Very interesting and encouraging news Nick although I would have preferred the funding to have been made by government rather than a commercial organisation such as PepsiCo. :-/ :-/
It isn't a case of either/or, Zulu. They received a $500k state grant back in December 2009. As I understand it, the $250k from Pepsi was made as a result of people voting online for the most worthy cause, in their opinion, and the Kanzius Project came 2nd. Raises awareness and raises cash. 
I must admit it's a difficult one Nick considering the cause but the seemingly altruistic nature of the entire project is tarnished for me by the rather obvious advertisements for their products and the suggestion, that by consuming the drink, more worthy causeds would be helped.
Frankly, Zulu, that's way too cynical for me. The logical alternative from your post, of course, is that large corporations should give no money to charity, lest they be tarnished with the accusation that they are making money from the unfortunate. Is that a Good Thing? I don't think so.

Having raised money before (albeit from smaller companies) I can honestly say that, in many cases, they
know they will receive no real payback from their donations, yet they still do it. Why? Because companies, even large ones, are not organic entities in themselves - a point that our friend from Scotland often overlooks. They are made up of people. Yes, they have responsibilities to boards and shareholders but even
they are individuals, and thus it is likely that, as individuals, they will have experienced the untimely loss of loved ones from disease or have a genuine concern for the less fortunate.
If you were the CEO of a large corporation, would you sanction charitable payments? Probably, yes. Would you insist on anonymity? Probably, no.
And, indeed, why should you?
Nick