbers are small -- 8 BA students graduated in 2004, 8 in 2005, and 4 (including the first male) in 2006. More than 10,000 astrology books have been donated to Kepler College and are being catalogued. Abstracts of student papers are no longer online. Previously they were:

Astrology software and free chart calculations
http://www.astro.com Astrodienst. Top commercial computer site, multilingual. Enter birth data, receive chart, choose one or more interpretations eg personality, relationships, forecasts. Fast, accurate, with many other free options such as latitude/longitude and time zone data for more than 200,000 places. Unlike many other sites, it does not require your email address.
http://www.astrodatabank.com/Links.htm#research Excellent set of annotated links for software, data, research sites (including this one), correspondence courses, online classes, and general astrology links.
http://www.astrologysoftwareshop.com/ Reviews, screen shots, choose from over 60 softwares. Revenue from the sale of software helps to support the work of AstroDatabank.
http://www.astrowin.org/ Nine free astrology programs including electional and many other free programs including numerology. Has a useful list of the best free programs of all kinds (eg FTP) available on the web.
http://www.isarastrology.com/ Includes shareware.
http://www.khaldea.com/ Superb month-to-a-page midnight GMT ephemeris similar in appearance to Michelsen ephemerides. 600BC-2400AD, fast, free. Site includes an archive of Rudhyar articles and over 1000 celebrity data with birth charts.
http://www.magitech.com/~cruiser1/astrolog.htm Top-rated freeware by Walter Pullen. Includes useful links. Over 1m hits since July 1996.
http://www.planetos.info/software.html Kenneth Irving. Useful guidance on choosing software. Last updated September 2002.

Notable UK astrological organisations
http://www.astrolodge.co.uk Astrological Lodge UK's #2
http://www.astrologicalassociation.com Astrological Association UK's #1.
http://www.astrology.org.uk/index.htm Faculty of Astrological Studies. Since 1948 the Faculty has had more than 10,000 certificate and diploma students from 90 countries. The Faculty's diploma (DFAstrolS) is generally recognised as the industry standard.
http://companyofastrologers.com/index.htm Company of Astrologers.
http://www.londonschoolofastrology.co.uk "The student's choice for studying astrology". Founded 2000. Foundation course lasts one year costs £590. Diploma course lasts two years costs £1180.
http://www.professionalastrologers.org Association of Professional Astrologers International.

Notable astrology sites
http://www.astrology-online.com/index.html Claims to be the largest site featuring daily and weekly horoscopes. Has nothing on research, is listed here mainly for its list of prophecies sent in by readers.
http://www.astropro.com/features/conxions/ What's on in astrology world.
http://www.mountainastrologer.com The Mountain Astrologer "widely recognised as the best English-language astrological magazine in the world today" and carried in more than 2000 stores worldwide. Online are 19 top TMA articles including Why Astrology Works (a response to critics) by Brad Kochunas, and a pdf classified index to over 1500 TMA articles by 480 authors 1990-2006. Includes a list of 95 favourite links but none focus on serious research.
http://www.renaissanceastrology.com/index.html Top site, many annotated links.
http://www.robhand.com Robert Hand. Association for Retrieval of Historical Astrology Texts (ARHAT). Traditional methods, well annotated links.
http://www.skyscript.co.uk Deborah Houlding. The best site for quality astrology by quality astrologers, and therefore with no hint that astrological claims are without empirical support. Nearly 300 articles under the headings Angles and Houses, Aspects and Numerology, Decumbiture and Herbs, Electional, Historical/Biographical, Horary, Mundane, Natal Studies, Planets, Psychological Astrology, Reviews (mostly books), Signs, Stars and Zodiac Systems, and Working as a Professional Astrologer. About 200 well annotated links to Articles, Books and Magazines, Chart Calculation Tools, Consultant Directories, Data Collections, Home Pages of selected astrologers, Organisations and Schools, Specialised Subjects (eg herbs), Traditional Astrology, and 70 online mostly classical texts including Ptolemy's Tetrabiblos (both Ashmand and Robbins translations) all available for free download. Site is especially strong on horary.
http://www.solsticepoint.com/astrologersmemorial/ Brief biographies of nearly 300 deceased astrologers, most with pictures. Meet the humanity behind the famous names. A site managed by Donna Cunningham that all researchers should visit.
http://www.stariq.com Considered by astrologers to be one of the best.
http://www.uraniatrust.org The best online guide to astrology worldwide (last printed version 2002) organised by region UK, Europe, North America, Australiasia, Rest of World. Site includes a list of 11 books published by the UT, a list of 14 awards and prizes available in astrology (mostly UK and US), and 5 articles unchanged since our previous listing in June 2003. An online library is under construction.

