Computer servers' climate impact lessened by elegant algorithm

An elegant new algorithm developed by Danish researchers could significantly reduce the resource consumption of the world’s computer servers. One of the flipsides of the world’s burgeoning internet usage is its impact on climate due to the massive amount of electricity consumed by computer servers. Studies have demonstrated that global data centres consume more than 400 terawatt-hours of electricity annually. This accounts for approximately 2 per cent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions and currently equals all emissions from global air traffic. According to the Danish Council on Climate Change, a single large data centre consumes the equivalent of 4 per cent of Denmark’s total electricity consumption. Furthermore, data centre electricity consumption is expected to double by 2025, resulting in increased emissions. Clearly, the green transition in IT is an urgent matter. Professor Mikkel Thorup and two fellow researchers from the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Computer Science have now perfected an algorithm that addresses a fundamental problem in computer systems – the fact that some servers become overloaded while other servers have capacity left – many times faster than today. “We have found an algorithm that removes one of the major causes of overloaded servers once and for all. Our…
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