Videos

Anne-Astrid
Agten

Improving CPR training with virtual reality

Would you be able to perform CPR if a loved one suddenly collapses due to a cardiac arrest? Not enough people are properly trained in CPR; even when they are, they often feel reluctant to act in high-stress situations. "Standard CPR training is done on a manikin and doesn't prepare you for a real emergency, full of stress and chaos", says Anne-Astrid Agten. She wants to change this using virtual reality.
Una
Ivkovic
FWO
KU Leuven

What if teeth could heal themselves?

Did you know that growing up, one in four children worldwide experience a traumatic dental injury? Current treatments for these injuries aren't optimal, nor long-lasting, and render the tooth brittle, leading to possible tooth loss. But what if teeth could heal themselves? That's what Una Ivkovic sinks her teeth into: a hydrogel that guides stem cells to the injury to generate new dental tissue and restore the damaged tooth 🦷
Thomas
Konings
KU Leuven

Looking for extraterrestrial life on an exoplanet

Does extraterrestrial life exist? To date, Thomas Konings has not discovered any extraterrestrial neighbors. But he diligently continues his search. That search for extraterrestrial life starts with the search for habitable planets. To do this, Thomas and his colleagues look at exoplanets, planets outside our solar system. But how do you study planets billions of kilometers away from us? Thomas tells you in this video.
Anugrah
Santoso
KU Leuven

Need to pee again?

You know the feeling of having to pee when you just went to the bathroom 20 minutes ago? Then you may be suffering from an overactive 'bladder'. The problem is not so much in your bladder, but well over a meter higher, as it's your brain that decides when you need to pee. Anugrah Santoso looks for abnormal brain patterns that can lead to this recurring urge to pee.
Charlotte
De Schepper
KU Leuven

Climate change affects beer

Summer, sun and a cold beer. ☀️ 🍺 It's the perfect combination for beer lovers. But did you know that the changing climate creates challenges for brewers? It affects the starch, a key component of the barley from which beer is made. 🌾 As a result, from the same amount of barley, you get less alcohol and therefore less beer. Fortunately, bioengineer Charlotte De Schepper is developing some new strategies to deal with the changing starch properties. Cheers! 🍻
Nicholas
Cauwenberghs
KU Leuven

Detecting cardiovascular diseases in the supermarket

3 billion times. That's how many times a heart beats on average in a lifetime. Unfortunately, that does not apply to everyone. As many as one in 10 Belgians die prematurely from cardiovascular disease. Nicholas Cauwenberghs wants to do something about that. He wants to enlist medically untrained volunteers to help determine your risk of cardiovascular disease with a user-friendly kit in the supermarket.
Elien
De Rooze
ILVO

Can we grow protein crops in Belgium? 🌾 👨🏽‍🌾 👩🏻‍🌾

Fafalel, hummus, vegetable burgers, ... These delicacies are made from protein crops such as chickpeas and yellow peas, which unfortunately come mainly from faraway countries such as Russia or Argentina. So can't we grow protein crops in Belgium? "Yes, we can!" says ILVO researcher Elien De Rooze. She explains how farmers can grow protein crops and what exactly they should pay attention to!
Ann
Vanderheyden
Instituut Natuurwetenschappen

Welcome to our species identification service

Did you know there are countless species of mosquitoes, some of which can transmit dangerous diseases? Identifying these tiny creatures—or any other species— is no easy task, even for seasoned biologists. Luckily Ann Vanderheyden and her colleagues at the 'Species Identification Service' can help. ​​​​​​​So.. if there's something weird, and it don't look good... Who you gonna call? 🕵️‍♂️🔍
Bob
Rumes
Instituut Natuurwetenschappen

Wind farm noise impacts North Sea marine mammals

Did you know Belgium uses more of its seaspace for wind farms than any other country? This noise disrupts marine life, like North Sea harbour porpoises. Bob Rumes uses underwater microphones to study underwater noise and how it affects porpoises.
Enis
Ukshini
UAntwerpen

Decoding the saxophone's soul with a robot: the power of the mouthpiece

The saxophone, a Belgian invention by Adolphe Sax, is nearing its 180th birthday, but evolution has stalled in the last 100 years. Until now! Enis Ukshini built a saxophone robot, a fully automatic saxophone virtuoso. The robot helps him study a small part key to the sax's unique sound: the mouthpiece with the vibrating reed.
Wenjian
Hu
KU Leuven
VITO

Making carbon conversion more efficient

The rise of CO2 levels has many harmful effects on our planet. A part of the solution is capturing CO2 emissions and transforming them into valuable chemicals and fuels, while potentially slowing climate change. Wenjian Hu explains how this carbon conversion works. His research aims to make the process more efficient, paving the way for scaling up from lab experiments to big industrial plants.
Praharsh
Pai Raikar
VITO

How to put wasted heat to good use

Industries release enormous amounts of wasted heat: over 67% of all energy generated worldwide is estimated to be lost as heat! What if we could harness this industrial waste heat to warm our homes? For this, Praharsh Pai Raikar is optimizing the design process of heat exchangers. Heat what?! He will tell you more in this video.