Groundhogs Lousy at Predictions; Will a Chinese Zodiac Rabbit Be Any Better?

Animals may be good at some things, but fortune-telling may not be one of them.

For all the attention Americans pay to a certain rodent who goes by the nickname "Punxsutawney Phil" each and every Groundhog Day, you'd think that the little buggers would have a better track record at forecasting the weather.

In truth, however, the groundhogs that have been cast in the role of Phil since 1887 have a lowly 39 percent accuracy rate when it comes to telling us whether winter will drag on for another six weeks, LiveScience reports.

This year's shadow-chasing ceremony -- held as a massive blizzard engulfed roughly one-third of the nation -- came just one day before the arrival of a different calendar event marking the arrival of yet another fortune-telling creature. Thursday ushers in the Year of the Rabbit, according to the Chinese zodiac.

So now that the groundhog has positively declared that spring is on its way early, what does the rabbit have to say about the rest of the year?

To hear adherents of Chinese astrology tell it, 2011 will be a "nurturing time of peace, tranquility and rest," according to Online Chinese Astrology's long-term horoscope (but don't tell that to the demonstrators in Cairo's Tahrir Square).

Of course, Phil may be right about an early spring this year. What with Al Gore's explanation that severe winter storms are themselves a side effect of global warming, a quick warm-up is perfectly logical. And maybe the Year of the Rabbit will indeed portend a more peaceful world in 2011, ushered in by a relatively bloodless transition of power in several Arab states.

Come to think of it, maybe, to borrow a phrase from one of Surge Desk's favorite films, we should endeavor to "talk to the animals" even more than we do already.

Or maybe animal prognostication is best left to the movies.

More Coverage From Surge Desk:
Al Gore: Blizzard of 2011 May Be Tied to Global Warming
5 (Perhaps Unlikely) Signs of the Apocalypse
Year of the Rabbit: 5 Facts About the Chinese Astrological Sign for 2011

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