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Nick Souter

@nicksouter.bsky.social
297 followers 117 following 34 posts

Postdoctoral Research Fellow at University of Sussex, studying ways of measuring the carbon footprint of fMRI data preprocessing and analysis 🌱🧠

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Reposted by Nick Souter
OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
🌱 🍃 We will be hosting our annual SEA-SIG Community Meeting on Tuesday September 29th!! 💫 RSVP: forms.gle/kRPbCkF3La37...
forms.gle
OHBM SEA-SIG Community Meeting 2026
The OHBM Sustainability and Environmental Action Special Interest Group (SEA-SIG) is hosting our annual Community Meeting on Tuesday, September 29th ! This open meeting is an opportunity to hear some ...
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
‼️ Registration is now OPEN for the 2nd OHBM Satellite Meeting ‼️ The Satellite Meeting last year was a hit and we are super excited to be collab'ing with the OHBM exec again to host it this year! You don't want to miss it 🍃
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
Now that the dust has settled, it's time for our #OHBM2026 recap!! ✨ 🌱 🍃 The SEA-SIG had a very successful OHBM in the beautiful city of Bordeaux this year! Let's take the accomplishments one at a time!
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
🏆 ANNOUNCING: 2026 SEA-SIG OHBM TRAVEL AWARDS 🏆 Graduate students and postdocs can receive a $300 USD if they show they chose the train 🚂 over the plane ✈️ (or that they reduced the number of flights to get to the Annual Meeting)! See link for instructions! ohbm-environment.org/ohbm-2026-tr...
ohbm-environment.org
🏆 Announcing the OHBM 2026 SEA-SIG Travel Awards!
🏆 ANNOUNCING: 2026 SEA-SIG OHBM TRAVEL AWARDS 🏆
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
🗓️ MARK YOUR CALENDARS: We are organizing a SEA-SIG SOCIAL event in Bordeaux during the OHBM Annual Meeting on the evening of Tuesday, June 16th (location TBD)! Enjoy drinks, food, and for the first time - a #ClimateFresk workshop! 🍃 🍽️ 🥂 RSVP here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
docs.google.com
OHBM 2026 SEA-SIG Social (with Climate Fresk)!
The OHBM Sustainability and Environmental Action Special Interest Group (SEA-SIG) is hosting the annual SEA-SIG social during the 2026 OHBM Annual Meeting in Bordeaux, France! This year we have an es...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
And another thank you to the whole @bhdonostia.bsky.social organising team for inviting me to speak about the carbon footprint of neuroimaging computing! (I think the subtitles shown on the screen here were from people all over the room, not me just mumbling incoherently)
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
A massive thank you to the team who actually did the hard work of putting this together: MONIKA UTROSA CLÉMENTINE LÉVY-FIDEL FÁBIO LOBATO GABRIEL PIŠVEJC Everything we developed is available open source on GitHub: github.com/NickESouter/...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
So, a CALL TO ACTION: Are you currently in an institution where the energy usage of various MRI sequences is already being recorded? Are you in a position to start doing this? Please get in touch! We’d love to source some more representative input data and understand which factors matter most
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
A caveat, we’ve taken energy consumption metrics from specifications provided by scanner manufacturers. The numbers generated as output seem to be a pretty big underestimation of the impact we’d expect from fMRI research scanning. The numbers are probably more relevant to clinical scanning…
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
The tool takes input information including: 🟢 Field strength 🟢 Scanner model 🟢 Country in which data was collected 🟢 Year of data collection 🟢 Sample size From this, it generates an environmental impact statement which can be popped into a grant application or journal paper
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
This week I attended my first ever hackathon with @bhdonostia.bsky.social! We put together a functioning dashboard to estimate the carbon footprint of MRI data collection 🧠 You can access the neuro-impact-calculator here: nicksouter.shinyapps.io/neuro-impact... (Not yet optimised for phones) 🧵
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BrainHack Donostia @bhdonostia.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
We just wrapped an excellent keynote from @nicksouter.bsky.social on reducing the carbon footprint of research computing. A powerful reminder that scientific progress and sustainability can — and should — go hand in hand! 🌍💡 #BHDonostia2025 #sustainability #GreenScience
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
‼️ If you're interested in getting involved with the SEA-SIG, we are accepting nominations for the roles of Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer until OCTOBER 5! ‼️ ✨ 💫 🌍 🌱 🍃
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The Organization for Human Brain Mapping @ohbmofficial.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
🗓️ Only ONE WEEK to register for the OHBM Virtual Satellite Meeting, hosted with the SEA-SIG @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social! There will be an educational course, 3 symposia, and a can’t-miss keynote from Dr. Michael Breakspear! You won’t want to miss it!
