Two years ago, the world and their mammy were taking part in the Ice Bucket Challenge - one of the first viral charity campaigns that saw individuals pour a bucket of ice cold water over themselves on camera and then nominate other people to do the same.
Everyone who did it then text a donation to their country's ALS charity - which helped sufferers of the neurological disorder Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Motor Neurone Disease or Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
It took off to an incredible rate with celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, Tom Cruise, Benedict Cumberbatch, Taylor Swift, Ben Affleck, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Zuckerberg and more, all getting involved. Even Homer Simpson did it.
Some were cynical about the viral campaign, feeling it was merely 'slacktivism', but you know what, it actually worked and raised an incredible $100m that went into funding some vital research projects, one of which had quite the breakthrough this week.
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Project MinE, a large data-driven initiative funded by the ALS Association through the ice bucket challenge donations, has now identified a new gene associated with the disease that could lead to a cure.
Brian Frederick, executive vice-president of communications and development at the ALS Association, said; "It’s very exciting because it shows everyone who contributed to the ice bucket challenge that their donation had an impact on the research.
"The work that Project MinE is doing is really important, and the discovery of this new gene will help us better understand ALS."
Frederick went on to say; "It helps us understand what’s triggering this and can help us better find a treatment," although he added; "It’s still very early in our understanding of this particular gene, and we still have a ways to go with understanding ALS generally."
It's still extremely positive news for all those suffering with the disease out there, and also fantastic to see the amazing genuine impact the Ice Bucket Challenge had.
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And you know, also nice that we got the likes of this out of it too...
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