Many links to general astrology websites
None are complete or free from inactive sites. We have already searched these links for sites relevant to scientific research into astrology.
http://www.astrologie.pagina.nl In Dutch but easily followed. Includes shareware and databases.
http://www.astrologix.de/ In German, includes find your astro-twin.
http://www.astrology-search.com Lynn Evans. Over 3500 links, mostly commercial, includes 160 lists of links. Search engine gave 32 hits (including the present website) for "research".
http://www.astropro.com Richard Nolle. Huge site, masses of links to everything including organisations, bookshops, online services, what's on, and other sites (no sun signs), all well organised and annotated. Includes an archive since 1996 of Nolle's website of the week, all with links and reviews, most not directly astrological and many inactive. The best site for links to humour sites, go Netselect > Entertainment > Humour. Site is difficult to navigate (to enter click on right arrow, then on the key icon) and has irritating streaming text.

Many links to individual astrologer websites
http://www.astrologers.com/ American Federation of Astrologers. Has links to 25 AFA astrologers. A new website is coming soon.
http://www.isarastrology.com/ International Society for Astrological Research.

Part 2. Sites giving empirical test results

Sites that cite empirical studies without giving results, or without giving abstracts, or which are accessible only by members, are not listed here (look in Part 3). Altogether about 180 empirical studies are cited, mostly as abstracts. None report effect sizes commensurate with the claims of astrology. Hardly any involve tests of astrologers (an exception is the last entry). Tests of astrologers are summarised on the present website in Meta-analyses and Research Results, both under Doing Scientific Research.

http://www.astrodatabank.com/SiteMap.htm The AstroDatabank is a computerised collection of 28,000 timed charts and case histories originally collected by the Church of Light in Los Angeles, and later expanded by Lois Rodden, inventor of the famous Rodden system of classifying birth data from Accurate to Dirty Data. Site contains research articles and empirical results obtained using birth data from AstroDatabank. More than 70 selected and well-annotated links on software, data, research, and education. Articles (many with comments from readers) and empirical results include:

http://astrofaces.com/astrofaces/ A project started in 1998 to see if people who share the same Sun/Moon/Ascending sign resemble each other. Has collected nearly 2500 facial photographs covering 70% of the 1728 possible combinations, with 28 covering SMA in same sign (5 each of Virgo Sagittarius, 4 of Scorpio, 3 each of Taurus Cancer Libra, 1 each of Aries Gemini Leo Capricorn Pisces, 0 of Aquarius). Site will display all photos for any selected Sun/Moon combination but is hard to navigate and is necessarily slow to download. In general there seem to be no obvious resemblances.

http://www.astroinvestigators.com Alphee Lavoie et al. "A group of astrologers dedicated to the scientific scrutiny of long held astrological concepts". Website is poorly designed with intrusive backgrounds. Some areas are accessible to members only. Has an interesting online experiment launched in 2007. Online are the following results:

The outcome of the above research, and of the similar research listed under AstroDatabank and elsewhere, is usually a long list of ranked factors, eg in (5) the top two contacts in each direction were his Vertex conjunct her North Node, his Ascendant square her Ceres, her Vesta sextile his North Node, and her Pluto opposition his Chiron. None are in the top ten contacts predicted by tradition or by synastry textbooks. But something has to come first and second even in random data, so do these contacts mean anything? Would working astrologers ever use them?

http://www.astrologyresearchjournal.org/ A site begun in August 2002 by astrologer Robert Marks. Dedicated to providing controlled studies that validate astrology. Not updated since August 2002 and presently contains only one incomplete study of 140 murderers from the AstroDatabank with no conclusions.

http://www.astrology-research.net Research Group for the Critical Study of Astrology, University of Southampton. Previously funded by the Sophia Project but not any more. Despite its name the group is more uncritical than critical, which is unsurprising since its deputy convenor's website sells astrology as an aid to choosing fashionable clothing. The site's opening preamble is misleading, wrongly claiming that eg the Mayo-Eysenck sun sign results have "not found alternative explanations". Includes 217 abstracts of research articles (about 100 are empirical studies) from the scientific literature and the astrology research journal Correlation through 2004, but retrieval is cumbersome and the abstracts are often unhelpful. Site includes 8 links to "research into astrology sites and resources" (all of them included here), which despite RGCSA's claim to promote collaboration does not include the present website. Lists one PhD project (personality and birth experience vs birth time), and one MSc project (Mars and Saturn cycles vs employment changes). Two previous projects (Jupiter vs alcoholism, birth charts vs life events) are no longer mentioned.

http://www.astrovdm.com Koen Van de moortel (writer of astrological and scientific software) and Dragana Van do moortel (astrologer). Perhaps the only individual astrologer site that is critical and research-oriented. Bright green with a choice of English, Dutch, French, German, Serbian. Articles in English include general hints for research (1200 words), an intriguing test of synastry (369 people he met on the street tended to have more synastry aspects if they seemed attractive, 1500 words), a critique of Dennis Elwell's Cosmic Loom (800 words), and an account of Geoffrey Dean's 2001 lecture in Utrecht (700 words). For sale is the book Astro-Logics, a critical look at astrology including a selection of research results, most of them negative, and guidelines for doing research. Links (some briefly annotated) include 41 astrology-or-parapsychology research-oriented, 40 general-or-specific astrology, 12 lists of links, and 8 databases.

