Electional Astrology and Decision Making
Objective
To rigorously test the core tenets of Electional Astrology (the art of choosing the "perfect time" to start a venture) against real-world financial outcomes.
Does the moment a company is born (IPO Date) determine its destiny?
Research Question
Can we predict the long-term success or failure of a public company based solely on the astrological quality of its incorporation or IPO date?
Specifically, we test three ancient rules:
- The Lunar Cycle: Do businesses started during a Waxing Moon grow faster than those started during a Waning Moon?
- Retrogrades: Does listing during Mercury Retrograde correlate with failure, delisting, or poor returns?
- Benefic Aspects: Do positive angles (Trines/Conjunctions) between the Sun and Jupiter and other combinations correlate with market outperformance?
Methodology
Instead of analyzing a few cherry-picked examples, this project employs a Big Data Approach:
- Dataset: 10,000+ publicly traded companies (NASDAQ/NYSE).
- Data Retrieval: Python scripts scraping Yahoo Finance historical data.
- Astro-Engine: High-precision Swiss Ephemeris (
pyswisseph) calculations for every single day of market history. - Metrics: 1-Year ROI (Return on Investment) and Market Cap survival rates.
This project moves astrology from anecdotal evidence to statistical validation using modern data science techniques.
Data Provenance
Stock Market IPOs
- Source: Wikipedia (List of S&P 500 Companies).
- Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_S%26P_500_companies