Videos

Almost 100 years ago Alexander Fleming discovered the first antibiotic: penicillin. Even then, he warned that there would come a day when bacteria would be resistant to all antibiotics. That day is now very near. Will the 'killer combination' of enzybiotics and water droplets save us from super-bacteria?

"Advertising"? I'm not susceptible to ads!" Sounds familiar? Serena D'hooge breaks that illusion and tells you more about the simple but very effective advertising technique, called 'evaluative conditioning'.

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.

"You're a bad teacher and your class is absolute bullsh*t!". Novice teachers often do not know how to deal with this type of verbal-aggressive behavior, partly because it is not yet sufficiently addressed in their training. To tackle this, Delphine Franco is working on a solution.

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.

Worldwide, some 235 million people suffer from asthma. Drugs such as a quick-relief inhaler can help to suppress their symptoms. But they can't cure asthma. Fien Gysens hopes that her research will contribute to finding a cure for asthma!

Each of us has lost a precious plant to aphids or other insects before. Unfortunately, most insecticides to combat these creatures are harmful to the environment. That's why Tessa Acar is committed to the development of a new and better weapon: bacteria that can fight insects.

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...

In order to provide the growing world population with sufficient protein, Reindert Devlamynck (University of Ghent) focuses on duckweed. In addition to ducks, he also wants people to eat this tasty little plant and is setting a good example for himself 🍽

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.

Do you know where these worms live? Well, they actually live in the intestines of humans. A quarter of the world population is infected with these soil-transmitted helminths. Sara Roose is developing a new diagnostic test to help fight human worm infections.