http://www.aureas.org/rams/default.htm Website in English and French of Les Cahiers du RAMS (RAMS = Recherches en Astrologie par des Methodes Scientifiques), an annual publication founded in 1993. Six of the actual articles, four also in English, are on the CURA website. From issue 13 (September 2005) the entire journal has been published online. Few links but has more than 100 abstracts of RAMS articles in both French and English, of which about one third are of substantial articles such as the following.

http://cura.free.fr/index.html About 400 pro-astrology articles in English, French, or Spanish, of which about 10 are empirical studies, none involving tests of astrologers. A more detailed description of this site in in Part 3.

http://hdelboy.club.fr/index.html Large site in French mostly on alchemy. Astrology part has English summaries of statistical tests by Herve Delboy including primary directions at death, and transits in the lives of Pierre Boulez, Honore de Balzac, Albert Einstein, Jules Verne, Maurice Ravel, Arnold Schoenberg, 118 French politicians (a total of 38,000 transits), and 315 actors. Primary directions of Sun to natal MC at the appointment of 524 magistrates peaked around 90 (not 0, 180 or 270) degrees, transits of Jupiter to natal Sun peaked at 120 degrees. Distribution of planets and angles at birth and death of 1430 individuals. Most results are presented graphically. Has examples with screen dumps of analysis by ASTROPC software (options are so numerous that positive-results-by-fishing seem inevitable). Two of the articles (in French) are on the CURA website.

http://www.scientificexploration.org Society for Scientific Exploration, founded 1982, a non-profit organisation with 800 members worldwide for exploring topics ignored by mainstream science or that unnecessarily limit scientific inquiry such as restrictive world views. Its quartely Journal of Scientific Exploration, established in 1987, subscription $US70 pa, considers any topic provided the investigation is scholarly. Abstracts of all articles are available including four on astrology (matching test by McGrew & McFall, time twins by French et al, astrology and sociability by Fuzeau-Braesch, pineal gland by McGillion with comments by Dean) and ten on the Mars effect (1 by Gauquelin, 1 by Muller, 3 by skeptics, 5 by Ertel). The SSE's Young Investigators Program (still in its early days) provides information re the scholarly study of SSE topics including details of academic programs (mostly in the USA, nothing on astrology), conferences of interest, recommended reading from JSE (nothing on astrology), and links to online resources (9 general eg CSICOP, 3 altmed, 23 psi, 2 NDE, 6 UFO, none on astrology).

http://www.skepsis.nl/astrot.html A 1996 Dutch test of astrology, designed with the help of astrologers, in which 44 astrologers matched 7 charts to their owners. Half the astrologers predicted complete success, but the average success was actually worse than chance. The experienced astrologers did no better than beginners. 2500 words, 13 references.

Finding articles and research results on the Web
http://vivisimo.com/ Just enter author, title, or keyword.

http://scholar.google.com/advanced_scholar_search Google Scholar searches the scholarly literature (peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts, articles) by title, author, or keyword in seven broad research areas (life sciences, finance, chemistry, engineering, medicine, physics, social sciences including arts and humanities) presently totalling over one million items and growing. It finds papers, abstracts, citations. Gives title, author, source. If [Title] or [Cached] appears in the listing it links to the abstract or the complete article; [Cited by] links to references that have cited it; [Web search] searches Google for more information on the item; [Library] indicates where you can find it. In June 2006 Google Scholar retrieved from 170,000 social science, arts and humanities items more than 620 items with "astrology" in the title, and more than 14,000 with "astrology" in the text. The other six research areas gave a total of more than 120 items with "astrology" in the title. By December 2007 these counts had increased to 840, 26,000 and 170 respectively, an average increase of 50%. The same reference can be repeated across several sources so the above counts are inflated. Because Google Scholar accesses articles via citations as well as directly, it reaches journals not otherwise abstracted. Thus it presently lists a dozen articles from Correlation.

Breakdown by decade of Google Scholar items with "astrology" in title retrieved from social sciences, arts, and humanities July 2006 and December 2007.

Part 3. Pro-astrology sites with articles, data, references, resources

Listed here are pro-astrology sites that provide articles, data, references, and general resources. (Those that also give empirical test results are in Part 2, while skeptical sites are in Part 4.) We have already searched their lists of links and have included any relevant sites below. We welcome suggestions for inclusion. Be aware that the sites below will collectively overwhelm you with hundreds of articles, thousands of references, and many thousands of data. They are also either incomplete or narrow or dated or second-hand or leave you to do all the work, and none give you the comprehensive up-to-date overviews by experienced researchers that appear on the present website.

