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Help raise money for nonprofits by answering questions on WikiAnswers

Hey friends and family,

We at WikiAnswers are holding our second AnswerThon next month, and we're adding a special community twist.
Last time, the person who contributed the most answers won a big prize.
This time, we are working with 5 non-profit organizations to help them raise money.


Here's how it works:

1. Register here. You'll need to create a WikiAnswers username so that we can keep track of your contributions.

2. Pick a team - that's the non-profit you're playing for. There are 5 to choose from and you can read about them here.

3. Get familiar with WikiAnswers so that come July 26...

4. you can sign in with your username and answer as many questions as possible over the weekend. Answers must be at least 3 sentences long to count (no "I don't know" or "Google it!" answers will be considered in your total). The more questions you answer, the more points your non-profit team scores.

5. The non-profits with the most questions answered will receive a HUGE donation - and you made it possible.


Here is the prize list...

The FIRST PLACE charity, with participants who answer the most questions in two days, will receive a $5,000 donation.

The SECOND PLACE charity will receive a $1,500 donation.

The THIRD PLACE charity will receive a $500 donation.

The top 10 individual contributors who answer the most questions according to the rules of the AnswerThon will each receive an official WikiAnswers t-shirt.

Our team worked really hard to put this together and the non-profits deserve every penny. (And of course it's just fun to answer questions... no matter who you are or what your specialty, you always have knowledge or wisdom to contribute about something.) So...

Please sign up and mark your calendars for July 26!

Thanks,
Shaya

Send him up!

There's this tenacious guy, Michel Fournier, who wants to break the sound barrier with his own body. He wants to jump out of a hot air balloon from an altitude of 130,000 feet. So far he hasn't been able to get off the ground... he's persistent, though.

A month ago, I didn't know he existed. Now that I know, I really want it to work out for him (but yeah, honestly, it's a me thing. I need to see him make this incredible jump).

During his most recent attempt (in May), much of his financial investment blew away when his balloon took off without him. So I started a site, SendHimUp, to help contribute to the next round. Maybe, just maybe, this will be The One.

You can read more about him at his site, Le Grand Saut (the Great Jump).

Caption contest

Got a good caption for this pic? Leave a comment! The winning caption will be added to this image and posted here.

Something Weird on Wikipedia

This was Wikipedia's home page this morning. Looks like Jerusalem's Zion Square to me. A quick refresh and — voila! — Back to the standard homepage.

Man's Best Friend ... but not his smartest

You know the phrase 'the dog ate my homework.'

Well, today the dog ate my razor. Or tried to. No worries, he's ok. He seemed to realize the razor part was bad. Detached it from the handle. Chewed up the handle.

I came home today, did the usual search for damage, found the handle in one room... searched the entire house for the blade. Was afraid to step on it. Finally found the blade in the living room, next to several chewy bits of blue plastic. Dog was fine. Amazing.

Harry Potter 7

I didn't pre-order it (lazy me). I didn't wait on line. And I didn't knock over any children desperate to get their hands on the final tome of this 7-book saga.

I also didn't see the books when I walked into the store.

I popped out of work on this sunny Sunday morning to pick up a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. There was a skip in my step as I approached the bookstore. Expecting to see the windows filled with HP book covers and fans in lines down the hallway, I was a little surprised to find the shop nearly empty - and devoid of a visible stack of HP hardcovers.

Afraid of the answer, I asked timidly if there were any copies left. A chipper sales lady replied, "Oh, sure. We're just opening another box," and dipped into a cardboard box with BLOOMSBURY printed on the side. I'd found my stack, at last.

In Israel, where American movies and ice cream flavors tend to put on a belated appearance, Harry Potter arrived on time and in no hurry.