FEB 20, 2006 - ClimatePrediction.Net is another one of those experiments in distributed computing, like SETI@home, Einstein@home, etc. Distributed computing is a way your computer can help various scientific projects by donating unused computer time and power to these projects. In this case, the project is global climate modeling; and the more models that are run, the easier it becomes to hazard a guess as to what will actually happen. It takes a fairly current desktop PC to be able to handle ClimatePrediction.Net: a broadband connection, 600 Mb (Megabytes) of free hard drive space, at least 256 Mb RAM and at least a 1.6 GHz Pentium 4 processor running under Windows 2000, Windows XP or Linux. Do NOT attempt this with any kind of laptop! ClimatePrediction.Net assigns participating PCs various parameters to model, then collects and analyzes those results and hands out new parameters to run. Many PCs make light work, and with any luck they'll start producing some results that will help climatologists get their bearings. Not that I trust 'em all that much: ever notice how the Greens set out to save the world once the Marxist-Leninists were discredited? Think there's no connection there? Ha!