Articles, studies, references
Be aware that essays-for-sale sites exist whose essays or "term papers" (at prices of $US50-100 each) include several on astrology and science. Avoid these scams. There are better essays available for free in academic libraries and on the present website.

http://www.answers.com/topic/astrology Good general reference on astrology with profuse internal links to more detail and 70 external links. Main entry is from the user-contributed Wikipedia. Includes the case for and against astrology but is mostly description rather than case.

http://www.astrologimuseum.dk/ Astrologisk Museum, the Museum of Astrology in Copenhagen, is a "non-profit science centre committed to presenting documented knowledge of astrology to the public, both as a profession and as a socio-historical phenomenon". Website is in Danish with some English translations, and is divided into Services, Library, Collections, and Research. The last is sub-divided into Historical, Danish, International, and Academic, but much of the information previously online such as a searchable bibliography of nearly 1000 articles and books seems to have been removed. The data plotted below are from this bibliography. Since 2003 the Museum has published Cornelius (after Cornelius Agrippa), a quarterly web-based journal in Danish on documentation and research (usually historical) in astrology. The 8 issues for 2003 and 2004 are available in pdf format, generally 1Mb or more per issue.

Danish astrology publishing exploded in the 1970s and is now about ten new titles every year in a population of 5 million, or about the same in proportion to population as in the UK. Data are from the above website.

http://www.astrologyweekly.com/dictionary/ Entire 1947 Nicholas deVore Encyclopedia of Astrology online.

http://www.astrozero.co.uk Astrologer Garry Phillipson's companion to his book Astrology in the Year Zero, which attempts via interviews with astrologers and researchers to resolve astrology's many inconsistencies and contradictions. Both his book and website seem more interested in presenting opposing views no matter how uninformed than in actually resolving anything. Has 16 interviews with astrologers including sun sign columnists Campion and von Strunckel, and an index to 17 sites covering Nick Kollerstrom's work on Newton, Galileo, Kepler, discovery of Neptune, alchemy, metals, planets, lunar planting, lunar fertility in mares, astronomical essays for astrologers, crop circles, and ancient units of length. Also online are 21 articles or exchanges including:

http://www.cultureandcosmos.com/abstracts.htm Abstracts of articles in Culture & Cosmos, edited by Dr Nick Campion, "A Journal of the History of Astrology and Cultural Astronomy". Scholarly peer-reviewed journal with an international editorial board largely composed of academics. Concerned with the impact of astrology on culture past and present, not with issues of astrology's validity. Empirical studies of astrology are not covered except historically. Site gives abstracts of articles from Volume 1 (1997) through Volume 8 (2004). Volumes 1-6 (30 articles) are available for £60 postfree within the UK or £70 overseas. Volume 8 is a double issue with 35 articles from an August 2003 symposium Inspiration and Astronomical Phenomena.

http://cura.free.fr/index.html Dr Patrice Guinard. The full text in French and English of his PhD thesis (see Guinard's Manifesto on this website under Philosophy) plus 400 contributed pro-astrology articles in English, French, or Spanish listed by date and title, or (in the Social Index) by topic without date. No annotations or abstracts so you need to read the whole article to discover its content. Breakdown is roughly 50% history and philosophy, 15% techniques, 15% sociology and Nostradamus, 15% bibliographies and book reviews, 5% empirical studies (none involving tests of astrologers). Site includes the entire Gauquelin database (N=143,860) online including latitude, longitude, and birth times converted to standard time, few original unconverted times. Contributed articles were temporarily discontinued in November 2004. Later articles are on Nostradamus and are mostly in French. Site has a keyword search engine that lists the relevant articles, each with the keyword frequency. Example articles:

http://www.faqs.org/faqs/astrology/papers/ A list of 59 academic sources to 1997. Titles only, no annotations, with hints on obtaining abstracts. Not updated since 1997 and therefore of limited value.

http://finblake.home.mindspring.com/xresearch.htm (Note no www) Blake Finley and The Uranian Institute. Promotes the use of eight hypothetical planets and is thus critical of ordinary astrology. Listed page has brief but useful descriptions of 8 research-oriented books and 16 links.

http://home.planet.nl/~brui5679/astrolit/astrolit.htm Lex Bruining's AstroLit, the world's largest bibliographic database of literature related to astrology. The site has English, Dutch and German versions in hard-to-read black or pink on bright blue. Regular searches of books including early books and incunabula, and 610 journals including 25 astrology journals, has resulted in over 14,000 references (author, title, source, year of publication, and abstract if available). Where a reference has only a short section on astrology, the section is included with the abstract. The database includes all the Gauquelin works, information on 50 incunabula and their location, descriptions of about 150 astrology journals many now defunct, and tables of contents of astrology journals. It can be purchased as a searchable software package for 14 Euros or £10 or USD15. The site includes free downloads of 3000 assorted records 1998-2002 (1.5Mb), and 250 references related to astrology and research (6 are before 1950, the rest are before 1997, about 60 are empirical studies, 30 are general reviews, and the rest are mostly historical essays or discussions of astrology as a pseudoscience, 140 kb).

