As we have the past few years, the folks here at ScienceBlogs will be running a fundraiser for the educational charity DonorsChoose. If you haven't been around for the past versions, the way it works is you go to their site via my challenge page, and review proposals submitted by teachers asking for funds to buy materials or put on programs that would benefit their students. If you find one you like, you give them money, and that money goes directly to the teacher making the request, to fund the proposed items.
Because everything's more fun when it's competitive, there's a challenge aspect to this: we each set a fundraising goal, and they provide nifty little widgets to track the progress:
There's also a ScienceBlogs leaderboard, so you can see how the various blogs are doing at meeting their goals.
My fundraising goal is set at $6,000, the same as last year. We didn't make it last year, but I think it's a reasonable target. In an effort to encourage donations, I'll offer a few incentives for donations, so you can get something semi-tangible for your efforts:
For a $50 donation, I'll write a blog post responding to any reasonable question, within 24 hours of asking it. (The constraint is more to keep me honest, so I don't let these drag on and on for weeks.) You might not get a deep and well-thought-out answer in that time, but that just makes it more entertaining.
For a $150 donation, I'll write a dog dialogue on a topic you suggest (these are difficult to do, so I'll ask for three suggested topics, and choose one), within one month of the donation. If you've ever wanted to know what Emmy thinks of thermodynamics, or Sarah Palin, or deep-fried bacon-wrapped cheese balls, here's your chance to find out.
For a $300 donation, I'll send you a copy of the latest complete draft of the Bunnies Made of Cheese book (actual title TBA), in which I explain quantum mechanics through conversations with Emmy.
So, here's a chance to do some good, and win some stuff. If you've got disposable cash left after this disastrous week (or you need to get your money out of a failing bank, and can't fit that last few dollars under the mattress), please consider donating.
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As a separate incentive, I am raffling off a completed cross-stitch of an American Southwest-themed still life. Details here.
I should note that if you want to claim one or more of the incentive offers, you can do so by forwarding the confirmation email from DonorsChoose to me, at orzelc at steelypips dot org.
At least two people have qualified for one of the offers, so feel free to claim your reward.