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Reading Rainbow Kickstarter Earns One Million Dollars In Less Than a Day

Posted by samzenpus on from the bucks-for-books dept.

An anonymous reader writes "LeVar Burton and the rest of the Reading Rainbow crew opened a Kickstarter campaign to bring back Reading Rainbow yesterday, with the ambitious goal of collecting a million dollars for their cause. They are now at almost two million dollars, with over a month left to go. 'This Kickstarter campaign is about reaching every web-connected child. Universal access. Thousands of more books than what we have now. And hundreds of more video field trips,' Burton said."

114 of 164 comments (clear)

  1. Well done, sir by geekoid · · Score: 4

    Well done.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    1. Re:Well done, sir by Spudboy2003 · · Score: 2

      I just donated. LeVar seems like a cool dude to me.

    2. Re:Well done, sir by Sarius64 · · Score: 1

      What a great project! All please consider supporting the new Reading Rainbow!

    3. Re:Well done, sir by frisket · · Score: 1

      Presumably "everywhere" means "everywhere in the USA". Which is fair enough, seeing as the literacy rate needs improving. I've never heard of "Reading Rainbow" unless it refers to atmospheric conditions over Slough. But LeVar Burton is a dude, and if he supports it, it's OK by me.

  2. Two Problems by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 3, Interesting

    As much as I loved Reading Rainbow growing up, I have two problems with this:

    1. If you go to their website, nothing indicates this is a non-profit corporation.
    2. None of the people involved has a background in education, child development, psychology, etc.

    1. Re: Two Problems by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      But LeVar has a really cool visor.

    2. Re:Two Problems by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      1. In my experience non-profits rarely are. Does not being a non-profit corporation make it difficult for them to deliver on their goals?
      2. Was a background in education, child development, and psychology critical to the original's success?

      Are they actual problems, or just your preferences?

    3. Re:Two Problems by sexconker · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Beyond that, it's following the typical blockbuster kickstarter pattern of asking for some palatable/marketable amount $X, with no real plan on how to use / why they need $X specifically. Then they hit $X and start asking for $Y more for "stretch goals" before they even figure out what to do with $X.

      People who have to use their own money / satisfy investors / secure a loan tend to plan ahead and think about how much they need and why.
      People who have their hand out tend to ask for whatever they can get and think about how to spend it later.

    4. Re:Two Problems by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      >> 2. None of the people involved has a background in education, child development, psychology, etc.

      Maybe that's a good thing? Maybe our education systems are broken due to the type of people educating our children. I'm optimistic these people have their heart in the right place and are going to be committed to their cause.

    5. Re:Two Problems by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      What you see as problem #2, I see as feature #1.

      Look at the crap being peddled in schools today. Think any of that makes kids want to read? Maybe it takes people outside the broken system to accomplish a goal the system cannot.

    6. Re:Two Problems by just_another_sean · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Yeah, except this guy is not a dim wit and my Star Trek fanboy nonsense aside, go take a look at his record. LeVar Burton has been involved in encouraging kids to read and generally expand their knowledge since the 80's. He's not doing this for himself, he genuinely cares about this. He's by no means a a multi-bajillionaire from working in Hollywood but he certainly doesn't need the money (is he even getting anything out of this other than some facetime on the interwebs?).

      If he can use some of his geek cache to help kids get an education outside of our broken school system than more power to him. This isn't Madonna or Angelina adopting a kid from Somali because it's suddenly fashionable to do so, this is a guy who has been passionate about kids education since he was young lending his semi-famous name to a good and worthy cause.

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    7. Re:Two Problems by troll+-1 · · Score: 1

      why so many problems, my friend? what's wrong with making a profit? somebody told me pyschology is a psuedo science. what do you think of that?

    8. Re:Two Problems by Charliemopps · · Score: 1

      As much as I loved Reading Rainbow growing up, I have two problems with this:

      1. If you go to their website, nothing indicates this is a non-profit corporation.
      2. None of the people involved has a background in education, child development, psychology, etc.

      You also have no reason to believe that being non-profit or having a background in education will in any way further their goals.

    9. Re:Two Problems by The+Grim+Reefer · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Yeah, except this guy is not a dim wit and my Star Trek fanboy nonsense aside, go take a look at his record. LeVar Burton has been involved in encouraging kids to read and generally expand their knowledge since the 80's. He's not doing this for himself, he genuinely cares about this. He's by no means a a multi-bajillionaire from working in Hollywood but he certainly doesn't need the money (is he even getting anything out of this other than some facetime on the interwebs?).

      If he can use some of his geek cache to help kids get an education outside of our broken school system than more power to him. This isn't Madonna or Angelina adopting a kid from Somali because it's suddenly fashionable to do so, this is a guy who has been passionate about kids education since he was young lending his semi-famous name to a good and worthy cause.

      I have to agree with you on damn near everything you stated. But I do take exception to your statement regarding Angelina Jolie. She started adopting kids before it was fashionable. Much to her chagrin, she's probably part of the reason that doing so has become fashionable.

    10. Re:Two Problems by Culture20 · · Score: 1

      2. None of the people involved has a background in education, child development, psychology, etc.

      Like the jackasses who have been steadily ruining education for decades? Children have been learning to read from non-education-specialists for hundreds (if not thousands) of years.

    11. Re:Two Problems by just_another_sean · · Score: 5, Informative

      Fair enough, I really don't have enough information to make that statement so it was probably unfair. I think what I was remembering (not big on E-News!) is people comparing Madonna to her as if Madonna was trying to one up her and just kind of mashed the two of them into one single "thing". Mad props to Angelina if I'm that misinformed. Hell, whatever her intentions, if Madonna helped even one kid live a better life than more power to her too. My bad for using them to make my point about LeVar.

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    12. Re:Two Problems by rmdingler · · Score: 2
      It's not that I don't hope all is well and on the up and up with this seemingly charitable fundraiser.

