In this opinion article published in World Development, the authors present five research and policy priorities. While it is clear that ‘pluriversal’ designs need to guide the way forward (Kothari et al 2019), defining a set of key pillars can provide direction and purpose across this pluriversality.…

Always wanted to find out what zero gravity is like? Now's your chance! In December 2017 a Dutch student team will be conducting experiments during a parabolic flight, and they're looking for healthy volunteers. You do have to meet a number of strict conditions, says the team leader.

Student agency is defined as the ability to increasingly take control of the learning process. It is associated with better grades, well-being, motivation and self-confidence. This research aims to provide teachers tools to stimulate student agency and to monitor its growth.

Fishes rely heavily on sound to find their way during migration or dispersal. Many species are affected by noise pollution. Hans Slabbekoorn from the Institute of Biology Leiden received a HORIZON2020 grant of 500,000 euros to study the impact of sound conditions on movement decisions of fishes.

The predication of the effect (efficiency and toxicity) of a drug in a patient is very important in (i) clinical decision support and (ii) the development of novel drug treatments.

Dissertation

This dissertation reports on the requirements for the design and development of teacher assessments, and examines the possibility of developing an assessment procedure that complies with the formulated requirements.

Promotor: Jan van der Greef; Co-promotors: Mei Wang; Eduard van Wijk

How can we culture an artificial vascular network to support tissue development ex vivo?

Birds sing to be heard, but how do they cope with increasing noise levels? Which species persist in cities and why? And do they thrive or suffer in the urban soundscape?

Developmental psychologist Barbara Braams has been awarded with a Veni funding for her research about risk behaviour in young people. This award offers Braams the opportunity to develop her ideas over a period of three years.

What development pathways support teaching faculty members in research-intensive universities in becoming informal educational leaders?

Social anxiety and factors determining school success in children. Brain development in relation to cognitive, social and emotional development in adolescence.

Neeltje Blankenstein receives an LUF grant to conduct research on online risk behaviour among young people. What risks do young people take online and why? 'With this research, we not only want to help prevent serious risk behaviour, but also understand what drives young people to it.'

Together with researchers from over the world, the ENIGMA-Anxiety Working Group endeavors to unravel the neurobiology of anxiety disorders and related constructs.

On the 17th of January, Sarah Von Grebmer Zu Wolfsthurn successfully defended a doctoral thesis. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Sarah on this achievement!

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most frequent neurodegenerative disorder and the primary cause of dementia. The neuropathological features of AD include the occurrence of senile plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, decreased synaptic density, and loss of neurons. An obstacle in the study and treatment…

The experiments described in this thesis employ local lentiviral knockdowns in brain areas of female zebra finches followed by behavioural assays consisting of preference and Go/Nogo tasks.

The study of orchid flowers, fruits, and inflorescences is crucial due to the remarkable diversity of orchid species and their unique adaptations to pollinators and seed dispersers. However, our understanding of the evolution and development of these organs within the orchid family remains limited.

Yearly, the LIBC organizes a public event to share scientific research in the field of brain & cognition

The Brain and Education Lab is located in the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences of Leiden University.

The LIBC organizes Sylvius Lectures and Colloquia for scientists and students about brain & cognition.

Promotor: B. van de Water, Co-Promotores: J.H.N. Meerman, F.J. Verbeek

The endocannabinoid receptors CB1R and CB2R are involved in a plethora of processes, and consequently are involved in many pathological conditions. Their wide distribution makes the CBRs both an interesting therapeutic target and hard to study.

One of the major limitations in culturing complex tissues or organs is the lack of vascularization in the cultured tissue. Development of a functional capillary bed could overcome this problem.

Promotor: J.A. Bouwstra Co-promotor: A. El Ghalbzouri

A complex community of microbes develops in the infant gut shortly after birth. We call this community the infant gut microbiota. The microbiota influences the health of the infant, which makes the composition and function of the infant gut microbiota an important topic to study.

The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has awarded 400.000 euros in funding to Lotte van Dillen, associate professor at the unit of Social, Economic and Organizational Psychology. With this grant, Lotte van Dillen will investigate how daily distractions influence our dietary consumption habits and glucose…

The effects of anthropogenic noise on interactions between predators and their prey are still little understood.

Promotors: Prof.dr. E. Bouwman, Prof.dr. E. Drent

The major aim is to develop, evaluate, and implement disease-generic cognitive-behavioral interventions through the internet in order to optimize tailored health care for patients with chronic somatic conditions.