Initiated by the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, Printemps des Sciences is coordinated by the Sciences.be network and organized by French-speaking universities and colleges. For the occasion, the University of Namur is coordinating numerous activities at the provincial level.

Throughout this week, Printemps des Sciences inspires or confirms scientific vocations, helps teachers improve and enrich their teaching methods, gives students a more realistic perception of today's research, improves the general perception of science, contributes to reintegrating this knowledge into the heart of general culture, and improves the level of scientific culture among citizens. 

The 25^th edition of Printemps des Sciences (Science Spring) is being prepared for 2026, with scientific culture as its theme.

This opens up a new perspective on the world. It encourages curiosity, invites us to question what seems obvious to us, and pushes us to explore what remains invisible. Thanks to it, the ordinary becomes a field of discovery, and the mundane reveals unexpected dimensions. It thus allows us to better understand our environment, to question it, but also to marvel at its richness, beauty, and complexity.

Once again this year, teachers, researchers, students, and the academic community at UNamur are coming together to offer a variety of activities for schools and the general public. With conferences, exhibitions, shows, observations, and various experiments, there will be something for everyone! Here is an overview of the public programming offered at UNamur: 

• Playconference: "Clair Obscur: Expedition 33" and the decline of creativity in the age of AI

Video games, artificial intelligence, technical constraints, and creativity: how do these dimensions interact in today's professions? During this original playconference, three researchers from the University of Namur will play the multi-award-winning game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 live, while explaining their research on digital media, computer science, and creative professions. A fun immersion to better understand the contemporary challenges of the video game industry.

• Lecture: Raphaël Liégeois, future Belgian astronaut

Raphaël Liégeois shares his extraordinary journey to becoming an astronaut at the European Space Agency (ESA), including his educational background, choices, doubts, and motivations. He talks about his daily life at the astronaut training center and the impact of space missions on our everyday lives, all illustrated with photos, videos, and anecdotes. The meeting continues with an open discussion with the students.

• Competition: My Thesis in 180 Seconds (MT180)

Three minutes flat. That's all the time doctoral students have to present their thesis topic to the general public in a clear, accessible, and compelling way. This task of popularizing their work pushes young researchers to be creative. Whether through humor, simplicity, or emotion, each participant chooses their most effective tools to transform complexity into curiosity.

• Astronomy Saturday

The afternoon and evening of Saturday, March 28 will be devoted to exploring the wonders of the sky in a friendly atmosphere that is accessible to the whole family. The program includes interactive workshops, fun stands, a captivating show, and stargazing sessions. This is a unique opportunity to learn, experiment, and marvel together at the infinity of the cosmos.

• More than 6,500 places available (for schools and the general public) across more than 100 activities.
• Four higher education institutions organizing the event: University of Namur, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech-ULiège, Hénallux, Haute École de la Province de Namur, and Haute École Albert Jacquard.
• More than 20 scientific and socio-cultural partners.
• Involvement of hundreds of students and members (researchers, professors, technicians, etc.) from universities and colleges.
• Activities in Namur (Namur city/Salzinnes/Champion/Malonne), Gembloux, and Ciney.

Their book "Cinématech - Twenty Works to Understand Digital Technology" is primarily educational in nature, as it allows readers to better understand digital technology and its challenges. But the originality of the approach chosen by the two authors makes it both entertaining and informative. 

"The idea is simple: use 20 films and series to illustrate the history of digital technology, three important technologies (AI, robotics, XR) and their challenges. To do this, we start with Terminator, Her, Wall-E, Minority Report, and many others to make these subjects accessible," explains Anthony Simonofski, Professor in the Faculty of Economics, Management, Political Science, and Communication (EMCP).

"With the book, we can expand on the podcast's content, providing greater consistency and scientific references," explains Benoit Vanderose, professor in the Faculty of Computer Science. 

This new book is aimed at three audiences: 

• Those who want to better understand digital technology without jargon
• Film buffs curious to see their favorite works from a different angle
• Teachers and trainers looking for concrete materials to discuss digital technology in the classroom

Organized by the Confluent des Savoirs as part of International Space Week and the UNIVERSEH Alliance, the 2025 edition brought together nearly 800 participants of all ages, including 350 primary and secondary school students.

Highlights of the week

Throughout the week, young and old were invited to dive into the world of space research through workshops, observations and immersive experiments.

A day for secondary school students

A real highlight of the week, on Thursday October 9 the University was transformed into a veritable space laboratory to welcome 5ᵉ and 6ᵉ secondary school students to an interdisciplinary theme day. Over the course of the day, pupils were able to meet researchers, teachers, students and space professionals in workshops, encounters and challenges, exploring in turn:

• the mysteries of meteorites and space exploration with researchers from UNamur;
• the links between artificial intelligence and space, in collaboration with the Euro Space Center ;
• the biodiversity of mosses with the discovery of "resistant" micro-organisms capable of surviving in space conditions ;
• before concluding the day with an interactive and convivial quiz hosted by the "Kàp to UNIVERSEH" project Kot.