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Loïc Lannelongue @loiclnlg.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
📣 Interested in the environmental (un)sustainability of AI (and how to support positive change)? Or know someone who is? I have an open position for a postdoctoral researcher to join my group in Cambridge, UK 🌱 🚨Closing June 5th www.jobs.cam.ac.uk/job/51255/ Topics below 👇 #AcademicSky #GreenSky
Photo of Cambridge River and view over King's College with a group of people punting.Photo of the Heart and Lungs Research Institute on Cambridge Biomedical Campus. The building is bronze-colour and in front of a pond.
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Thomas Hinault @thinault.bsky.social · 08/01/2025
Save the date ! Co-organized with @inserm.bsky.social bLORIER, @nicksouter.bsky.social from @sussexfss.bsky.social will talk about « How to reduce the carbon footprint of your research computing? » tinyurl.com/4hck9xbh An event affiliated with @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social !
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 07/12/2024
Som staggering statistics from @ourworldindata.org
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 26/11/2024
Are you a neuroscientist interested in sustainability, but don't know who to follow? 🤔 You're in luck! Here's a starter pack of neuroscientists who post about climate, and researchers who work in the intersection of neuro/psych and climate change! 🌱Msg if you want to be added! go.bsky.app/E1iW12T
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 15/11/2024
Weekends are a great time to let ideas percolate, so why not give @nicksouter.bsky.social's paper on "10 recommendations for reducing the carbon footprint of neuroimaging research" a read and let it sink in while you head outside and get some fresh air? direct.mit.edu/imag/article...
direct.mit.edu
Ten recommendations for reducing the carbon footprint of research computing in human neuroimaging
Abstract. Given that scientific practices contribute to the climate crisis, scientists should reflect on the planetary impact of their work. Research computing can have a substantial carbon footprint ...
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Reposted by Nick Souter
OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
What is the relationship between neuroscience and climate change? At first these two topics can seem very distinct, but this article by Rae et al. makes a very compelling case for why we should incorporate environmental awareness into our research practices. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
journals.sagepub.com
Climate crisis and ecological emergency: Why they concern (neuro)scientists, and what we can do - Charlotte L. Rae, Martin Farley, Kate J. Jeffery, Anne E. Urai, 2022
Our planet is experiencing severe and accelerating climate and ecological breakdown caused by human activity. As professional scientists, we are better placed t...
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Loïc Lannelongue @loiclnlg.bsky.social · 11/11/2024
🚨We're recruiting! Interested in making science and computing more environmentally friendly? Now's the time! Very excited to build a research group at Cambridge Uni to expand our Green Algorithms work thanks to the support of the Wellcome Trust www.green-algorithms.org/join-us #AcademicSky #SciSky
green-algorithms.org
Interested in joining us?
The Green Algorithms project promotes environmentally sustainable computational science through an online calculator, training material and other tools.
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 28/08/2024
‼️ NEW PAPER ALERT ‼️ @nicksouter.bsky.social et al. (including many of our SEA-SIG members) demonstrate the environmental impact of different fMRIprep preprocessing choices, and make recommendations for minimizing carbon emissions of your pipeline! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
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OHBM Sustainability & Environmental Action SIG (SEA-SIG) @ohbmenvironment.bsky.social · 11/08/2024
Are you looking to get involved with like-minded neuroimagers to make our field more sustainable? Nominate yourself to be the new Chair, Secretary, or Treasurer of the SEA-SIG in our 2024 elections! Nominations accepted from August 15-September 15! ohbm-environment.org/upcoming-sig...