      I certainly do.

      But, there is a reason Madison Avenue uses celebrity spokespersons to sell you cheerios and adult diapers.

      --
      Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.

      Ernest Hemingway

    13. Re:Two Problems by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1, Informative

      1. No, but if you want to make a commercial enterprise, don't come looking to me for a free hand out to get it started.
      2. Yes, the original Reading Rainbow was created and produced by Dr. Twila Liggett who had a PhD in education and was supported by the college of education at the University of Nebraska.

    14. Re:Two Problems by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1

      Nothing wrong with making a profit. There is something wrong with asking me for a handout to do so. So kickstarters accept all the risk if it fails, but Levar Burton gets all the money if it succeeds?

    15. Re:Two Problems by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1

      If I'm building a bridge, I better hire some engineers, because it's not going to stay up just because my heart is in the right place.

    16. Re:Two Problems by just_another_sean · · Score: 1

      What's Kickstarter's risk? It seems to me it's our risk to take as contributors and if you can get hundreds, thousands or even tens of thousands of people to contribute than the risk is spread pretty thin. I donated, if it fails than I will certainly be disappointed, but I won't be that upset over losing a few bucks.

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    17. Re:Two Problems by just_another_sean · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Sorry, misunderstood your comment. After re-reading I guess you meant kickstarters as referring to the contributors, not the site. But, my point about low risk by spreading it thin still stands. After all, this isn't being funded by tax payers, no one is forcing anyone to jump on board.

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    18. Re:Two Problems by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      And yet, as soon as you go beyond the two-maybe-three-children-in-a-kitchen-setting, you'll find that even way back at the Roman empire, you'd find professional teacher and schools.

      It's easy to bash things if you don't know anything about what it actually involves. And, no, attending school doesn't count as experience. Just because you've used a bridge doesn't mean that you know how to actually build one. Yes, you know the basics and what a bridge should look like. But the devil is in the details.

    19. Re: Two Problems by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      And if you donate $10,000 he will let you wear the visor briefly.

    20. Re:Two Problems by Darinbob · · Score: 4, Funny

      "Common Core Rainbow" just doesn't make for a good theme song.

    21. Re: Two Problems by just_another_sean · · Score: 1

      You do know that Brent Spiner and Patrick Stewart used to rub their balls with the visor before every episode?

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    22. Re:Two Problems by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1

      Considering their business plan appears to be based around getting schools to pay for access to this new online version of Reading Rainbow, it may very well end up being funded by tax payers.

    23. Re: Two Problems by William-Ely · · Score: 1

      I would wash it first. It's been on Patrick Stewart's balls. http://www.freshhellseries.com...

      --
      Mod me down with all of your hatred, and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!
    24. Re:Two Problems by compro01 · · Score: 2

      2. Yes, the original Reading Rainbow was created and produced by Dr. Twila Liggett who had a PhD in education and was supported by the college of education at the University of Nebraska.

      There seem to be more people than names. There are 6 more people in the team picture on KS than are named in the team bios on the site.

      Could be one or more of them is the educator behind the scenes.

      --
      upon the advice of my lawyer, i have no sig at this time
    25. Re:Two Problems by Strange+Ranger · · Score: 1

      > People who have to use their own money / satisfy investors / secure a loan tend to plan ahead and think about how much they need and why.
      People who have their hand out tend to ask for whatever they can get and think about how to spend it later.

      Sure. Clever phrasing. The first group is satisfying self interests. The second is hoping to do something charitable or somehow beneficial to others, and still be able to buy groceries. We have different spreadsheets. For instance everyone who's not Levar Burton of TV fame.

      --

      Operator, give me the number for 911!
    26. Re:Two Problems by Flozzin · · Score: 1

      I agree.
      If you don't have some sort of degree in education, child development, psychology, ect, you are incapable of teaching anyone anything, ever. Only those with the proper certificates, and have spent thousands of dollars towards their education in said areas, have any possible hope of someone learning something from them. I never learned anything from my parents, who didn't have degrees in any field, or my grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, friend's parents, ect. Anyone that has taught me anything has had the proper certificates, plaques, degrees to prove that they themselves can teach and be learned from. So it has been since the beginning of time. Since God, who himself had all of the proper degrees, graduated Adam, the first person, and, the first person ever to earn a doctorate.

      --
      "Cowardice in a race, as in an individual, is the unpardonable sin." --Teddy Roosevelt
    27. Re:Two Problems by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      If even the crappiest military-inspired movies or tv shows can afford a military adviser I'm sure these guys could hire at least one person with a degree in child development or education.

    28. Re:Two Problems by bberens · · Score: 4, Informative

      1. No, but if you want to make a commercial enterprise, don't come looking to me for a free hand out to get it started.

      I thought that was the whole point of kickstarter. I don't think many of them are non-profits. This is just seed money for an educational semi-startup.

      --
      Check out my lame java blog at www.javachopshop.com
    29. Re:Two Problems by Flozzin · · Score: 3, Funny

      How dare they charge for learning material they create. Hopefully it won't catch on, and the rest of the materials and curriculum's schools use will remain free, as it always has been.

      --
      "Cowardice in a race, as in an individual, is the unpardonable sin." --Teddy Roosevelt
    30. Re: Two Problems by gnu-sucks · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Unless, of course, all the bridges built by engineers have fallen way below specification.

      You don't need a PhD to raise children, even though there are plenty of schools with developmental psychology PhD programs...

      You don't have to be a chef to cook great food, not an ASE certified mechanic to change your own transmission. Been there, done that.

      In my view, there couldn't be any worse qualification to teach children than a degree, of all things. If you think a wall of diplomas or a long list of publications qualifies you to teach, you're out of your mind and clearly do not understand what this and similar efforts are really about.

