Pint of Science

PhD researcher Marta Malevic

Part of the routine, apparently

18 May | Café Boekowski

Every day, we unknowingly consume a cocktail of chemicals. Not just from what we eat or drink, but from our sofas, our cosmetics, our food packaging… basically, modern life comes with bonus ingredients. In this research, we monitor these “emerging contaminants” - chemicals that are everywhere, but still full of surprises. By using new analytical methods, we track traces of substances like plastic additives, flame retardants, and PFAS inside the human body. The catch? They don’t exactly make it easy for us. These compounds are buried in complex samples like urine and blood, surrounded by thousands of other molecules - so finding them is a bit like chemical detective work, but with better equipment and fewer dramatic sunglasses moments. Turns out your daily routine might be a lot more… chemically enhanced than you think.

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PhD researcher Celeste Laureyssen

How Alzheimer’s Disease Disrupts the Melody of the Brain

18 May | Filmhuis Klappei

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia and affects millions of people worldwide. It often begins quietly: memory starts to falter, old stories are repeated, and everyday life slowly becomes disrupted. These are signs that the brain’s melody is no longer playing smoothly and that its harmony is gradually slipping out of tune. But why do some brains fall out of rhythm faster than others? Genetics play an important role here. Certain gene variants influence how vulnerable the brain is to disruptions such as amyloid plaques, tau tangles, or other changes known as co-pathologies. In other words, your genetic code helps determine how the brain’s melody is played, and how easily it can be disturbed. In my research, we combine genetic information with detailed analyses of the brain. By examining which gene variants are linked to specific brain changes, we aim to understand which "notes" in the melody are fragile and which help maintain balance. These insights not only deepen our understanding of the complex nature of Alzheimer’s disease, but may also guide the development of future therapies to preserve the brain’s harmony.

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Professor Christof Defryn

When Individual Wins Become Collective Losses: What’s the Catch?

19 May |  Café Boekowski

What do traffic congestion, antibiotic resistance, and the overfishing of tuna have in common? When making decisions, individuals often choose strategies that seem most beneficial to themselves. These choices can, however, unintentionally degrade overall system performance and, ultimately, harm individual outcomes. In this talk, we explore how fundamental concepts from game theory help explain why such situations arise and how harmful behaviour can be avoided. We apply these insights to supply chains, showing how companies (potentially competitors) can achieve better alignment, strengthen collaboration, and thereby seize synergies that improve both individual and collective results.​​

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PhD researchers Baukje Bijnens & Jessie Premereur

The Brain’s Clean-Up Crew: Microglia in Health and Disease

19 May | Filmhuis Klappei

Microglia are the brain’s own immune cells, acting both as soldiers and caretakers. You could think of them as the Pac Man of the brain; they help protect brain health by engulfing harmful substances, clearing away dead cells, and removing waste. In brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, microglia play an especially important role. Many genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s are linked to these cells, placing microglia at the center of brain inflammation. Healthy brain function depends on careful communication between different cell types, but in disease this communication can become disrupted. To better understand how microglia change and contribute to disease, advanced experimental models have been developed, including microglia‑like cells generated from human blood and transplantation into mouse brains. These approaches allow the study of microglial behaviour and interactions with other brain cells and may open new paths toward treatments targeting the brain’s immune system.

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Lecturer Zeger Verleye

Rude, Vulgar, and Self-Important: Shamelessness in World Politics

20 May | Café Boekowski

Shamelessness has become a prominent feature of contemporary world politics. Political leaders using vulgar, obscene humour, displaying unapologetic self-importance, and having a blatant disregard for common diplomatic etiquette, international rules, and institutions have become daily performances on the world stage. Why is this happening now? And what does it signal about the current state of world politics? In this talk, we will explore the history of shamelessness in world politics and the future developments it foreshadows.

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Postdoctoral researcher Patrick Fuchs

Imaging the Brain’s Smallest Features While You Are Using It

20 May | Filmhuis Klappei

Diffusion, first described by Albert Einstein more than 100 years ago, is the movement of molecules from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration. You may have observed this when dissolving a bath bomb, or when steeping a bag of tea in a cup of hot water.
Diffusion in human tissue reflects the interaction of many obstacles, such as cell membranes, fibers, and large molecules. We can measure this using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In this talk I will explain how this works, as well as how we can then use the diffusion information to image microscopic structures and improve medical care, specifically in the human brain.

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