ohbm-environment.org
Upcoming SIG elections 2024 – OHBM SEA-SIG
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 25/04/2024
In this short 'PosterByte' video made for the British Neuroscience Association 2024 Members' Meeting, I discuss our recent work on the carbon footprint of neuroscience data processing 🌱🧠🖥️ shorturl.at/aguWY #BNAMembersMeeting2024
shorturl.at
TikTok - Make Your Day
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Jay Van Bavel, PhD @jayvanbavel.bsky.social · 27/02/2024
The Problem with Doomerism: Critics are right that doom and gloom can demoralize people into inaction. We found that negative messages increase social media sharing, but had no effect on policy support or climate beliefs & even backfired for effortful action: powerofus.substack.com/p/how-to-tal...
powerofus.substack.com
How to talk about climate change and the problem with doomerism
Issue 107: We conducted one of the largest experiments ever on climate change behavior — with advice from MythBusters' Jamie Hyneman
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
Big thanks to @loiclnlg.bsky.social, Gabby Samuel, Chris Racey, @lincoln81.bsky.social, Nikhil Bhagwat, Raghav Selvan, and Charlotte Rae for all their work on this paper!
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
10. Talk about greener computing Discussing the carbon footprint of data processing within your neuroimaging community will make it easier to think seriously about this issue. This will help in embedding sustainable ideas into standard practice 🌱
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
9. Use existing data Running analysis on previously collected and preprocessed data is a great way to test hypotheses without using additional energy to preprocess it yourself. We provide a table describing different open access datasets.
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
8. Reflect on what needs to be shared It's good practice to share all raw neuroimaging data on platforms like OpenNeuro. But this storage still has a carbon footprint. Consider whether just sharing preprocessed files would be enough to allow others to make use of your data.
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
7. Push for publicly owned centralised data storage Large centralised data centres tend to be more efficient, but this often means relying on big tech comapnies to host data. Alternatives like EuropHPC JU may allow storage that is efficient & sustainable: eurohpc-ju.europa.eu/index_en
eurohpc-ju.europa.eu
Homepage
The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) is a joint initiative between the EU, European countries and private partners to develop a World Class Supercomputing Ecosystem in Europe.
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
6. Plan your long-term storage For files you do need to keep, have a data management plan in place. This could include deleting data after a certain time period (e.g., 10 years) or transitioning it to tape storage. See spectrum.ieee.org/tape-storage...
spectrum.ieee.org
Tape Storage Might Be Computing’s Climate Savior
Tape media generates just 3 percent of the carbon dioxide that hard disks do
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
5. Tidy up "junk" files Energy is needed to store and backup data. you can reduce your footprint by deleting files you don't need. For #fMRIPrep, junk files make up to 96% of total size. Our tool fMRIPrepCleanup, automatically finds/removes this data: github.com/NickESouter/...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
4b. Time and location matter You can also consider choosing cloud computing services based in countries/regions with lower average carbon intensity. 2022 data for countries and US states ⬇️
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
4a. Time and location matter The carbon intensity of electricity peaks at busy times and drops overnight and at the weekend. By scheduling preprocessing/analysis to run at low intensity times, you can use the same amount of energy while emitting less carbon. Data for the UK ⬇️
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
3. Preprocess conservatively Reduce compute required for your research by only performing preprocessing steps that are necessary. In our recent study, we provide tips on how to minimise emissions from #fMRIPrep while still getting good quality data: osf.io/preprints/os...
osf.io
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
2. Track your emissions There are tools available to estimate emissions from computing, like the Green Algorithms online calculator: calculator.green-algorithms.org This can be a good first step in understanding the impact of your computing footprint, and taking action to reduce it!
