The zodiac system was developed over four thousand years ago, and this method of personalized counsel has influenced the human race for centuries. The twelve signs, Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius are all categorized into the elements of Earth, Air, Water and Fire.
These trine signs share similar characteristics and astrologers base their predictions off of this simple behavioral format. Admittedly, this method of self-improvement and future-telling is often criticized. Skeptics insist that astrologers and horoscope aficionados "Prove it!" I offer a question in response: "Can you disprove it?"
Most Americans know their sign. They confess their sign with an array of emotions; they are either eager to discuss their sign, or they sheepishly state their birthday. The former are horoscope followers, and the latter are skeptics.
The disbelief is valid; how can the stars affect personality? How can astrologers predict the week to come, according to each sign? Confirmation bias (defined as "the tendency to favor information in a way that confirms one's preexisting beliefs or hypotheses") is the main argument against the zodiac.
Of course, we identify with our sign; we decide how we act, and "inherently" behave accordingly to the personality predictions. We read our weekly horoscopes and pick and choose what we apply to ourselves. However, broad descriptions of the signs' personalities are rarely off-base.
After 4000 years, not a single individual has disproven the zodiac system. In fact, it is objectively intuitive to assume that people born around the same time of the year encounter the same basic phases of the human experience.
This blurs the line between nature and nurture; we cannot change our birthdays and test how we would behave if we were born in May versus December. We cannot experiment with reality, so we can neither confirm nor deny the influence that birthday has on personality.
Despite the skeptics, the zodiac system will persist beyond our lifetimes. There has been no definitive proof that this method is false. I understand the seemingly "ridiculous" predictions, but I demand that, before critics scoff at the stars, they take the time to understand the zodiac and the complex details of the system.
Happy Scorpio Season!
