The planet Uranus moves into the sign of Taurus on the 16th of May 2018- how might we expect this archetype to express itself? Let us first look at Uranus in Aries (where it moved in April 2011) to see what was happening earlier. I find that in Mundane Astrology the ‘old rules’ often apply, and one can roughly correlate sign, planet and house to mean much the same thing. Hence, in mundane forecasting, Aries can be simply mean ‘war’ or aggression (the Mars rulership) and this was especially true in early 2011 when Uranus (the planet of revolution) entered Aries, for it coincided with the start of the violent Arab Spring, a popular revolt against oppressive governments. It is thus no surprise that we also see an increase in terrorist-related incidents across the world for this period, and the statistics bear this out. On the OurWorldInData site’s graph of terrorist activity, in 2008 the total figure is at 4,803. In another three years, by 2011, it has increased to 5,071, which then quickly accelerates to a massive 16,860 in only three years. Such things have the hallmark of Uranus in Aries – something fast, fierce and unexpected.

Also, whilst we’re on the subject, one might note the popularity and interest in the possibilities of Artificial Intelligence: Uranus (digital technology and breakthroughs in science) through Aries (the head/brain). Now the digital revolution will spread to other areas: as noted, Uranus moves into Taurus in mid May 2018. But what about the last time it was there? Well, this was in April 1935 when rural life in the US became quite literally electrified (Uranus, of course, ‘rules’ electricity, whether literally, or in a more figurative sense). I’m referring to the second phase of President Roosevelt’s New Deal, which called for federal loans to bring electricity (Uranus) to serve isolated farming communities (Taurus). As Wikipedia has it

‘On May 11, 1935, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt issued Executive Order 7037, which created the Rural Electrification Administration.[1][2] In 1936, the Congress endorsed Roosevelt’s action by passing the Rural Electrification Act. At the time the Rural Electrification Act was passed, electricity was commonplace in cities but largely unavailable in farms, ranches, and other rural places.’ 1

The symbolism seems perfect! (And notice how the process got underway a mere month after Uranus moved into Taurus.) Also, in the 1930’s we have new science applied to a Taurean body part (the vocal cords), in the form of voice recognition technology. On Jan 1, 1936:

‘AT&T’s Bell Labs produced the first electronic speech synthesizer called the Voder (Dudley, Riesz and Watkins). This machine was demonstrated in the 1939 World Fairs by experts that used a keyboard and foot pedals to play the machine and emit speech.’2

Uranus remains in Taurus until 26th April, 2026. If we can say that, mundanely, Aries is about the culture of the Self, individualism versus the collective (and in some cases Civil wars, as noted) then Taurus is about the ‘things of the earth’, how we live and support ourselves materially. Hence, money and possessions, and in a particular, our economic behaviour – the ways in which we spend (or save). For one, we already have so called crypto-currencies like Bit Coin.

‘Digital currency (digital money or electronic money or electronic currency) is a type of currency available only in digital form, not in physical (such as banknotes and coins). It exhibits properties similar to physical currencies, but allows for instantaneous transactions and borderless transfer-of-ownership. Examples include virtual currencies and cryptocurrencies or even central bank issued “digital base money”. Like traditional money, these currencies may be used to buy physical goods and services, but may also be restricted to certain communities such as for use inside an online game or social network.’ 3

We will almost certainly be seeing more of the above over the next eight years – as it is Uranus-Taurus to a ‘T’: digital money. But as the revolutionary sophistication and digital advances of Uranus express themselves through slow, steady Taurus – the builder and constructor of the zodiac – we’ll see an acceleration of automation in the work place. AI systems (intelligent robots – very Uranian) will continue to replace imperfect, unreliable humans in production and assembly lines, thus reducing wage bills and making conditions safer. In the construction industry itself, there is talk of massive 3D printers which will build houses one layer at a time – and with far less costs. Uranus will also affect farming practices (with autonomous vehicles) and the forestry industry where surveillance and monitoring can occur ‘as it happens’ thereby allowing for the early detection of problems like fires or unlawful logging and occupation. In other words, smart technology brought to nature.

And according to the fascinating QuantumRun website, our experience of shopping is about to take an extra diversion (as if buying online and receiving goods the next day – no matter where you live – wasn’t enough). As indicated, the whole business of shopping and consumerism is archetypally Taurean – it’s how we supply ourselves with material goods, especially food and clothing, whether these are necessary or just luxuries. (Paying for services is more associated with Virgo, especially those which make our lives tidier, simpler, cleaner, healthier etc.) And so Uranus through Taurus may mean a revolution in consumer methods. QuantumRun predicts this new phenomenon for the fourth decade of this century:

‘By the early-2030s, everything, especially food items at supermarkets will have RFID tags (tiny, trackable, ID stickers or pellets) embedded into them. These tags are miniature microchips that wirelessly communicate with nearby sensors that then communicate with the store’s big data crunching supercomputer or cloud computing service. … Basically, everything you buy will have a computer in it, those computers will talk to each other, and they will work together to make your shopping experience, and your life, easier. As this technology becomes more widespread, shoppers will simply collect groceries into their cart and exit the supermarket without ever interacting with a cashier. The store would have registered all the items the shopper selected remotely before leaving the premises and charged the shopper automatically via his or her preferred payment app on their phone. This process will save shoppers a great deal of time and lead to a reduction in food prices overall, due largely to the supermarket not needing to mark up their produce to pay for cashiers and security.’4

If replacing cashiers altogether sounds a little too far fetched, the authors at QuantumRun note that Amazon have already piloted a scheme (in January 2018), one that’s been described as the new ‘checkout-free corner shop’:

‘Amazon recently opened a grocery store [in Seattle, Washington, USA] called Amazon Go, that hopes to make our opening scenario a reality about a decade ahead of schedule. Amazon customers can simply enter an Amazon Go location by scanning in their phone, pick out the products they want, leave, and have their grocery bill automatically debited from their Amazon account.’5

The experience of entering a shop, being tracked by various sensors (so that your purchases are recorded digitally) then putting the goods in your shopping bag and walking out – as people have said – feels weird! But the future of retailing is already with us – and it’s all due to Uranus in Taurus!!

1. Wikipedia

2. http://www.dragon-medical-transcription.com/history_speech_recognition_timeline.html

3..Wikipedia
4. http://www.quantumrun.com/prediction/e-commerce-dies-click-and-mortar-takes-its-place-future-retail-p3

5. ibid.

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