    31. Re:Two Problems by joemck · · Score: 1

      Well, the '90s iteration of it *worked*. It taught kids to read, and got them to read. It obviously isn't a comprehensive literacy education, but it doesn't have to be. If it can get kids interested enough to pick up a book and read, it'll be a success. Unless there's reason to believe the current go-around isn't going to be done as well, I say let them have a go at it.

    32. Re: Two Problems by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Wow, where should I send those 10 gran... I mean, that's disgusting!

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    33. Re:Two Problems by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      > I think the person to whom you replied is Bill Cosby, PhD.

      The question still holds. Throwing around a credential or a famous name doesn't alter that.

      Is this a real problem or just nonsense from idiots?

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    34. Re:Two Problems by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      I dunno? Maybe we put it in the hands of the guy that hosted it during it's entire original run?

      To sum up the man's own words: "This is about passion, not mechanics'.

      Your elitism is unconvincing. The "permissions society" you seem to pine for is unwanted.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    35. Re:Two Problems by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      I don't need to know how to build a bridge to know when one has been built badly.

      It's like your piss poor argument. Probably a product of the teacher indoctrination apparatus.

      Your elitism is hardly convincing.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    36. Re: Two Problems by Wescotte · · Score: 4, Funny

      They should probably bump it up to a $20,000 donation then.

    37. Re: Two Problems by KingOfBLASH · · Score: 1

      LOL +1 funny

    38. Re:Two Problems by KingOfBLASH · · Score: 1

      Except with a kick starter campaign you actually get something.

      You're not an investor. You're a customer doing a preorder. Sure there's usually a $1 feel good about yourself donation, but the vast majority of the cash on successful kickstarter campaigns come from people BUYING something.

    39. Re:Two Problems by beckett · · Score: 4, Funny

      can't let your kids grow up with poor trigger discipline, that's just wrong.

    40. Re: Two Problems by forand · · Score: 1

      Thanks to you both for being good reasonable people. Props to you both.

    41. Re:Two Problems by IDtheTarget · · Score: 1

      As much as I loved Reading Rainbow growing up, I have two problems with this:

      1. If you go to their website, nothing indicates this is a non-profit corporation. 2. None of the people involved has a background in education, child development, psychology, etc.

      I just graduated with a Masters degree in education. I can tell you that, having met and worked with many Ph.D.s , that the degree does not necessarily mean that you know what you're doing. Case in point, have you LOOKED at the current Common Core standards? The curriculum? The test questions? Whoever created that mess will be primarily responsible for our increasing illiteracy in this country for the next decade.

      Personally, I think Mr. Burton's efforts will me much more effective than much of the tripe created by supposed "experts",

    42. Re:Two Problems by Iamthecheese · · Score: 1

      One would hope that following the original, successful, format will be sufficient. If they try to change it up (which seems likely) to be a web 2.0 synergistic paradigm it could be a disaster. I hope they get input from Dr. Liggett or equivalent.

      --
      If video games influenced behavior the Pac Man generation would be eating pills and running away from their problems.
    43. Re:Two Problems by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1

      LaVar Burton wasn't one of the creators of Reading Rainbow. He wasn't a producer, he was an Executive Producer, a title that doesn't indicate any actual involvement in the running of the show. You're assuming that because he was the guy on screen that he was deeply involved in the decision making about what to put on the air, rather than just the guy reading the words other people wrote for him.

    44. Re:Two Problems by dj245 · · Score: 2

      1. No, but if you want to make a commercial enterprise, don't come looking to me for a free hand out to get it started.

      I thought that was the whole point of kickstarter. I don't think many of them are non-profits. This is just seed money for an educational semi-startup.

      Yes but it is distasteful to me that a man who is worth somewhere between $6 and 145 million (it seems odd that the range is so large) is asking people with a lot less money to give him $1m. Even if we assume his net worth is only $6m, I really think he could manage to front 20% of his net worth to start up a business. I have a net worth of around $110k. If I was starting up a business I could float 20% of my net worth ($22k) fairly easily either through loans or taking it from investments. Rich people are rich because they find ways for other people to spend money on their behalf. The fact that his cause is "good" doesn't make this practice any better.

      --
      Even those who arrange and design shrubberies are under considerable economic stress at this period in history.
    45. Re:Two Problems by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      Oh, you're one of those armchair generals with 20/20 hindsight. Listen, there's a reason why you have to study structural mechanics at university. Because flaws and problems may not be readily apparent, contrary to your illusions of grandeur you're displaying here.

    46. Re:Two Problems by Yunzil · · Score: 1

      1. No, but if you want to make a commercial enterprise, don't come looking to me for a free hand out to get it started.

      I trust them. I mean, LeVar knows a little something about running an Enterprise.

    47. Re:Two Problems by DedTV · · Score: 1

      And did/will you go out and get a Ph.D. in Infant Nutrition before you have a child and need to feed them? Be sure to pick up a degree in math, science and English while you're at it so you can be qualified to help them with their homework.

      They aren't looking for funding to build a bridge, they just want to make a campy little entertainment program to encourage kids to read.
      Some things require training and expertise to do well. God help our species if getting kids to read is one of things.

    48. Re: Two Problems by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      Holy Generalization Batman!

      Seriously, where does this anti-intellectualism come from? Do you seriously think that you can teach your children, say, Physics or Chemistry without actually having studied Physics or Chemistry? And with that, I don't mean the basic stuff (which, by the way, can be quite a problem later on if you introduce certain topics in the wrong way).

      Just one example: Take the chemical term "oxidization". Do you actually introduce that term when it comes to reactions with oxygen? If you do you should be aware that you just invited problems later on in electrochemistry, because the pupils will have committed the definition of "oxidization" as "reaction with oxygen" firmly to mind. And now you have to redefine the term in order to include the transfer of electrons.

      There are quite a lot of pitfalls like that. The difference between velocity and acceleration (the latter is not an easy concept!) The difference between weight and mass. And so on and so forth.

      In order to properly avoid such problems you need to have a pretty deep understanding of the concepts. That's something I simply don't see for most non-academics, sorry.