http://www.isidore-of-seville.com/astdiv/ No articles but has links to over 215 scholarly sites on ancient astrology and divination. Run by a non-believer for those wishing to avoid psychic and sun sign sites.

http://www.msu.edu/~urban/kepler/symposium2001/ The 65 slides (no commentary) on astrology research presented by Mark Urban-Lurain at a 2001 Kepler College symposium. Concludes that more research is needed, which is understandable because he ignores 90% of the published tests of astrologers.

http://www.planetos.info/ Kenneth Irving. Articles on Gauquelin planetary effects (11K words), a brief chronology (2K), answers to six common objections (3K), and 15 related links, but dated (nothing after 1997) although site was last updated in September 2003. Readable but scientifically uninformed and therefore often misleading. Reference to an Ertel and Irving article in Skeptical Inquirer is incorrect, it appeared in the Journal of Scientific Exploration.

http://www.valentino-salvato.net/Astrology/index.htm Valentino Salvato is a maths teacher and astrologer from Wilmington NC, now based in the UK. Site is pro-astrology, pro-intelligent design, and aims to "provide information for the curious and to help the exchange of resources and ideas in Astrology". The site's own research involves three projects (using a questionnaire to identify sign keywords, testing the effect of Mercury in charts using analysis of speech sounds, and studying financial cycles using two new planets), no results so far. Online are 71 articles pirated from usually unacknowledged sources including copyright journals and the present website, a list of 14 post-graduate dissertations from the UK and Ireland on astrology 1982-2003 (mostly historical, none involving the testing of astrologers), 14 abstracts of articles on astrology (mostly Gauquelin) from the Journal of Scientific Exploration 1988-2002, images of 68 astrology-research-related books under Books and images of 55 science-related books under Science, none with descriptions or reviews, a list of 13 astronomy resources and 10 others, none of them annotated, 5 free eBooks including the Tetrabiblos, and nearly 70 links covering classic astrology, journals, near-death experiences, organisations, research groups, and software, again none of them annotated. Indeed, the whole site is without overviews of its often haphazard contents and is thus unhelpful and user-unfriendly. Home page has been redesigned several times, usually for the worse.

http://www.widgetsworld.co.uk/free/astrology-research.php Widgets World of Astrology. Huge commercial site with over 1000 (uncritical) articles on astrology by astrologers. Entering "research" into the quicksearch box returns 31 titles with option to see full article, but only a few involve serious research and many are inactive.

Databases, statistical calculations
http://www.astrodatabank.com/Links.htm#research The AstroDatabank is a computerised collection of 28,000 timed charts and case histories categorised into 660 behavioural traits, each trait being a potential reasearch topic. See Part 2. This particular page lists 15 sites with up to 27,000 celebrity birthdays and biographies. One or two sites provide sources and times.

http://www.astrologiezentrum.de/forschung9.html Peter Niehenke and the German Astrological Society's (DAV's) database of 30,000 well-known people and 10,000 ordinary people. Most are from Gauquelin. Database is on CD and costs 25 euros. Page is in English.

http://www.famousbirthdays.com Large listing, categorised, annotated.

http://cura.free.fr/gauq/17archg.html Gauquelin data online. See CURA entry in Part 2.

http://www.iol.ie/~taeger/director/director.html Hans-Hinrich Taeger's large and frustrating New Age site on which 600,000 visitors are said to have got lost since 1998. The astrology sections are a small part of the site and include Taeger's archive of birth and biographical data taken from over 160 international data archives, from astrology books, other data collections, and over 40 periodicals. It totals over 100,000 birth data (about 80% famous people, 10% world events, and 10% other). Data cannot be purchased but two records are free for every one donated. By 1998 about 10% of the data had been checked and published in book or CD form, of which about 30% have biographies extracted from a total of 500 reference sources. Online articles in English include important overviews of data collections worldwide, the reliability of data, the problems of data collection, and the 1998 status (see above) of the Taeger archive. No downloads are available except a data-free list of 20,000 names. Last update May 2001. That is not a misprint.

http://www.khaldea.com/ Over 1000 celebrity data with birth charts.

http://StatPages.org/javasta2.html Links to 600 sites including 380 sites that do statistical calculations online, and sites with free software packages. Excellent descriptions and guidance.

http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/ Guidance on social science research including which statistical tests to use. Often technical.