calculator.green-algorithms.org
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
1. Plan and preregister analysis Repeating data processing or analysis requires additional energy usage, and therefore carbon emissions. Starting with a plan of exactly what you will do with your data can reduce unforseen obstacles, and therefore unecessary repetitions
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 08/02/2024
Our review paper 'Ten recommendations for reducing the carbon footprint of research computing in human neuroimaging' was recently published in @imagingneurosci.bsky.social doi.org/10.1162/imag... Here's a quick summary of each of our recommendations 🧵
doi.org
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
In the afternoon we hosted group discussions focusing on barriers to green computing, and potential solutions. Thank you to everyone who participated in these! To end the day, Charlotte provided some take-home thoughts www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QYp...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Closing remarks
Dr Charlotte Rae provides some closing thoughts from the first EIC workshop, considering next steps towards environmentally sustainable research computing.Fi...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Wrapping up our presentations, @lincoln81.bsky.social discussed how we can reduce the carbon footprint of our computing by being more efficient our coding www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Hur...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Lincoln Colling - Benefits of efficient programming
Dr Lincoln Colling discusses the benefits of making programming more efficient by critically considering how code is written. Filmed at the 2023 'Environment...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
I provided a case study of how researchers can measure and reduce the carbon footprint of digital pipelines, using our own work with fMRI preprocessing as an example www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDXL...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Nick Souter - Reducing the carbon footprint of digital pipelines: A case study from MRI
Dr Nick Souter from the University of Sussex presents a case study from MRI, considering how researchers can use evidence-based practice to reduce the carbon...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Miranda MacFarlane then gave an overview of insights from the UKRI Net Zero Digital Research Infrastructure Scoping Project www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWgz...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Miranda MacFarlane - UKRI Net Zero Digital Research Infrastructure Scoping Project
Miranda MacFarlane from King's College London provides an overview of the UKRI Net Zero Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) Scoping Project, discussing the...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Turning to the 'Technical Side' of things, @loiclnlg.bsky.social talked about the carbon footprint of high-performance computing in science, and what we can do to measure it www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WVa...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Loïc Lannelongue - Estimating the carbon footprint of computing in science
Dr Loïc Lannelongue from the University of Cambridge provides an overview of the carbon footprint of computing in science, including methods for quantifying ...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
To finish our first session, Martin Farley covered the role of green labs in reducing the carbon footprint of research, as well as reflecting on the emissions resulting from common lab practices www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUAN...
youtube.com
EIC 2023 - Martin Farley: Green labs and more
Martin Farley from Green Lab Associates provides an overview of the source of carbon emissions from lab research, as well as the Laboratory Efficiency Assess...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Talia Caplan discussed what is being done at Wellcome to advance sustainable health research, and gave an overview of existing iniatives on this topic www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hNt...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Talia Caplan - Advancing sustainable health research
Talia Caplan from the Wellcome Trust provides an overview of what is being done within and beyond Wellcome to advance environmentally sustainable research.Fi...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Gabby Samuel then gave an overview of how the environmental impacts of research are currently being addressed, as well as the role of institutions and funding bodies www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRf0...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Gabrielle Samuel - How are the environmental impacts of research being addressed?
Dr Gabrielle Samuel from King's College London discussed what is being done to measure the environmental impact of research, including the role of funding bo...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
First up, Charlotte Rae introduced our 'Big Picture' session, and discussed why health and life scientists should be concerned about the environmental impact of computing www.youtube.com/watch?v=Osxy...
youtube.com
EIC 2023: Charlotte Rae - Why the environmental impact of computing matters for scientists
Dr Charlotte Rae from the University of Sussex provides an introcuction to the first EIC workshop, and considers why the evnrionmental impact of computing sh...
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Last week we ran the first 'Environmental impacts of computing (EIC) in health & life sciences research' workshop, at the Wellcome Trust in London 🌱 🖥️ You can now find recordings of all our spreakers on YouTube! www.youtube.com/playlist?lis... We discussed a number of topics... 🧵
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 05/10/2023
Bursaries are available to support those travelling by car or public transport, including 1 night accomodation 🚅 🚌 eicworkshop.info#travel
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Nick Souter @nicksouter.bsky.social · 05/10/2023
On November 7th, we're hosting the first 'Environmental impacts of computing in health & life sciences research' workshop, at the Wellcome Trust in London! eicworkshop.info Come along to learn more about the carbon footprint of your research computing, and how it can be reduced 🌱
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