Wikipedia is awesome and amazing. To think that hundreds of thousands (millions?) of people volunteered their time to contribute to what is essentially a compendium of human knowledge is inspiring. The web site is on their annual fund drive, so I took a moment to contribute. I’ve used the site at least weekly for years, and I feel like I need to give back in some small way. And it’s sure cheaper than buying a set of encyclopedias a decade ago!
The thank-you page has a cool banner:
One might argue there’s a bit of hyperbole here, but it’s not that far from the truth. Wikipedia is, in fact, free access to human knowledge. The last time that might have happened was at the Library of Alexandria. In the last century– heck, even the last decade– such a thing was unthinkable. And yet here we are. Wikipedia demonstrates the power of the internet and of human cooperation.
Take a minute and send a donation.