Computer noise-sounds like a fan of sorts, but computer isn't hot

I encountered this problem a while back, but it had stopped occurring until just recently. Almost from the minute I boot up, a whirring sound is heard, and it is loud. It's really bothersome while I try to take notes in a class. It almost sounds like it is trying to read a disc or something; however, no disc is inserted. Where top half of the MacBook meets the half with the keyboard, there seems to be hot air blowing out and is where the sound is most audible. If anyone has any suggestions about how to make this stop, I'd love to hear them. Thanks!
Coco

Hi, coco. That's the cooling fan in your MacBook, transferring heat from the machine to the air that it's blowing through the machine. It's the reason your MacBook isn't hot. If you made it stop, the MacBook would be hot.
To reduce the buildup of heat that triggers the fan, quit any nonessential processes that are running (Dashboard widgets are particularly famous for wasting zillions of processor cycles) and/or use a less processor-intensive application for your note-taking.

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