Organisations and projects
http://www.astrology-research.net Research Group for the Critical Study of Astrology, University of Southampton. See Part 2.

http://www.businessastrologers.com/ International Society of Business Astrologers. A research-oriented site whose preamble says: "[Most] astrological knowledge turns out to be without substance when tested empirically. ... The ISBA Research and Science Committee wants to improve this situation." But the articles, book details, events, member interests, projects, and links are available only to ISBA members (ie they need a password, membership costs $US55 pa), so for non-member researchers the site is of almost no value. The critical articles on ISBA and business astrology previously posted on the New England Journal of Skepticism website are no longer available.

http://www.geocosmic.org National Council for Geocosmic Research. Mostly an astrological organisation that is not as research-oriented as the name might suggest. Has 2500 members, mostly in the USA. Site includes general remarks about research, 7 general articles including "Why astrology works" [Seymour/Gauquelin/Nelson] and "Objectivity in astrology", 8 links to articles on other sites, 6 links to organisations and resources, links to NCGR certified astrologers, a long wordy 2003 article "The Newtonian Merry-Go-Round" by Bernadette Brady (she finds that astrologers have little or no grasp of current research, but her own is little better, so her conclusion that non-quantitative research might save astrology is misconceived), and details of a free program (1.2 Mb with 0.1 Mb manual) that analyses sets of birth data to see if your nominated factors are significant. Projects previously listed but no longer mentioned are:

http://www.igpp.de/english/welcome.htm Institut fur Grenzgebiete der Psychologie und Psychohygiene. Founded 1950 by Hans Bender for research on anomalous phenomena such as ESP. Includes paranormal belief systems (eg UFOs, magical rituals) and their social properties. Astrology is no longer a research topic (it was once), nevertheless the research pages may provide ideas for research into astrological beliefs.

http://www.isarastrology.com/ International Society for Astrological Research. Site is not very informative about research. It includes 13 articles by members including "Astrology standards and professional licensing" by Ruth Potulin 2000, 15 articles from the ISAR journal of research The International Astrologer formerly Kosmos (none are on serious research), 5 book reviews including one on Enrique Linares's book "A scientific approach to the metaphysics of astrology", contact details for 190 ISAR certified professional astrologers in the USA and 12 other countries, and the following list of 5 research projects:

http://www.scientificexploration.org Society for Scientific Exploration. See Part 2.

Sites with hints of small research grants
http://www.astrology-research.net University of Southampton.
http://www.isarastrology.com/ Sponsors empirical research.
http://www.sophia-project.org.uk/ Historical research only.
http://www.uraniatrust.org Michel Gauquelin research fund.

Part 4. Skeptic sites with relevant articles, links, references, podcasts

Not from the Latin scepticus, doubter, but from the Greek skeptikos, to look about, consider, observe. Skeptics insist that no inferences or conclusions may be made unless preceded by a thorough evaluation of the evidence. Skeptics go wherever the facts may lead. The skeptic sites listed below contain material that is relevant to astrology either directly, or indirectly via their emphasis on critical thinking.

Skeptic sites directly relevant to astrology
http://aries.phys.yorku.ca/~mmdr/1800/astrology-faq-synopsis.htm
(If this URL fails to work the item can be accessed via "Critique of alt.astrology-FAQ" on www.stelling.nl, see below.) In 2003 the 11 most scientifically-challenging of alt.astrology's answers to FAQs were analysed by students from many disciplines in a first-year class at Toronto's York University. Of all the defences of astrology on the Web, this was judged to be the most credible and well-written. But was the defence convincing? Absolutely not. Answers to FAQs 4000 words, synthesis of the students' analysis and comments 3000 words.

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/resources/pseudobib.html Andrew Fraknoi and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. Selected resources for the critical study of fringe astronomical beliefs. Page 1 is on astrology and consists of a 200-word introduction, with references to 5 critical books and 20 critical articles, some briefly annotated.

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/publications/tnl/11/11.html is the Fall 1988 issue of the ASP's newsletter for astronomy teachers, devoted to a readable critique of astrology (four references), and to simple tests that students can make of newspaper horoscopes and of the claims of sun sign astrology 2500 words.

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/astro/act3/astrology.html Activities with astrology. Sets out the above simple tests in more detail for the classroom. Aims are to help students think critically about astrology, and to introduce the use of statistical tests. Includes Fraknoi's famous Astrology Defense Kit covering critical responses to astrological claims, ten questions to ask, and research results. 3500 words (kit alone is 2400 words).

http://www.astrosurf.com/nitschelm/astrolog.html Versions in English, Danish, Spanish and Italian of L'astrologie au crible de la science [When astrology is tested by science], a 1994 article by astrophysicist Christian Nitschelm that is cited on many European websites. A typical case-against-astrology diatribe by an opponent who ignores astrology's merits. 500 words on science, 3000 on astrology covering physical incongruities and a few test results, concludes that astrology cannot claim to be a science.

http://www.crank.net/astrology.html 24 links to astrology sites considered to be crackpot (but they seem no different from the rest).

http://www.csicop.org/si/online.html Online index to all articles in Skeptical Inquirer, the world-famous quarterly skeptic magazine published by the Committe for Skeptical Inquiry (formerly CSICOP) based in Amherst NY. The magazine began in 1977 and the issues now occupy nearly one shelf-metre. Index has 80 critical entries on astrology of which 50 are articles or book reviews. Site includes about 500 online articles and book reviews from SI (nothing very useful on astrology, palmistry, numerology, graphology or tarot) but most have references. The online coverage is good from 1996, moderate from 1991 (typically 5 per issue), and infrequent before 1991. The index can be searched for words in titles. All entries allow you to "buy this issue now". Site also has a full list of the mailing and email addresses of skeptic organisations worldwide.