    49. Re:Two Problems by Abstrackt · · Score: 1

      No problem, gay people read too.

      --
      They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance. - Terry Pratchett
    50. Re:Two Problems by orgelspieler · · Score: 1

      As an active member of my son's school's PTO, I find it infuriating how many of the really good programs are funded 100% through PTO fundraisers. Every field trip, First in Math, Accelerated Reader, the entire science lab, most of the computers, even a portion of the substitute teaching budget. And of course the money raised in the fundraisers come from primarily the parents and businesses in the area. If I were in a less affluent part of the school district, that would mean my child would probably not have access to these programs. In fact, in the district we are down to only two or three of the schools participating in First in Math, and all of the schools have dropped AR.

      I don't know what the answer is. I suppose higher property tax would go a long way to leveling some of the disparity, but unfortunately a lot of the money would get wasted at the district level [citation needed]. At least with the PTO taking care of this stuff, we know where all the money goes. But it's not like our PTO is going to turn around and hand over 20% of our budget to some underperforming school where we don't know the principal or teachers.

      It's a conundrum. If you don't give underperforming schools more money, how can they improve? If you do, how do you keep schools from gaming the system? How do you make sure the money goes to improving the education of the children?

    51. Re:Two Problems by The+Grim+Reefer · · Score: 1

      I remember reading about her after she did the first Tomb Raider movie in Cambodia. She was your typical Hollywood type until she saw how things were in that country. Afterward she donated $1 million of her own money to the UN refugee fund. Take a look at the humanitarian section on the Wiki page about her She's spent a lot of her own money and time trying to make the world a better place.

      My wife follows this type of stuff more than I do. But I have a lot of respect for what she and Brad Pit have done. They donate a lot of their own money to these causes rather than asking others to do it. They also go to these places and physically help, which is even more unusual. They have done a lot to help the folks in New Orleans after hurricane Katrina too.

    52. Re: Two Problems by MiSaunaSnob · · Score: 1

      I was with you until you said the difference between velocity and acceleration is not an easy concept. Acceleration is a change in velocity... seams easy to me. maybe you meant speed and velocity

    53. Re: Two Problems by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      Try teaching that to a class and you'll see why I picked this example specifically. Believe me, the numbers of pupils who have problems differentiating the two concepts is astounding.
      And yes, I tried several approaches. It's not something I picked out of a hat but rather a real world example. Don't forget, the first time you come into contact with those terms is some time around the 7th grade.

    54. Re:Two Problems by jelwell · · Score: 1

      Indeed, if you read the Kickstarter, there is no mention of "Universal Access". Instead you're helping fund a private company to build a product they want to sell to kids and schools. Sure, they'll give away some free copies to some people. But there are over 98 thousand schools in the United States alone and they want to give away 1,500 copies to classrooms (not even schools) at the million dollar level. Their stretch goal is "free access" to 7,500 classrooms. How many classrooms are in a school?!
      Joseph Elwell.

    55. Re: Two Problems by gnu-sucks · · Score: 1

      This is where the "anti-intellectualism" comes from. A person on slashdot thinks I am unqualified to teach children if I don't understand that oxidation is loosing electrons. WTF. Can you see just how "out of it" you are?

      What on earth does fundamentals of chemistry have to do with my qualifications as part of an educational system for a child? If I were home schooling my kids, and I didn't know what a term meant, I would ask someone that does. Or get a textbook. Or look online. I've never heard such ignorance. I need to be an "intellectual" to educate?

      Get your head out of your ass. You have no idea what it means to really raise children. Much less what qualifications a show like Reading Rainbow needs to inspire the Pre-K-3rd grade crowd to read.

      Gosh, sure hope Levar Burton remembers his basic chemistry before he reads any more books to my kids! (sarcasm)

    56. Re: Two Problems by gnu-sucks · · Score: 1

      And, velocity is change in location. Each level of "change" is really just a derivative, and going from position to speed to acceleration is a lot easier than doing dy/dt...

      But totally irrelevant to the topic. What kids need is inspiration to learn and create rather than being sat in front of the Cartoon Channel or learning how to kill in a video game.

      If that means watching shows about science, or making a volcano, or rolling down a hill in a box, I'm all for it! With or without the "intellectuals."

    57. Re: Two Problems by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      Read again. I think that you're unqualified to teach children about Chemistry if you don't know the basics of Chemistry. Pretty simple concept. And if you're unable to understand such simple concepts, then, yes, I'd severely doubt your teaching abilities in other areas.

      I was talking pretty specifically about science. And, yes, your abilities to teach science are hampered if you haven't had contact with the subjects beyond highschool.

      Again: Teaching kids the basic stuff like letters and basic arithmetic may work. You have just one kid to worry about. Maybe two.
      We have 20+ kids to worry about. That requires a completely different approach and is not an easy job if you want to do it right. Particularly when it comes to the more complicated subjects.

      By the way: It's not only "what a term means" but also the concepts behind the term. Not to mention that this solution of "looking online" or "getting a textbook" is laughable. We call that "chalkboard science". It's severely lacking in comparison to actually doing the experiments.

      And before you once again go ranting: You yourself brought this on you by painting the whole teaching profession with a broad brush. You're obviously now trying to retract your statement and narrow it to the lower grades, but seriously, you haven't got the faintest clue about the topic. You're willfully ignorant and obviously proud of your stupidity because you're unable to recognize it for what it is. Dunning-Kruger and all that jazz.

      You may now continue blabbering, I'm done here.

    58. Re: Two Problems by gnu-sucks · · Score: 1

      Rhywden,

      I have to reply to you because I feel you really don't get it. I understand, you're probably a grade-school teacher. And that's a hard job. And I think if the qualifications are set high, that's fine, they should be. After all, you are entrusted with the official education of, as you say, +20 kids. I don't mean to trivialize this.