This day made a lasting impression with its participative, interdisciplinary approach, hailed by teachers and students alike.
The latter were able to handle scientific equipment, exchange views with researchers, and discover in concrete terms the diversity of space-related professions and issues.

At the same time, visits to the Antoine Thomas Astronomical Observatory and a mobile planetarium on loan from the MUMONS enabled younger pupils (primary and secondary) to explore the starry sky and ponder the mysteries of the cosmos in a fun and accessible way.

Moments of discovery for all

For several days, the Observatory exceptionally opened its doors to allow the curious to explore its dome, its workings and its instruments, including a solar telescope, the only one of its kind in Wallonia.

Accompanied by an astronomy popularizer and comfortably seated under the planetarium dome, visitors embarked on a cosmic journey, between constellations, galaxies and celestial phenomena.

These experiences, both scientific and sensory, offered a moment of shared wonder and helped strengthen links between research and the general public.

A "Space Exploration" comic book competition.

In this comic strip format drawing competition, UNamur invites you to embark on an extraordinary adventure on the theme of space exploration. The competition invites you to imagine daring missions, spectacular discoveries or distant civilizations, and to tell the story in drawings and bubbles. The Universe is waiting for you, and it's up to each and every one of us to bring it to life!

Space Week UNamur 2025 was once again a great success. It succeeded in bringing together the general public and school audiences, mixing science, technology, creation and imagination, and anchoring the University of Namur as a dynamic player in space research and scientific mediation on space-related themes.

Beyond the fascination for astronomy, this week reminds us that space is a shared horizon, between research, innovation, citizenship and culture.

Through the Confluent des Savoirs, the University of Namur confirms its role as a bridge between academic knowledge and the public, while inspiring the new generation of explorers... terrestrial or stellar.

Photos by Christophe Danaux

"The world of Dory the antibody" is the popularized title of Margaux Mignolet's thesis. This neuroscience researcher is part of the Unité de Recherche en Physiologie Moléculaire (URPhyM) at the Faculty of Medicine. She works under the supervision of Professor Charles Nicaise and is also a member of the NARILIS Institute. She studies pathogenic autoantibodies in patients with post-acute neurological sequelae of COVID-19.

"Many people still suffer from persistent symptoms after COVID (e.g. memory disorders, fatigue, pain,...). This condition is called long COVID. The mechanism is still unknown. One hypothesis is that patients have antibodies that attack their nervous system, inducing an autoimmune disease. The aim of my thesis is to determine whether patients have these antibodies. This will enable better patient care", explains Margaux Mignolet.

On Wednesday May 21, 2025, she brilliantly succeeded in popularizing her research topic and captivating the audience using clear, simple language, at the national inter-university final of the MT 180 competition. The aim of the competition is to inform the general public about the richness and interest of scientific research, while developing the communication skills of doctoral students. Each participant (doctoral student or doctor who graduated in the previous academic year) presents a clear, concise and convincing three-minute popular presentation in French on his or her thesis. All with the support of a single slide!

And Margaux Mignolet managed to convince the jury, as she won first prize in the competition!

A fine accolade for this enthusiast of the human body and medicine. "I've always been fascinated by how our bodies work, and I've always wanted to understand how diseases work and how to cure them. So I studied biomedical sciences in Namur to be able to work in research," she confides. "I never expected to win this prize! The fourteen other participants presented topics that were each more exciting than the last, and the pitches were really well written. I'm very happy to have won this prize, with Petra by my side, and to have been able to experience this competition alongside Thomas and Petra."

Doctoral students from UNamur shone particularly brightly in this competition, with second prize going to Petra Manja, a microbiology researcher at the Research Unit in Microorganism Biology (URBM) of the Faculty of Science (NARILIS Institute). She is a member of Prof. Régis Hallez's research group. Her thesis aims to understand the persistence mechanisms of the E. coli uropathogenic bacterium.

"Uropathogenic E. coli is one of the bacteria that causes cystitis. Treatment of cystitis is difficult, not least because of its persistence. When the bacteria are treated with antibiotics, the majority of the population dies, except for a small population that goes dormant and thus avoids treatment. Studies have shown that a molecule called alarmone plays a role in this form of persistence. The aim of my research is to find out more about this role. To understand it, I'm interested in the protein that produces alarmone, called SpoT. The idea is to find a regulator of SpoT that will be activated when bacteria are treated with antibiotics. This regulator will in turn activate SpoT which leads to alarmone production and bacterial dormancy," she explains. "I really enjoyed this experience, I learned how to popularize my work to make it accessible to the general public. It's also for them that we do science", she reacts.

Her presentation was entitled: "Dormir pour ne pas mourir".

Thomas Rouma, also a researcher at URBM (Faculty of Science) and the NARILIS Institute, and whose doctoral thesis is co-directed by Professors Eric Muraille and Xavier De Bolle, is studying the protective immune response against lung infections caused by Acinetobacter baumannii in mice.

His presentation was entitled: "How to get rid of a freeloader!"

Congratulations to Margaux, Petra and Thomas, who rose to the challenge of presenting their thesis in 180 seconds!