Videos

Have you ever noticed how seeds are omnipresent? You find them in our daily bread, they are used in medicines, cosmetics, and even jewelry. This has always been the case, throughout the history of mankind. Archaeobotanist Sidonie Preiss dives into archaeological wells, granaries, and even latrines to recover seeds and reconstruct the shared history of plants and mankind.

It’s always thought that evolution happens by slow and gradual changes. But can evolution also happen fast? Oh, yes - as Zoë de Corte's research on beetles shows.

In 2006 Marine biologist Anton Van de Putte went on a 3-month- expedition to Antarctica. Unfortunately, he only managed to collect 400 samples, which were often no bigger than this little fish. Thanks to a simple but brilliant idea, he now has more than 2 million samples at his disposal...

When you swallow seawater, you actually ingest thousands of particles (mud, clay, phytoplankton, ...) that are barely visible for the naked eye. Michael Fettweis enlightens you about this universe of particles in a sip of seawater.

Mice that follow a low-calorie diet appear to be protected against the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Charysse Vandendriessche is investigating why this is the case to gather more insight in the underlying disease mechanism. This information could into the future contribute to the development of a treatment against this devastating disease.

Once upon a time there were two types of cephalopods: the nautiluses and the ammonites. Although the ammonites were much better adapted, they became extinct. And the nautiluses? They're still swimming around today. Stijn Goolaerts studies fossils of these fascinating creatures and draws a wise lesson for mankind from the sad fate of the ammonites.

Fertilization is crucial in agriculture, but over-fertilization causes environmental pollution and all-rich algae growth in our watercourses. Wouldn't it be great if plants and crops could grow well with less fertilizer? That's what Astrid Gadeyne wants to achieve in her PhD.

Katrien Van de Vijver is a physical anthropologist: by studying skeletons and bones from the Middle Ages, she tries to reconstruct the story of the past. See what she can learn from this

Rahel Park has a dilemma for you: what to do if a bunch of flies land on the cake you were just about to eat? Should you eat it anyway or should you throw it away? Watch the video for the -scientifically substantiated- answer!

So-called "smart devices" aren't always as smart as you might think. Bram Steenwinckel (imec - Universiteit Gent) fuses artificial intelligence with the knowledge of experts to make them smarter.

"If we would cover the entire surface of Portugal with solar panels , this would generate enough energy to power the entire world. But of course, no Portuguese would ever allow this. But what about using their windows?" Jacopo Sala talks about new generation of solar panels.