Does learning about cloud computing while contributing to scientific research sound good to you?  Then be sure to check out the “@home on Windows Azure” project. Via a four-part video series on Channel 9, you can learn how to build applications for the cloud on Windows Azure, and deploy a solution that will contribute to Stanford University’s Folding @home distributed computing project to study protein folding. 

By simply running a piece of software, you can help scientists learn more about diseases such as Alzheimer’s, ALS, Huntington’s, Parkinson’s disease and many cancers by banding together to make one of the largest supercomputers in the world.  Every participant takes the project closer to understanding how protein folding is linked to certain diseases.

@home with Windows Azure – Part 1 of 4: Getting your Windows Azure 90-day Free Trial Account

@home with Windows Azure – Part 2 of 4: Setting up the @home App

@home with Windows Azure – Part 3 of 4: Configuring Windows Azure Storage

@home with Windows Azure – Part 4 of 4: Deploying to Windows Azure

In addition to contributing directly to this project, Microsoft will also donate $10 per participant (up to $5,000 maximum) to Stanford University to help the cause. You can learn more about the Folding @home project here.

The @home with Windows Azure project is brought to you buy Brian Hitney, Jim O’Neil, and Peter Laudati.  You can stay in touch with them at US Cloud Connection.