Intel ushers in new era of energy efficiency with data center design contest

Want to invest in Intel's new "Nehalem" processor (aka the Intel Xeon Processor 5500 series) but don't have the money quite yet? The high-tech company is running the Data Center Efficiency Challenge to encourage people to submit their best ideas for how to use new technologies to cut data center energy and costs. You can submit your proposal in video form.

One enterprise company and one small business will be chosen to implement their idea using a service based on the new Xeon Processor 5500. They'll also win an energy-efficient mobile computer (or netbook!) and be invited to the Intel Development Forum.

This video from Intel green guru Lori Wigle explains the contest.

This also seems like a good place to point to some of Intel's own ideas for data center efficiency, which explain the results of its test of air economizers over a 10-month period with 900 production servers in New Mexico. Here's the white paper about the test. And this video show the economizer in action.