Videos

Did you know that the earth is continuously monitored to detect clandestine nuclear weapons testing? Unfortunately, hospitals and other civilian installations throw a spanner in the works. These also emit radioactive xenon gas in very small & harmless quantities, but this turns out to be enough to disturb the detection. Christophe Gueibe explores how to help solve this problem so that we can better detect clandestine nuclear weapons tests.

Daniely Reis Santos is a plant lover. She especially loves plants' ability to engage in photosynthesis: capturing CO2 from the air and converting it into sugar using the sun's energy. In her doctorate, she is determined to do the same: use solar energy to convert CO2 into useful products through a process called photo electrocatalysis. But in order to do so, there are some challenges she must tackle.

How long will a patient live after his or her cancer diagnosis? And how long will a marriage between a new couple last? To make predictions of this so-called 'survival time', the time until an event occurs, researchers use statistical methods to analyze lifetime data. But what if you have incomplete data? Can you still make accurate predictions? That's what Worku Ewnetu is working on. Watch the video to find out more.

Our ageing population is not only growing but is also becoming more diverse. Labour migrants who came to Belgium last century are part of today's ageing population. Most older adults prefer to live at home for as long as possible, but what is 'home' to older adults with a migration background? To explore this, PhD researcher Micheline Phlix conducted 45 interviews with older migrants.

Home and family care workers go out on the road every day to help their clients. That busy round is often a complex puzzle, where they have to take into account distances, personal preferences but also, e.g., medication times. To help them with this, Ruben Vanbosseghem and his colleagues are using AI to develop a smart home care planner.

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.

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. 

Last summer, Wallonia experienced massive rainfall, resulting in deadly floods. Did you know that we only expect such weather once every 400 years at the most? We can calculate this because we have been measuring precipitation in our country for more than 120 years. But with 120 years of data, how (well) can you predict 400 years from now? Jorn Van de Velde will tell in this video. 

Have you ever been so stressed that you couldn't function properly? The same happens in the brain cells of patients with the nerve disease multiple sclerosis (MS) 🧠 Certain cells that help our brain to recover can no longer function properly due to too much stress. Lieve Van Veggel wants to help protect these cells. In this way, she and her colleagues hope to find a new way to slow down or even stop the progression of MS ✋🏻 🛑

Did you know that the sea can penetrate our lands and water resources unnoticed? Today, we find that saltwater in our polders, up to several kilometers inland. This salt water can make agricultural land and water supplies unusable. To find out exactly how far inland and how deep the saltwater problem reaches, Wouter Deleersnyder and his colleagues use a helicopter, a giant metal detector, and their knowledge of physics & geology. How all of this works, is explained by Wouter in this video.

"I'm going deeper underground" 🎵 The lyrics of Jamiroquai's famous hit may well apply to Renata Barros. As a geologist, she knows how precious the underground is in providing essential minerals for modern-day technology, drinking water, etc. Through the Geoconnect3d project, Renata & her colleagues bring all the information from underground studies all over Europe together in an accessible knowledge system.

In the not-so-distant past, Flemish mathematics education was at the top of the world. Unfortunately, in recent years we have seen a negative trend. Bea Merckx and her colleagues want to help turn the tide. Thanks to their research, as a teacher you are only a few mouse clicks away from a more varied and deeper mathematics and science education!