If you feel like helping out Mulder and Scully bring justice to the whole UFO phenomenon, then maybe you can help track them down using Seti@Home. For those who are totally unfamiliar, SETI is an acronym for Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence.
The program Seti@Home allows you to join a scientific experiment that uses computers that are interconnected to help track down extraterrestrial signals. The free program will help you download and analyze radio telescope data straight into your home computer. The program is essentially an interesting screensaver and science experiment rolled into one.
This unique screensaver offers more than just beautiful colors. It helps you analyze radio frequencies beamed down by radio telescopes in search of something out of the ordinary or extraterrestrial life. The entire program works under the basic premise that there is intelligent life out there and that these intelligent life forms will begin transmitting their own radio signals. Of course, other intelligent life forms who assume there are others like them all across the universe will do something to help track down these signals as well. This is where SETI comes in.
The only problem with this is that SETI needs a huge computational resource in order to be able to translate all the various radio signals out there. Hence, they have enlisted the help of people all over the world to go ahead and do this. Every time your computer goes idle, it is wasting its computing capabilities. Hence, by installing a SETI@Home screensaver, you help process the data that the SETI servers are receiving. Making you a huge part of the project and the search for intelligent life in the universe.
The computer screen will display the computer’s progress and will transmit the data once it is done analyzing and computing.
Related Links:
SETI@Home Official Website
SETI@Home on Cnet
SETI@Home on How Stuff Works
SETI@Home on Wikipedia