Now here's an interesting project: Encyclopedia of Life

This website / massive database is a collaborative research effort of scientists all over the world with the aim of documenting all lifeforms on Earth. Sounds incredible, doesn't it. They're estimating this to take a decade at a cost of roughly $100M US. In the future, this should be a great resource for kids at their school science projects. As for us adults, it should be a fascinating read whenever we get bored of sitting around at home.

As a side-note, while writing this posting, it occurred to me... does Encyclopaedia Britannica still have door-to-door sales people? Do they now just carry a DVD set instead of a set of heavy books? You used to be able to tell when your friends' parents cared a lot about their education by the 26+ edition leatherette-covered set sitting on their living room shelf. Certainly a sight you'd be hard pressed to find now. You could almost consider that antique!