http://www.johnankerberg.org Ankerberg Theological Research Institute. 2000 online articles usually with a choice of hmtl or pdf. Those on astrology cover astrology, spiritism, and dangers; some are new, the rest are excerpts from Ankerberg and Weldon's books Encyclopedia of New Age Beliefs 1996 and Encyclopedia of Cults and religions 1999. Articles 12K words, notes 2.5K words including 100 unduplicated references mostly to astrology sources to 1988. Together they provide one of the most readable and informed critiques of astrology (albeit somewhat dated) of those available from the sites listed here.

http://www.ntskeptics.org/FACTSHTS/astrolog.htm North Texas Skeptics fact sheet on astrology (3000 words, 9 references) aimed at general readers. An example of informed skeptic opinion. Concludes that astrology lacks scientific credibility but can be socially useful. No changes since our listing in June 2003.

http://www.phact.org/e/astrolgy.htm (astrolgy not astrology). Eric Krieg of the Philadelphia Association for Critical Thinking gives views for and against astrology (1000 words) and submits both to critical thinking. Includes 26 references (mostly without annotations) and 41 links, many of which are inactive. Calls itself "a look at the evidence" but is now very dated. No changes since our listing in June 2003.

http://www.randi.org/joom/content/view/38/31/ James Randi's million dollar challenge to those who make claims of paranormal ability. Demonstrate your claim in a test devised by yourself, under mutually-agreed test conditions that permit a yes/no conclusion, and you will win $US1 million. Since 1997 there have been over 400 attempts, none of them successful, mostly because the challenger had no idea how to devise a preliminary test. For Randi's account of some bizarre attempts see http://www.undeceivingourselves.com/S-mill.htm which includes an astrologer who claimed to accurately judge a person's sun sign (he nominated the test conditions, was happy with them, but performed no better than chance). A more recent challenge by an astrologer foundered due to privacy restrictions on the birth data needed. On 1 April 2007 the rules were modified to limit applicants to those whose powers have been mentioned in the media and are supported by written testimony from an academic. "You have a paranormal claim? Great! Demonstrate it successfully, and the Million Dollar Prize is yours. It's really that simple."

http://www.simonyi.ox.ac.uk/dawkins/WorldOfDawkins-archive/Dawkins/Work/Articles/1995-12romance_in_stars.shtml Richard Dawkins's celebrated two-page article The real romance in the stars in the British Independent on Sunday 31 December 1995 attacking astrology as "neither harmless nor fun, and we should see it as an enemy of truth", with three later notes. From believers it prompted a frenzy of outraged comments, most of them rhetorical, evasive or irrelevant.

http://www.skepdic.com/ A skeptic dictionary site by Robert Todd Carroll, a professor of philosophy at Sacramento City College. Over 500 essays on strange beliefs from abracadabra to zombies, and how to think critically about them. Most essays have references and further reading. Some include responses from readers and Todd's replies. Regularly updated. Especially useful are the entries on how our eyes and ears can deceive us, for example hidden persuaders (under H), magical thinking (under M), and subjective validation (under S). Probably the best and most readable site for those new to astrology. The critical essays on astrology appear under:

http://www.skepticfiles.org/skeptic/validast.htm
A list of 33 astrology references up to 1990, half are annotated.

http://www.skepticreport.com/general/index.htm About 200 articles under 13 headings, each with an attractive graphic. About half are on the paranormal and several are on astrology. Articles are listed by clickable title with a description, so browsing is easy. Site is based in Denmark and contains mostly European material, which makes a useful change from American sites.

http://www.skeptics.com.au/ Australian Skeptics in Sydney NSW. Recent Australian happenings and links to top skeptic sites. Online articles from the Skeptic (no relation to UK magazine of same name) were discontinued after all back issues became available on CD, which has nearly 80 items on astrology although few are substantial. CD contains over 5000 searchable pages and can be bought online for $A55.

http://skepticwiki.org/index.php About 600 articles under 18 headings including several on astrology under New Age. Articles are listed by clickable title without a description. Most articles link to related topics on site, and a few have references for further reading. Since the articles are generated collectively by contributors, they tend to be comprehensive, but due to contributor bias they may not be entirely reliable or informed. Thus the articles on astrology give no hint that many hundreds of empirical tests exist.

http://www.stelling.nl/simpos/astrology.htm Netherlands Foundation for Information on the Social Consequences of Occult Tendencies. Lots of skeptic links to each of 96 paranormal topics such as astrology and Sai Baba. Listed under astrology are 43 links to sites critical of astrology (22 are in English). The best are included here. Site is available in English, German and Dutch.

http://www.unice.fr/zetetique/biblio.html Henri Broch, University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis. The word zetetic means skeptical seeker. Bibliography of about 1000 books and articles on paranormal topics. Titles without descriptions are listed by author or subject, no annotations. 62 are on astrology, of which 24 are in French. Most of the English ones can be found on other sites, but here is a good opportunity to practice your French. Under Zetetics? on the home page is an account with many graphs, of French research showing that belief in the paranormal increases (not a misprint) with education and decreases with age. A shorter version in English is available if you can find a page with a clickable English.

