Videos

Did you know that 80 million people worldwide have epilepsy? Thanks to genetically engineered zebrafish such as Didy, Annelii Ny (KU Leuven) hopes to find new drugs to treat these patients.

"5", "five" and "*****" are just the same, aren't they? Well, not exactly: while these symbolic and non-symbolic notations refer to the same magnitude, our brain processes the digit "5", the word "five" and the dot configuration differently. Mila Marinova looks into the psychology behind number processing. Such knowledge can help to make learning mathematics easier for children.

A cochlear implant makes it possible for the deaf and hearing impaired to hear well. This is a wonderful invention, but it requires some work to properly set up and keep the device up to date. But Ben Somers has a solution for that!

Alexandre Chevalier studies plants from the past. He is convinced that this knowledge can help us to grow food in a more sustainable way.

Nowadays, 98 million tons of chicken are consumed every year, making it the second most consumed meat in the world, after pork. BUt what about the past? Well, Quentin Goffette tries to find out which place birds occupied in the daily life (or menu) of our ancestors. 

"The study of a simple fishbone, provides us with a lot of insights on economic, ecologic and social level." Needless to say Wim Wouters is a fan of fish bones. He investigates fish remains from numerous archeological sites in order to reconstruct the history of fishing. 

Gontran Sonet explains why it is important for the Museum of Natural Sciences to have large collections of specimens. They are paramount to gain better understanding of our fascinating planet.

Were Neandertals able to breakdance? We bet you never thought of that question before, but that you're dying to know the answer by now. Well, Tara Chapman virtually (re)constructs skeletons of Neandertals and fuses them to movement of modern human to find out how they could have moved about.

Cesspits, you undoubtedly prefer to leave them closed. But that's not the case with 'plant archeologist' Lien Speleers. For her, cesspools offer treasures of information that help her to reconstruct the history of Brussels.

Ever heard of Dravet's syndrome? This rare condition occurs in 1 in 20,000 people and causes problems with walking, among other things. Lore Wyers (UAntwerpen - KU Leuven) is going the extra mile to help children with Dravet syndrome to walk better again. The first 'step': analysing their step pattern.

Do Google Home, Alexa and Siri have a social impact on our behaviour? Can they encourage us to drive more safely or convince us to exercise more often? That is what Pieter Vanpaemel (Vlerick Business School - KU Leuven) researches in his doctorate.

People are selling overnight stays in their spare rooms and rides in their car. Then why can't they sell their unused (solar) energy? In her research Ariana Ramos proposes new rules that would enable you as a consumer to trade energy with other consumers.