Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing
While extensive research has gone into demand response techniques in data centers, the energy consumed in edge computing systems and in network data transmission remains a significant part of the computing industry’s carbon footprint. The industry also has not fully leveraged the parallel trend of d...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Energies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/21/6917 |
| _version_ | 1797512665979944960 |
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| author | Dawn Nafus Eve M. Schooler Karly Ann Burch |
| author_facet | Dawn Nafus Eve M. Schooler Karly Ann Burch |
| author_sort | Dawn Nafus |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | While extensive research has gone into demand response techniques in data centers, the energy consumed in edge computing systems and in network data transmission remains a significant part of the computing industry’s carbon footprint. The industry also has not fully leveraged the parallel trend of decentralized renewable energy generation, which creates new areas of opportunity for innovation in combined energy and computing systems. Through an interdisciplinary sociotechnical discussion of current energy, computer science and social studies of science and technology (STS) literature, we argue that a more comprehensive set of carbon response techniques needs to be developed that span the continuum of data centers, from the back-end cloud to the network edge. Such techniques need to address the combined needs of decentralized energy and computing systems, alongside the social power dynamics those combinations entail. We call this more comprehensive range “carbon-responsive computing,” and underscore that this continuum constitutes the beginnings of an interconnected infrastructure, elements of which are data-intensive and require the integration of social science disciplines to adequately address problems of inequality, governance, transparency, and definitions of “necessary” tasks in a climate crisis. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:03:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b321880a96e5434ea80378dac7cd3ae3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:03:57Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-b321880a96e5434ea80378dac7cd3ae32023-11-22T20:40:52ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732021-10-011421691710.3390/en14216917Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and ComputingDawn Nafus0Eve M. Schooler1Karly Ann Burch2Intel Labs, Intel Corporation, Santa Clara, CA 95054, USANext Generation and Standards, Intel Corporation, Santa Clara, CA 95054, USACentre for Sustainability, University of Otago, Dunedin 9016, New ZealandWhile extensive research has gone into demand response techniques in data centers, the energy consumed in edge computing systems and in network data transmission remains a significant part of the computing industry’s carbon footprint. The industry also has not fully leveraged the parallel trend of decentralized renewable energy generation, which creates new areas of opportunity for innovation in combined energy and computing systems. Through an interdisciplinary sociotechnical discussion of current energy, computer science and social studies of science and technology (STS) literature, we argue that a more comprehensive set of carbon response techniques needs to be developed that span the continuum of data centers, from the back-end cloud to the network edge. Such techniques need to address the combined needs of decentralized energy and computing systems, alongside the social power dynamics those combinations entail. We call this more comprehensive range “carbon-responsive computing,” and underscore that this continuum constitutes the beginnings of an interconnected infrastructure, elements of which are data-intensive and require the integration of social science disciplines to adequately address problems of inequality, governance, transparency, and definitions of “necessary” tasks in a climate crisis.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/21/6917smart griddemand responsesocial aspects of energycarbon footprintcarbon intensityedge computing |
| spellingShingle | Dawn Nafus Eve M. Schooler Karly Ann Burch Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing Energies smart grid demand response social aspects of energy carbon footprint carbon intensity edge computing |
| title | Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing |
| title_full | Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing |
| title_fullStr | Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing |
| title_short | Carbon-Responsive Computing: Changing the Nexus between Energy and Computing |
| title_sort | carbon responsive computing changing the nexus between energy and computing |
| topic | smart grid demand response social aspects of energy carbon footprint carbon intensity edge computing |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/21/6917 |
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