      You mentioned that I am trying to "retract my statement" by narrowing it down to lower grades. I'm not though, my argument isn't about college or high school. I know there's a time to learn some hard facts, and I wouldn't want someone that didn't have a firm grasp on chemistry teaching chemistry. My argument is that you don't have to be an "intellectual" to educate. There may be situations that call for it, yes, but we're in a thread here about Reading Rainbow. This isn't about taking Chem 101. This is about inspiring children to learn and create. That's what Reading Rainbow did.

      It's a story I can relate to too. I found school completely boring. While the teacher was babbling on about grammar or how to look at nutrition labels, I was making notes about circuits I wanted to try out when I got home. In second-grade I designed a motor that used a rather novel placement of permanent magnets as a journal entry. The teacher gave me a zero because it wasn't creative. These motors are now common-place in electric cars.

      On the other hand, when I was 5, I had seen how tubas are made on Mr. Rogers. And I saw how a composer uses a digital sampler on Reading Rainbow. I watched "Square One" on PBS and learned about fractions and division. I saw a "computer" on The Bloodhound Gang that could hold several books on a microchip. I watched Nova and learned about blackholes. One of my few memories from fourth grade was a behind the scenes tour of a check processing facility, where I saw enormous IBM mainframes with open-reel tape feeding them instructions. I knew it was outdated at the time, but it made an impression on me. I remember getting to sit in the cockpit of a 747 on a flight from NY to LA. I was only a child, but looking at the radar screens, comm systems, etc, it was awesome. I remember changing spark plugs with my dad, and learning about how combustion engines work. I remember looking at how the guy at the grocery store ground up the beef (specifically, how the motor was connected up to the grinder). I remember watching the recording engineer at a live show checking each microphone. I remember looking at a watermill grind wheat at the Eno in North Carolina. I remember my uncle's distortion and flanger effects on his guitar.

      Looking back, of course there were "intellectuals" involved. I'm not writing them off all together. But you can't just write off the cast of Reading Rainbow because your favorite PhD isn't on the board. Look beyond the diplomas. If a TV show can get kids inspired, how about we support it.

      Another point, a science teacher in junior high explained to me and a buddy of mine that if we kept goofing off in the back of the class and not doing his homework, we would never become anything. Well guess what... My friend dropped out of high school and started his own engineering company. I took a different path, but I ended up as an engineer at a top national lab. Saw that teacher recently (an intellectual), and you better believe he took back his statement.

      Inspire people and they will learn to learn on their own. They will enquire about what they do not understand. This alone is more important than learning about derivatives or electrons. When I was in school they said electrons had "orbits", something we now know is completely wrong. But that never really held me back. When I took "real" chemistry in college, I got the full story. No harm done.

      Please do your students a favor. Stop with the powerpoints, the graphs, and the dimensional analysis. Turn off the calculators, shut down the computers. Get the students into a school bus ("field trip") and slam on the breaks in the parking lot at 10 MPH. That's acceleration. Want to teach about Faraday? Maxwell? Stop with the integrals. Build some circuits. Get some walkie-talkies. If you create an interesting situation, the students will naturally want to learn more.

  3. Please backstory Reading Rainbow by Em+Adespoton · · Score: 1

    ... for those of us who didn't grow up with it, what is it? I presume it has something to do with reading, and that it was around a while ago, but not TOO long ago (as the same people who were part of it are part of it again). Google helps, but this is the stuff that should be in TFS -- not just a link to the kickstarter.

    IOW, there's not enough material in TFS to comment on the topic without first doing actual research. Is this a trick?

    1. Re:Please backstory Reading Rainbow by just_another_sean · · Score: 1

      Really not trolling. I grew up with Reading Rainbow but I had no idea what it was until I figured out that Geordi LaForge was the Reading Rainbow guy. Like I said, not trying to be snobby or dickish about this but did you not watch Star Trek TNG? Before he was Geordi he was the Reading Rainbow Guy!

      Oh, and he was in Roots too, which is probably a bigger cultural accomplishment for him than the rest, but again, Geordi LaForge!

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    2. Re:Please backstory Reading Rainbow by khellendros1984 · · Score: 2

      Reading Rainbow was a children's show hosted by LeVar Burton, starting in 1983 and running for 23 years. Each episode was themed (e.g. "construction"), and different segments that fit that theme would be included. That might be something like LeVar going to a construction site and talking to the foreman about how he helps build a building. There was usually a section where a minor celebrity would read a children's book aloud, and the show ends with shots of children, one at a time, doing a couple-line review of a book that they liked.

      A couple of years ago, Burton's company produced a Reading Rainbow app with free books and some of his "field trip" segments (apparently. I haven't used it.)

      --
      It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
    3. Re:Please backstory Reading Rainbow by Em+Adespoton · · Score: 1

      I had no idea what it was even though I knew he was in TNG and Roots; I never knew about the Reading Rainbow thing.

    4. Re:Please backstory Reading Rainbow by Em+Adespoton · · Score: 1

      Thank you! That gives me way better idea of what it was than the info on the kickstarter page.

  4. Reading what now? by Lost+Race · · Score: 4, Informative
    Would it kill you to put a short explanation or link in the summary for those of us who never heard of it before?

    Reading Rainbow is an American children's television series that aired on PBS from June 6, 1983, until November 10, 2006, that encouraged reading by children. As of 2012, it is an iPad and Kindle Fire educational interactive book reading and video field trip app.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    1. Re:Reading what now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative
      What the fuck is radio transmission? Would it kill you to put in a short explanation?

      Radio waves are a type of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum longer than infrared light. Information, such as sound, is carried by systematically changing (modulating) some property of the radiated waves, such as their amplitude, frequency, phase, or pulse width.

    2. Re:Reading what now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      What the fuck is fuck? Would it kill you to put in a short explanation?

      Brown chicken brown cow!

    3. Re:Reading what now? by Darinbob · · Score: 2

      That one's easy. Magnets suck.

