Carbonate minerals have been found on the red planet by Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Says the project scientist on MRO, Richard Zurek, "If you preserve carbonates on the surface then you know carbon-bearing compounds can survive in some environments on the planet, [...] That means there are some places we can go and look for evidence for past life - if it ever existed." More and more people have been taking their cell phones to the grave. At a University of Michigan lab, artificial human bone marrow was created in a test tube! The marrow can continuously make red and white blood cells which could lead to "simpler pharmaceutical drug testing, closer study of immune system defects and a continuous supply of blood for transfusions." A woman from Connecticut was recently awarded with $198,000 when she sued her dentist for giving her "HORSE TEETH" when he'd promised her a "big, beautiful Hollywood celebrity smile," instead! We're looking for the photos! When Reddington Christian Church decided to set up a spotlight representing the star of Bethlehem as part of their nativity scene, a several people mistook it as a UFO! Sightings of a purple squirrel have been reported at a school in Hampshire! I'm guessing ...

Happy new year from all here at Sitting Now. We have some great new stuff lined up for next year including new shows, live shows, new site and some great guests! But we thought, what better way to see out the new year, than by getting our writers and contributors to reveal their best bits of 2008!:     Ken Eakins - Editor/Show host Best Book of 2008 - CounterKnowledge - Damian thompson Best Film of 2008 - Il y a longtemps que je t'aime (I've Loved You So Long) Best Album of 2008 - Xaphan: Book of Angels, Volume 9 - John Zorn and Secret Chiefs 3 Best Event of 2008 - Fortean Times Uncovention Best Story of 2008 - Anonymous vs. Scientology   Claire Lumiere - Writer/Show Host Best Book of 2008 - Looking back, I think I really only read things from the past. Hardly anything published this year. How about Naomi Klein's Shock Doctrine? That may be the only 2008 book I read. Best Film of 2008 - Religulous Best Album of 2008 - Xaphan: Book of Angels, Volume 9 - John Zorn and Secret Chiefs 3 Best Event of 2008 - I didn't go to any real events this year. Best Story of 2008 - I couldn't get over the story about the geek couple that split after the ...

A cat named Cooper from Seattle spent one day a week over the course of a year with a camera around his neck to document his neighborhood excursions. His caretakers Deirdre and Michael Cross, photographers and filmmakers themselves, were interested to find such beauty in the photographs that Cooper's camera took- 1 picture every two minutes. Cooper's pictures will be featured on Animals Planet's series Cat's 101 on Saturday.  Click here to see a gallery of Cooper's shots. _______________________________________________________________________ It should come as no shock that with the rising popularity of plastic surgery it would soon become possible and perhaps even commonplace over the years for the more affluent, to have it done on the dead. Nowadays, people who want to look good for their funeral (which they will attend, in their open casket)- can look forward to being beautified before hand by botox and collagen! _______________________________________________________________________ A Chinese boy survived having an arrow shot through his eye last week and is now being treated for shock. The boy lucked out as the arrow narrowly missed the brain and hit the back of his skull rather than coming out the back. _______________________________________________________________________ Even Visa CEOs lose their credit cards every now and ...

  YES! Good work gents (there are no Girls/Women on the Internet...as well all know). From Encyclopedia Dramatica:   Encyclopedia Dramatica won the 2nd Annual Mashable Open Web Awards for the wiki category. With your help and that of our Dark Lord and Master, we have defeated the menace that is Wikipedia! Thanks to everyone for voting in our favor and intimidating our enemies!   This is great news and a far cry from the near-closure of the site that we reported earlier this year. I still maintain ED to be the funniest site on these Internets, and it's great to finally see Wikipedia getting the bashing it so sorely deserves!      

This sucks; from www.purepwnage.com:   It is with great sadness that we bring you this news. Troy Dixon lost his life in a car accident on Saturday night. He will be remembered for his warmth and kindness, and for the laughter he was able to bring to this world. Whether he was on the stage of a comedy club or in front of a camera, Troy was truly in his element as an entertainer. He will be missed dearly by his friends, family, and all of us at Pure Pwnage. We're grateful to have had the opportunity to know him.     I'm a really big fan of this show (i play CounterStrike...there...I said it!), and Troy's charecter 'T-Bag' was really funny. Pure Pwnage is a great example of the Internet empowering young artists, giving them a massive audience and taking back television.     We at SittingNow send our sympathies to the family of Troy and the cast and crew of Pure Pwnage.

