Author Archives: Miriam Fahimi

Miriam Fahimi is an STS scholar and postdoctoral researcher in the ERC Synergy Project ‘Cultures of the Cryosphere’ at Paderborn University. In her ethnographic work, she researches the sustainability politics and conflicts of data centers' artificial cooling.
Several server racks filled with stacked servers and networking equipment, interconnected by dense bundles of cables with glowing indicator lights in a dimly lit data center.

Can a Data Center Sweat?

Small drops form on my forehead. Slowly, they make their way down along my temples. The weather app on my phone shows a red alert. For days, I have been caught in the so-called heat wave that swept across Europe in June of this year. Unfortunately, what slowly drips from the edge of my chin is neither refreshing rain nor cool water – it’s my own sweat. Yet, I am not the only one struggling under the weight of the heat. The servers and chips inside the data centers are suffering, too. (read more...)