Videos

Michiel
De Proost
VUB

Social egg freezing: good for women's empowerment?

"Freeze your eggs, free your career". This was the headline on the cover of the business magazine Bloomberg Business a few years ago. The reasoning: women could freeze their eggs, to focus on their careers and then maybe have a child later. Sounds good for women's emancipation, but how do women themselves feel about it? Philosopher Michiel De Proost sat down with 21 women to find out.
Maximillian
Weil
VUB

Smart infrastructure will never stay out of tune

We've all seen images of spectacular collapses of large structures, such as the Morandi Bridge in Genoa. What if we could prevent the failure of structures such as bridges, dams, and wind turbines by ... listening to these structures? That's exactly what engineer Maximillian Weil (VUB) is working on. Listen to him talk about good vibrations.
Mathias
Peirlinck
UGent

Understanding the heart better... through digital twins

Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide. One out of 4 people dies from it. To improve treatment options for patients suffering from heart disease, mechanical engineer Mathias Peirlinck develops digital twins of patient hearts. Digital what? Watch Mathias (and his digital twin) explain it in this video.
Pietro
De Angeli

Defeating visual disorders

Worldwide, 6 million people suffer from inherited visual disorders. And today, no treatment is available yet. Pietro De Angeli is one of the scientists that try to tackle this kind of disease at its roots: the genes. Because these inherited visual disorders arise due to defects in the genes. De Angeli is trying to find a unique, safe & effective therapeutic approach to correct genetic defects.
Munevver
Burcu Cicekdal

Working together to defeat Stargardt disease

Did you know that one in 10,000 people worldwide suffer from an inherited retinal disease, such as Stargardt disease, and lose sight? Stargardt disease is caused by a fault in a specific gene, called ABCA4, and to this date it is incurable. To change this, Munnever Burcu and 13 other researchers with different backgrounds working all over Europe joined forces in the StarT Consortium. Their goal is to find a cure by investigating the disease from different angles. Burcu explains how they want to approach this.
Melita
Kaltak

Inherited retinal diseases

Have you ever heard of Stargardt disease? This is a rare, inherited disease that can cause severe damage to the retina of your eye. When that happens, it can lead to partial or complete blindness. This can affect children or can arise in early adulthood. To tackle this disease, as well as other inherited retinal diseases, PhD researcher Melita Kaltak focuses her efforts on mutations in the mRNA. The goal is to develop novel RNA therapies, specific to each patient, as she explains in this video
Iris
Post

Yeast genes as a weapon against Stargardt disease

Imagine the world slowly getting darker and darker. Your vision is deteriorating and there is nothing you can do about it. That, unfortunately, is the reality for people with Stargardt's disease. In her doctoral research, Iris Post is trying to find a cure by using yeast genes. Watch her explain how this may help fight Stargardt's disease.
Ellen
Beckstedde
KU Leuven
Vlerick

How do we deal smartly with peaks in our electricity consumption?

What does a duck have to do with your electricity consumption? Researcher Ellen Beckstedde (Vlerick Business School - KU Leuven) explains it to you in detail in this video. 
Viola
Darmawan
KU Leuven
Vlerick

Young professionals: should they imitate their seniors?

Picture two senior auditors: one is very meticulous in his work and always follows the rules. The other likes making shortcuts, by not closely following the rules. Which of these two will a junior auditor then imitate? And how does this affect his or her work quality? That's what Viola Darmawan (Vlerick Business School) is investigating. Find out more in the video. 

Nanomaterials under the microscope

In her PhD, Annelies De wael studied nanomaterials - materials so small that you need an incredibly powerful microscope to see them. And even then you only see a fraction of them. That is why Annelies worked on mathematical models and simulations to be able to see the entire nanomaterial based on the incomplete picture. And that can help researchers develop the most diverse applications: from a ketchup bottle that empties easily to solar panels that produce even more renewable energy!
Rebekka
Van Hoof
KU Leuven
UHasselt
VITO

Early messengers in the blood alert us to lung cancer

Anyone who has ever looked for Waldo knows how hard he is to find. In her research on lung cancer, Rebekka Van Hoof (Uhasselt - KU Leuven - VITO) faces a similar task: she is searching within more than 100,000 so-called extracellular vesicles for 2 types -say 'Waldos'- that can help detect the disease early. But she is determined to narrow her search field. How? Watch her explain it in this video. 
Sara
Op de Beeck
FWO
UAntwerpen

Breathing during sleep: much more than in and out

Snoring is very annoying in itself (especially for roommates), but sometimes there is more to it. In some people, the upper airway closes up to 15 times an hour during sleep. This condition has obstructive sleep apnoea. Sara Op de Beeck explains how she wants to use data to help patients get the best treatment, so that it can be quiet in their bedroom again. 😴