  George T. Mortimer is the editor and webmaster of the amazing Media Underground, as well as being the author of The Probationer's Handbook, and The Key of it All. Each week Mort will be teaching you ways of keeping 'The Man' on his toes, and all from the comfort of your home.     Mortimer's Guide To Armchair Anarchy #4              "TV Licence Resistance"           One afternoon back in 2004 my telephone rang...   "Hello?"   "Mr. Mortimer?"   "Who wants to know?"    "Television Licensing. You don't seem to have a TV license registered at your address."    "I wasn't aware that I needed one. You see, I don't have a television."   "Okay, we'll update our records to reflect this, however, we'll need to send out one of our colleagues to confirm this."   "Don't you believe me?"   "It's not that we don't believe you, it's just that statistically 99% of people who claim not to have a television actually do have one."   "Are you calling me a liar?"   "Not at all, we just need to confirm some details."   "And how are you going to achieve this?"   "One of our colleagues will come round to your door within the next seven days."   "And how are they going to gain access to my property?"   "Well, we'd hope you'd let them ...

Glasgow venues are throwing their doors open to the alternative and subversive in 2009. The Hinterland Festival, the first of its kind in Scotland, is a 'town take-over' style multi-venue music and arts festival:    April 2009 will see a brand new arts and music event the likes of which has never been seen in Glasgow before. Hinterland’s primary aim is to showcase established and upcoming Scottish talent – as well as some of the UK’s best emerging and established talent – across 20 art and music venues in Glasgow.    Although none of the acts have been announced as of yet, you can be sure that the lineup will be eclectic.   The festival also has some pretty interesting organisers and sponsers ranging from Rock a Rolla magazine to the This is Fake DIY record label.   The event has been getting some great  coverage and even interviews with cool scottish musicians like Mandarin from BIS and Roddy Woomble from Idlewild. Be sure to keep an eye on their site, and we'll keep you up to date with any new developments.

A Turkish inmate in Western Germany escaped from prison recently by hiding in a cardboard box that was promptly mailed off. The drug dealer made his escape by cutting a hole as soon as it made it out of the premises and has still not been found.   A geek couple has divorced over the computer game Second Life after wife Amy caught her husband David cheating on her- digitally! In the game, people lead alternative existences with self-created personas - or avatars – which are generally a more suave and sophisticated or attractive version of themselves. When Amy caught her husband making love to a pixelized prostitute, she hired an online private investigator to check on David’s digital infidelity. So it went, David had been “seeing” an American virtual girl for two weeks. The couple divorced for “unreasonable behavior.” flying lemur species have been found! Due to a split in the species, which is actually the species of an acrobatic primate- these “lemurs” have evolved to glide!   In El Paso, Texas, the parents of students on a dance team laced the contents of a baked goods basket for a rival team with bleach and rat poison! Though the food was ...

George T. Mortimer is the editor and webmaster of the amazing Media Underground, as well as being the author of The Probationer's Handbook, and The Key of it All. Each week Mort will be teaching you ways of keeping 'The Man' on his toes, and all from the comfort of your home.   Fun With Finances     A few weeks ago the fixed rate on my mortgage ran out resulting in a rather alarming increase in my monthly repayments to the Halifax Bank Of Scotland (soon to be laughably called Lloyds Trustees Savings Halifax Bank Of Scotland - or something as equally ludicrous due to recent bailout plans). Being the ever-vigilant little investor that I am – and realising the implications that the current economic crisis will have on mortgage rates - I decided to schedule an appointment with the bank to negotiate another fix rate mortgage for a few more years.   The offer they presented to me was reasonable, I thought, until I asked if there were any additional charges.   “It’s £999,” remarked the mortgage advisor as calm as you like, “for transferring from a variable rate to a fixed rate for 5 years.”   “A grand!” I exclaimed. “But I’m not transferring to anywhere, I’m already a goddamned existing ...

Taylor Ellwood is the author of Pop Culture Magick, Space/Time Magic, Inner Alchemy, Multi-Media Magic and Kink Magic (co-written with Lupa). Taylor is also the managing non-fiction editor for Immanion Press and a Teacher of experimental magic at the Growing Edge Institute. For more information about Taylor, please visit The Green Wolf or Magical Experiments   The Evolution of Magic   When I get the occasional interview from a podcast or magazine, one misperception I often need to correct is the association people make with my work and chaos magic. I suppose because chaos magic used to be the latest current of magic and one that seemingly represented avant garde magic, people find it easier to lump my work into chaos magic. Admittedly, at one time I briefly identified as a chaote, but in the last five or so years, I came to recognize that Chaos Magic wasn't quite the apt descriptor of what I do. While some of the practices I utilize are derived from Chaos Magic, I also draw much more extensively on Ceremonial and Hermetic practices as well as Far Eastern techniques. Even more importantly, much of my magical practice is now derived from disciplines that have little if any overt ...