Podcasts
http://skepticwiki.org/index.php/Podcasts%28index%29 Lists nine of the best podcast sources in skepticism ready for you to tune in. (Podcast is short for iPod broadcasting.) Most podcasts are radio broadcasts but some are video recordings. If your computer has the ability to receive podcasts, then hearing and sometimes seeing the leading players in skepticism and science are just a click away. Skeptical podcasts bring you many hours of challenging interviews, features, and commentary on the paranormal, pseudoscience, science, and alternative medicine, most from overseas, and all for free.

Skeptic sites indirectly relevant to astrology
http://www.butterfliesandwheels.com/ Website of British philosophers aimed at fighting fashionable nonsense such as the idea that truth is unimportant. Named after ideas wrongly seen as so inconsequential that their discussion would be like breaking a butterfly upon a wheel. Don't miss their Fashionable Dictionary ("Evidence: best ignored in case it conflicts with our ideas") and Woolly-Thinking Rhetoric ("Be careful not to be explicit, otherwise your errors will be obvious"). Site has only infrequent articles on astrology but is full of comments, articles, and links of interest for critical thinkers.

http://www.indian-skeptic.org/html/index.htm Website of Indian Skeptics, the guru busters. They have a 100,000 Rupee prize for demonstration of paranormal abilities. Can statues drink milk? Can gurus really perform miracles? Is Sai Baba genuine or a fraud? Find out here. Fast, readable, but nothing specifically on astrology.

http://www.quackwatch.org/ Your guide to health fraud, quackery, and intelligent health decisions. Loads of articles on health-related frauds, myths, fads and fallacies, arranged under 37 topics from acupuncture and homeopathy to questionable books and weight control products. Articles often contain information that is difficult or impossible to get elsewhere.

http://www.randi.org/ James Randi Educational Foundation. On home page, at top left under Navigation, click Media > Encyclopedia to see James Randi's online Encyclopaedia of Frauds, Hoaxes and the Supernatural with over 700 entries from Abaris to Zombie. Includes corrections sent in by readers, and is enlivened by Randi's dry wit, for example "[X] is an ideal new age notion in that it cannot be examined, proved, or disproved".

http://www.skeptic.com/ Award-winning site of Michael Shermer and the Skeptic Society in Altadena CA. Skeptic books for sale, contents of back issues of Skeptic magazine, sample articles, and online versions of Jr Skeptic magazine for children. Site has nothing specifically on astrology but includes a list of 150+ skeptic titles recommended by readers, a survey of views on the benefits of skepticism, and online press interviews of Shermer. On home page click Reading Room to list 8 topics (debates, skepticism, science, science history, pseudoscience, religion, social forces, pseudohistory) with a total of about 150 articles, often book reviews, of which nearly 20 are on pseudoscience. Articles are listed by clickable title with a description. Site includes details of a 16-page Baloney Detection Kit designed to improve critical thinking skills, price $US5.00 plus postage.

http://www.skeptic.de/index.php3 A German bookshop (pages are in English) listing over 400 skeptic books and periodicals sorted A-Z by author with prices in euros. Can also sort by year. Covers over 230 selected fringe subjects including astrology (34 titles) but few titles are more recent than 2002. The advantage of this site is that clicking on More against a title takes you direct to reviews in English, whereas most similar sites merely take you to Amazon.

http://www.skeptic.org.uk/ Good coverage of skeptic topics, resources, and bibliographies, including contents of back issues of The Skeptic, but only a small section on astrology (has book reviews).

http://www.skeptic.ws Links to 135 skeptic organisations, and to many sites on critical thinking.

http://www.skepticalinvestigations.org/ Association for Skeptical Investigation (founded by Rupert Sheldrake). User-friendly site is rather more pro-paranormal than other skeptic sites, for example its associates include believers in Uri Geller, and it is openly skeptical of established skeptics, dismissing them as "dogmatic" (the compliment would doubtless be returned). Site is divided into five topics -- investigating skeptics, includes biographies of leading skeptics; controversies, eg extraterrestrials; open-minded research, includes biographies of leading players; scientific objectivity including fraud; resources including 7 links illustrating the good guys and bad guys in skepticism, and booklists for 13 authors sympathetic to the site's aims eg Rupert Sheldrake (such authors seldom appear in skeptic booklists). Each topic has about half a dozen articles nicely presented, most with abstracts. A good place for biographies and for finding what skeptics are supposedly not telling you, but tough going for readers unfamiliar with the territory.

http://www.snark.ca/pseudo.htm About 200 links to sites on and against pseudoscience, "the abuse of reason by the intellect".

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