    4. Re:Reading what now? by ArcadeMan · · Score: 1

      The word "Fuck".

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    5. Re:Reading what now? by orgelspieler · · Score: 1

      First of all, if you follow the Kickstarter link, I think you could figure it out. Second, this is Slashdot. It has a lot of topics that not everybody knows about. If you can't figure out Ctrl+T, Ctrl+L, Tab, "Reading Rainbow", Enter, you're going to have a hard time making it through just about any article. On the front right now are several topics people might not know about that do not have a Wikipedia link: hydraulic power steering, trademark infringement, sleep, Donald Sterling. I daresay more /. readers are familiar with LeVar Burton than with Donald Sterling (and if they're not, they need to turn in their geek card to the nearest person with a penguin or light saber on their desk).

  5. Your Problems are my solutions by SuperKendall · · Score: 1, Insightful

    1. If you go to their website, nothing indicates this is a non-profit corporation.

    And so what??? Were you hoping for a tax break? The only question at hand is, will they do what they promise to do. If so, good enough.

    2. None of the people involved has a background in education, child development, psychology, etc.

    You know, the same was true when he was on Reading Rainbow the TV show. Do you think that show (a) helped kids of (b) destroyed lives.

    In fact I would place his being on Reading Rainbow as having more of a background in education than most people.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:Your Problems are my solutions by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 5, Informative

      It wasn't true when he was on the TV Show. The original Reading Rainbow was created and produced by Dr. Twila Liggett who had a PhD in education and was supported by the college of education at the University of Nebraska.

    2. Re:Your Problems are my solutions by SuperKendall · · Score: 1

      Hugh Laurie would be a great doctor because of all those years on House.

      Wouldn't he if part of the show had him been doing real surgery at times?

      --
      "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    3. Re:Your Problems are my solutions by Shakrai · · Score: 3, Insightful

      By that logic, Hugh Laurie would be a great doctor because of all those years on House.

      Lose the elitism dude. You don't need a bloody PhD to encourage kids to read. You must be a real hit at parties.....

      --
      I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
      We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
  6. Awesome by m.dillon · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Reading Rainbow was a wonderful show on PBS that ran for a long long time, and LeVar Burton has been involved with it and with kids education for decades (even before playing his role in Star Trek TNG). Even though it has reached its goal, I'm throwing in a hundred or two myself. My opinion: Anything donated will be well spent, LeVar Burton is just that type of person, who you know you can depend on.

    -Matt

    1. Re:Awesome by Krishnoid · · Score: 1

      My opinion: Anything donated will be well spent, LeVar Burton is just that type of person, who you know you can depend on.

      Word up.

    2. Re:Awesome by bberens · · Score: 1

      He said in his Reddit AMA that for each $1 Million extra they make it will allow them to give the RR materials away for free to 1500 classrooms.

      --
      Check out my lame java blog at www.javachopshop.com
    3. Re:Awesome by cerberusti · · Score: 1

      We donated as well.

      My girlfriend and I both remember the show, it is a good cause, and he would probably know what to do with 50 million if he gets it (he very well may.)

      --
      I'm a signature virus. Please copy me to your signature so I can replicate.
  7. This is great and all, but by Beck_Neard · · Score: 2, Funny

    it kind of makes me sad that DPF fusion energy hasn't even be able to reach half its measly $200,000 goal on indiegogo: https://www.indiegogo.com/proj...

    Why are our priorities so back-asswards.

    --
    A fool and his hard drive are soon parted.
    1. Re:This is great and all, but by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Yeah, kids reading vs some pseudo-science fantasy. Idiot.

    2. Re:This is great and all, but by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      it kind of makes me sad that DPF fusion energy hasn't even be able to reach half its measly $200,000 goal on indiegogo: https://www.indiegogo.com/proj...

      Why are our priorities so back-asswards.

      If our children cannot read, do you want them operating fusion reactors?

    3. Re:This is great and all, but by just_another_sean · · Score: 1

      Who knows? Maybe given enough encouragement these kids will make the breakthroughs you're talking about. I don't see these two projects as being mutually exclusive...

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    4. Re:This is great and all, but by master_kaos · · Score: 1

      possibly, and while i haven't read much into that project is 200k even going to come close to making fusion a reality? Seems like 200k would be a drop in a 10000 litre bucket.

    5. Re:This is great and all, but by Beck_Neard · · Score: 2

      Actually, it would. This isn't intended to be a power generator, just a physics demonstrator. People have been really hesitant to fund DPF because it uses plasma instabilities and there hasn't been much research on the detailed dynamics of these instabilities. They are really hard to model and hard to simulate on the computer. We know very little about them. This project aims to fix that.

      The idea hinges around the creation of a 'plasmoid' and its rapid implosion. Critics agree that the plasmoid can be produced; they disagree that the plasmoid is really being compressed to the densities and energies that the DPF proponents claim. So the DPF people need this $200k to fund a proof-of-concept that would (hopefully) prove the naysayers wrong. And if it doesn't, we haven't lost much, it's useful science that is literally going where no one has gone before. Previous DPF experiments managed to produce some really tantalizing data (demonstrating something like 100x better confinement than other technologies) but the results were contentious and not everyone agrees with them, so further experimentation is needed.

      --
      A fool and his hard drive are soon parted.
    6. Re:This is great and all, but by Beck_Neard · · Score: 1

      > The problem with their approach is that there's little science behind it.

      Then it's time to produce some science behind it. That's what this project is about. Most everyone I've talked to agreed that we simply don't know if DPF will work or not.

      --
      A fool and his hard drive are soon parted.
    7. Re:This is great and all, but by Beck_Neard · · Score: 1

      I'm not surprised that they aren't getting government funding; the word 'fusion' has basically become tainted and no one wants to go near it. Except maybe for projects that have useful spinoffs like the NIF (which is being mainly used for nuclear weapons research at the moment) or projects that have a long enough research history that there is reasonable confidence they will work (like ITER). But it's really through no fault of the fusion researchers; it's just that fusion turned out to be a much harder problem than anyone guessed.

