Build vocabulary; feed hungry people at the same time

It began as a way for John Breen to help his son prepare for the SAT, a standardized test for college admission. Today, some 500,000 people daily visit the vocabulary-quiz website the Indiana-based computer programmer set up. And while word-game fun is part of the draw, players get an extra jolt of “feel good” joy: Every time they get an answer right, they help combat world hunger.

Freerice.com, which debuted in Oct­o­ber, donates 20 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) every time a player selects the correct definition for a particular word. Paid for with advertising income, 4 billion grains have been won for the WFP so far. That’s 160 metric tons, or enough to feed 200,000 people for one day. Read more about the site in The Christian Science Monitor or visit Freerice.com.