Call for Ideas: Scientific Studies of Astrology, Tarot, or Magic

[R. Eugene Laughlin]

Conversation in the Dump Astrology thread got me to thinking about the history of scientific publication of effects that are naturally of interest to the population here. As it happens, I'm in a position to design and conduct a scientific study (of any sort) during the current academic year, with a handy subject-pool of about 200 college students (mostly freshman of various majors), and the potential for a few hundred more of all academic ranks and majors.

To do so, I'll have to design a study with enough procedural detail to submit to an institutional ethical review board, by January. I'm not interested in trying to replicate previous studies that remain controversial. Rather, I'm interested in addressing one or more questions of interest to the community here using a novel approach. I'm willing to include the community here in the design, planning, and implementation of the study, if there's interest.

So, what research questions would you like to see investigated?