      I don't think they ever claimed it's a magic bullet solution for everything, but the claim that it does not produce pollution is true. They plan to use an aneutronic reaction (p-B11) which will produce virtually zero nuclear waste.

      --
      A fool and his hard drive are soon parted.
  8. feel the love by troll+-1 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I wonder what implications being able to raise money for a common cause like this will have on the future of business. Will the top corporations of tomorrow be crowdfunded by people commonly wanting a particular good or service? What happens if you add virtual currency and 3D printers into the mix? Is this what Alan Watts was talking about when he referred to money as being an illusion? It's all in your head, man. Da future.

    1. Re:feel the love by mattack2 · · Score: 1

      Will the top corporations of tomorrow be crowdfunded by people commonly wanting a particular good or service?

      I hope so, at least optionally.

      I know people claim that something just being open source would solve this problem, but there are various features/bug fixes (sometimes there are differing opinions on whether something is one or the other) I'd pay a relatively small one time amount for, e.g. on a Tivo. I already expect the basic guide data and recording functionality to be included in the (lifetime) service I already paid for. But having a crowdfunded way of gauging interest in a new feature. Yes, this adds fragmentation, so possibly popular enough features would then be put into the mainstream version and IMHO the funders' money would mostly be refunded.

      BTW, I love open source software, though admittedly for me, it's as much the "free as in beer" part.

  9. Let's see why... by Above · · Score: 5, Insightful
    1. Well known Celebrity, check.
    2. Celebrity actually cares about, and is involved in the cause, check.
    3. The cause is to help children, puppies, or other small cute things everyone likes, check.
    4. The cause promises to make the future a better place, check.
    5. Makes a large group of people sentimental for the past, check.
    6. Rewards appeal to people with money, check. [Come on, geeks like Star Trek, geeks make good money.]
    7. Kick off carefully coordinated to multiple popular internet web sites, check.
    8. Asked for a modest amount of money compared to what they actually want to accomplish, check.

    It was a kick-starter wet dream. When I saw the initial post I said "He'll have the money in 48 hours tops". Apparently I overestimated by about 4x!

    1. Re:Let's see why... by painandgreed · · Score: 1

      It was a kick-starter wet dream.

      I would agree, and I am once again very grateful that Kickstarter exists. I've seen lots of things on Kickstarter that I wanted that never would have come about if there hadn't been a way to crowd source the project because it was so niche or because ROI was such that nobody would have invested in it. Now these things can happen by people who directly want them to happen. Sure, some things fail. Some projects end up going in ways people might not like. I think the world is better for it that these projects are even attempted and have a chance and have been very happy with the ones I have supported.

  10. So what by dtmancom · · Score: 1

    I don't have a background in education, child development, or psychology, yet I read to my son every night.

    1. Re:So what by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 1, Troll

      Yeah, and I'm not donating money to you either.

    2. Re:So what by danbuter · · Score: 1

      We all know you have no intention of donating money to this either. You just want to bitch about someone doing something good to make yourself feel better, because you are likely a loser in real life.

  11. Re:I personally loved the series as a kid. by just_another_sean · · Score: 1

    But don't take his word for it!

    --
    Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
  12. Next up by c4tp · · Score: 1

    Where in the world is the Carmen Sandiego kickstarter?

  13. Re:I personally loved the series as a kid. by hubie · · Score: 1

    I bet you didn't know Jim Morrison was a fan as well.

  14. That's strange, I thought Levar hated the show ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    My Living Nightmare Of Encouraging Kids To Read Is Over

    By LeVar Burton

    Thank god.

    After 26 long years, I can finally rest easy. Twenty-six years I spent standing in front of a camera, gritting my teeth, and shilling the latest works of every hack children's book author imaginable. For 26 years, I've told kids they could open a magical door to another world just by reading a book, when the only door it ever opened for me led to a soul-sucking career in the horrifying abyss of public television.

    But now, at last, it is over. I don't have to lie anymore. I don't have to live that nightmare.

    When the news came that Reading Rainbow would be canceled due to a lack of funding, I felt—well, to use a cliché like you'd find in one of the hundreds of books I pimped endlessly—like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Every day I went to work hoping that maybe the studio had burned down, that maybe the program had been cut, that maybe PBS would finally stop squeezing the life from me drop by drop. Now that it's over, I feel the relief a bruised and broken soldier must feel when he is rescued after rotting away for decades in some dank, forgotten POW camp.

    May that godforsaken show burn in hell.

    At long last, I can pick up a book and read for pleasure! Haven't read one in ages. You know what I was reading during those 26 insufferable years? Scripts. Scripts for roles that went to actors who weren't stigmatized by their association with a TV show occupying the time slot right after Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.

    I happen to be an accomplished actor. I starred in Roots, which was the most-watched show in American television history. My stirring portrayal of Kunta Kinte got me an Emmy nomination. But you know what? At 25 years old, when the opportunity to earn a regular paycheck working on a children's show came along, it seemed like a pretty damn good idea.

    I was dead, dead wrong.

    Little did I know the next quarter century of my life would be an unrelenting blur of excruciating trips to some of the most boring places on earth. Apiaries, steam trains, old mills—every week they sent me to a fresh hellhole, and every week I had to interview the dullest people imaginable.

    And those humiliating books. Maebelle's Suitcase and The Jolly Postman. These were not the classics. Anyone who could glue paper between two pieces of cardboard and hire a publicist could get a book on that show. And there I was, in sheer agony, trying to keep a smile on my face while talking up Germs Make Me Sick!

    Before long, people began recognizing me on the street, and inevitably they'd come over and start singing this awful, cloying tune. When I finally asked somebody what the hell it was, I was sickened to learn that it was the show's theme. I'd never heard it. They didn't play it on the set, and Lord knows I never saw one episode of that garbage when it aired.

