Constant CPU usage/load WTF???

[ipatch]

Alright, I have been running virtualbox for quite some time now, and haven't really had to pipe up about anything, but recently I have noticed high CPU usages. I am running Mac OS X (10.6.4) on a MacBook Pro 2.2GHZ 4GB RAM, MacBookPro3,1. My guest OS that is causing the high CPU usage is Windows XP SP3 with all the latest updates installed. Activity Monitor is showing me that virtualbox is using anywhere from 44% - 55% just idling, which is causing my cooling fans in my computer to be constantly running, which is SUPER ANNOYING!



CPU load in Windows XP show around 2% - 5%. Keep in mind this is with Firefox 4 beta 1 open in Windows XP or Firefox 3.6.6 open, but both are just idling. The kernel_task process uses about just as much CPU as virtualbox while it is idling. If I close Firefox and do not have any open active open windows of a program running Activity Monitor shows about a 10%-20% load and a 20-30% for kernel_task process. I am curious if anyone else is noticing the same conditions as I am, or is there something on my system causing this high CPU load.

*I am going to run a virus scan on the XP machine just to make sure.*

*UPDATE*

Quitting my bit torrent client Transmission brought down the the kernel_task load significantly, and performing the dummy OS mentioned in this article helped as well.