Why did nurses not receive proper pay for a long time?
In 2020, we applauded en masse for our healthcare heroes. But did you know that for a very long time, nurses in Belgium hardly got paid or did not get paid at all? And that they hardly received any recognition? Historian Luc De Munck explains why that was the case.
History
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Science Figured Out lures scientists out of their trusted lab or office space and places them in front of a camera with a clear task: inform the general public in a clear 3-minute pitch about your research!
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KU Leuven
How to solve swallowing problems?
After a stroke, many people suffer from swallowing problems (dysphagia), due to damage to brain areas responsible for controlling and coordinating the swallowing process. Can electrical stimulation help them restore the brain control of swallowing, to eat and drink comfortably again? That's what Marthe Everaert is looking into in her PhD.
KU Leuven
Is the cure for cancer stuck in a jar?
Have you ever tried to get the last cookie from the bottom of the jar but couldn't quite reach it? Now, what if that cookie can potentially help cure cancer? Wiktoria Wojtaczka (KU Leuven) is investigating terbium, a chemical element that can be turned into a drug for cancer. But the problem she faces in her research is pretty similar to that of the cookie stuck in the jar
KU Leuven
How listening to a story can help us diagnose aphasia
One in three stroke patients suffer from aphasia, a language disorder, and suddenly face problems communicating. The good thing is that with the right therapy their communication can be improved. In her PhD, Jill Kries (KU Leuven) is developing an automatic, fast, and precise method for diagnosis drawing on audio stories, EEG, and an algorithm.
FWO
KU Leuven
Protecting the brain: how to make safer bicycle helmets
In Belgium, 10,000 cyclists are injured in traffic accidents every year. While helmets help reduce skill fractures, they often don't protect cyclists from brain injuries. Andrea Menichetti (KU Leuven) studies how much our brain can deform before getting injured in order to help manufacturers produce safer helmets.
FWO
KU Leuven
Malaria: adrenal hormones save lives
In 2020, a couple in Kampenhout died of malaria. In Belgium, this is highly exceptional, but worldwide, and especially in Africa, 400,000 malaria deaths, often involving children, occur every year. Leen Vandermosten wants to help reduce malaria deaths. Can injections of glucocorticoids, hormones from the adrenal glands, protect people from a deadly course of malaria infection? That's what Leen wants to figure out!
KU Leuven
DNA as the last resort to find the perpetrator
Sofie Claerhout's doctorate was looking for a new way to trace offenders in a murder case on the basis of DNA found at the crime scene. Using DNA kinship analysis, she can map out distant kinships, up to 40 generations apart, on the basis of a DNA sample. This makes it possible to trace the perpetrator much more precisely.
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