Written By: Nirmalya Dutta | Published : December 31, 2014 3:47 PM IST
Google tipped its hat to the last day of the year with an interactive doodle that celebrated the major trends of the year which included the FIFA World Cup 2014 in Brazil, Elections 2014, PM Modi and the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was inarguably one of the biggest trend points of the year. Everyone from former US President George Bush to avant-garde actor Benedict Cumberbatch took part in the challenge.
According to the ALS foundation, they managed to raise a total of $220 million, which means that no one has ever raised this much money through social media. 'We are still trying to make sense of it,' said ALS Association spokesman Brian Frederick. 'It was such an overwhelming positive outpouring. We are trying to keep the momentum going.' (Read: You've heard about the Ice Bucket Challenge but what is ALS?)
The online bucket challenge alone raised $115 million 20 times the amount raised last year and year-end checks totalled $32 million. Frederick added: 'The public awareness raised has been fantastic. Before the Ice Bucket Challenge, the only thing people knew about ALS was that Lou Gehrig had it.' (Read: Original Star Wars cast takes the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge!)
What are they going to do with all the money?
One question on everyone's mind is what the ALS Association going to do with some much money? Their website says that will use the new grants to fund research projects on ALS including weight loss, mindfulness and cognitive or behavioural changes.
The website added: 'The research funded by these grants, which will benefit both people with ALS and their caregivers, are in the areas of reducing unwanted weight loss in people with ALS, using mindfulness techniques to improve quality of life for both those with ALS and their caregivers, and assessing the extra burden on the caregiver when their loved one with ALS has cognitive and behavioral impairments.'
'These important studies will help develop interventions that may offer real benefits to people living with ALS and their caregivers,' said Lucie Bruijn, Ph.D., M.B.A., Chief Scientist for The Association. 'Treatment of ALS requires many different kinds of approaches, and these studies provide the opportunity to develop yet more strategies to meet the needs of those affected by the disease.'
Photo source: Getty images
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