Before the viral phenomenon of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge surfaced, many people had no idea what ALS was unless they were affected by the disease or knew someone who had it. But thanks to the Internet exploding with this new marketing strategy, the disease has been brought to light with donations pouring in.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a fatal, rapidly progressive neurological disease that attacks the nerve cells (or motor neurons) in the brain and spinal cord causing the individual who has it to become paralyzed. While most people with ALS die within three to five years from being diagnosed, about 10 percent survive for 10 or more years. The symptoms of ALS consist of difficulty walking or moving parts of the body, muscle weakness, clumsiness, slurred speech and body twitching.

For the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, people film themselves dumping a bucket of ice water on their heads or donate $100 to the ALS Association. They also nominate others to take on the challenge within 24 hours or donate if they don't comply. Many people have been doing both though. They then post the video to social media sites, thus quickly spreading awareness and motivating others to do the same.

This creative fundraising tactic appears to be fulfilling its purpose, too. As of Aug. 25, the ALS Association has received $79.7 million in donations — a whopping difference compared to the $2.5 million that was received last year during this same July 29 to Aug. 25 time period.

So how exactly did the Ice Bucket Challenge originate? Well, according to the Golf Channel and numerous other news outlets, three men played a big part in bringing this fundraising activity to the spotlight.

Chris Kennedy, a professional golfer, took on the challenge and called out his cousin — whose husband, Anthony Senerchia, has ALS — to do the same. Soon after, the challenge was passed on to Pete Frates, a former Boston College baseball captain also suffering from ALS, who in turn passed it on to various athletes and celebrities. The fundraising tactic has since blown up.

As of Aug. 18, Facebook stated that about 2.4 million Ice Bucket Challenge videos had been posted on its social media platform. There's no doubt that number has increased in the week since. But among all the videos from people, including athletes and celebrities, there have been quite a few unique approaches taken to the Ice Bucket Challenge. Here are some of them:

The man who helped start this all

Pete Frates, who was diagnosed with ALS and is paralyzed, took part in the challenge by bobbing his head to Vanilla Ice's song "Ice Ice Baby." He later on decided to use ice water and participated in the challenge again.

The actor who played Mini-Me in the “Austin Powers”

Due to the drought in California, Verne Troyer decided that he would stick an Oreo cookie in his mouth and get dumped over the head with milk instead.

The controversial actor best known for his role on "Two and A Half Men"

Charlie Sheen acted like he was going to dump ice water on his head, only to dump $10,000 in cash all over himself with plans to donate the amount to the ALS Association.

A musician and his band turn to acting

The Foo Fighters incorporated the movie "Carrie" into their video, using the famous prom scene where Carrie gets a bucket of pig's blood dumped on her. The musicians even dressed for the part.

Professional ice hockey player takes it to another level

Pouring a bucket of ice water over his head was not challenging enough for Canadian ice hockey player Paul Bissonnette, who had a helicopter pour glacier water over his head while he stood on top of a mountain.

The actor best known for his role in the "Twilight" series

Actor Robert Pattinson took this alternative approach because he didn't have a bucket. It's one that's sure to make anyone laugh or at least smile.

With these and other creative videos being posted all over social media platforms, it’s easy to see why the Ice Bucket Challenge has become such a hit. It has not only brought in donations toward global research for treatments and a possible cure, but it’s also brought hope to those suffering from the fatal disease. Now, it’s only a matter of time until the next big fundraising tactic turns viral.