BOINC lets you donate computing power to scientific research projects (mouse over for details):
BOINC is an open-source software platform for volunteer computing. You can participate in several projects, ensuring that your computer will be kept busy even when one project has no work.
To participate:
- Select projects
- Download and run BOINC software
- Enter the projects' URLs (visit each project's web site, and copy the URL from your browser's address field).