    Hoping to escape Reading Rainbow's clutches, I started taking any role I could get. I'm proud of some of them: I played Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Martin Luther King in Ali. But you know what the most challenging role of my career was? Hosting Reading Rainbow and acting like I gave a shit about getting kids interested in books.

    Fact is, I couldn't care less whether kids learn to read. There, I said it.

    Look, Reading Rainbow was a television program. That should tell you something right there. What I should have done is hosted a show that taught children how to watch more television. I bet they would have come up with the funding to renew that show.

    All I've done for 26 years is drive to work, clock in, read my lines, clock out, go home, and cry myself to sleep. Now I'm much older, a broken man, but I've reached the end of my terrifying journey. And do you know what's at the end? Do you what's at the end of the "Reading Rainbow"? A giant crock of shit, that's what.

    But you don't have to take my word for it.

    http://www.theonion.com/articles/my-living-nightmare-of-encouraging-kids-to-read-is,11495/

  15. Where does the money go?? by clockwise_music · · Score: 1

    > When we meet our initial goal of $1,000,000, we will launch a new version of Reading Rainbow on the single most-used digital platform: the web.

    A million dollars for an "interactive" website? Clearly this man is a marketing genius.

    1. Re:Where does the money go?? by gstoddart · · Score: 1

      A million dollars for an "interactive" website? Clearly this man is a marketing genius.

      Or, his name and association with Reading Rainbow generated a tremendous amount of goodwill that people decided it was worth donating to.

      The series he was on was well respected, and won quite a few awards for its work. Now he's saying they'd like to do it again.

      Apparently, people agree with that, and are handing over cash quite readily.

      If the money helps them develop new and interesting content, or access other content, why not?

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
  16. Reading Rainbow's Star Trek Episode by antdude · · Score: 1

    Yep, even Reading Rainbow did an episode on ST:TNG:

    Two/2 Parts:
    1 (9:12): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...
    2 (6:34): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...

    --
    Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
  17. I know that Slashdot is an american website, but.. by xavier.dumont.perso · · Score: 1

    ...as a french reader, I'd appreciate to know what Reading Rainbow is about. First time ever that I read this name... I imagine a very expensive astrological device....

  18. Re:I personally loved the series as a kid. by ButchDeLoria · · Score: 1

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

  19. Re:Quite the opposite by Overzeetop · · Score: 1

    You missed line three, which could be restated as "Won't someone think of the children" and is essentialy the same as what you wrote...

    The message was almost the exact opposite of welcoming. It presented the picture of an epic national calamity, a whole country losing its grip on a cornerstone of civilization, the ability to read, and delivering the nation's youngsters into a life of limited horizons and to third world status at a time when the rest of the world is in strong ascendency.

    To call the message merely bleak is a colossal understatement. Far from appealing to cuteness, it appealed directly to severe guilt and intense worry among all those who understand that the last generation put the gears of civilization in reverse.

    None of this is news of course. The kickstarter succeeded so well because this very high profile problem has been worrying millions of people for many years.

    --
    Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
  20. On the web? Really? by damn_registrars · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I'm not sure this will really meet the ambitions of the previous series. If we want to get all kids to read more, we really need the medium that reaches the most children. The web is great and all, but public television is available to far more people for far less money. Kids that are in the most critical target audience for this likely won't have their own devices to watch this online and will have to convince their parents to let them watch it instead of letting Daddy continue with his half-life 7 marathon or mommy with her endless facebook chatter.

    --
    Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
  21. Re:That's strange, I thought Levar hated the show by GlennC · · Score: 1

    I'm a fan of The Onion, too!

    --
    Go on, citizen, stamp the vote card. R or D, your choice.
  22. Interactivity? by Adrian+Harvey · · Score: 1

    I wonder how much advantage of the medium a PC version of a TV series will be able to take... I''ve been homeschooling my kids whilst we've been travelling so I've tried a number of these online reading tools. Some are just a mess of unindexed content, or just libraries to wonder in and pick out books to read or subject videos to watch. The best for my 5 yr old has been ReadingEggs which has heaps of interactive mini games joined together into an overall programme that the child can follow through themselves going right from pre-literate to reading age 7 or so.

    Has anyone used the iPad app of this Reading Rainbow program? What's it like ? And how much teacher support is needed?

  23. Carmen Sandiego by tekrat · · Score: 1

    I worked on that show. I personally know the producers. The problem with making that show a "kickstarter" is rights issues. Because the TV show is based on a computer-game, the TV show can't do anything without going through the rights holders (broderbund?), and that makes everything take longer.

    The show was also a co-production between two powerful PBS stations, one in Boston and one in Pittsburgh, if I recall, and they could never agree on anything -- that's how the show came to be shot in New York, because it was in-between those two cities, so neither group could completely take control.

    As for my contribution to the series, I designed the middle-game board, where stuff flipped over to reveal clues. I also developed a close friendship to "the chief" and was devastated when Lynn passed away suddenly.

    --
    If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
  24. Four Problems by gsslay · · Score: 1

    Neither the headline or OP bothers to give the slightest hint to what "Reading Rainbow" is/was. I therefore find myself underwhelmed as to the significance.

    I'm also struck by the incongruity of "every web-connected child" and "Universal access". Particularly when I suspect both are also missing the key word "American".

  25. Re:Somebody is too dumb to know ... by ArcadeMan · · Score: 1

    Onions have layers?

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  26. Very Sad by ikhider · · Score: 1

    That America does not have funding for education and that there are schools in need. It is tremendously sad that 1 in 4 children in the USA grow up illitertate (as per the Kickstarter website). I wish the USA public infrastructure had funding to serve and educate their citizenry. Too bad they have to rely on private donors for this sort of thing. I guess the USA is really a poor country.

    --
    "SO we bide our time, waiting for a purer kick to bloom and the future is still bleak, uncertain and beautiful" -GSYBE