Blog Posts

  • DNA cinema

    How does you DNA influence your behaviour, for example related to gaming? How can you use your DNA to improve yourself like a superhero? How are medicine tailored to your disease? These are all questions from high school students that they can answer during the film festival that they will organise under the guidance of…

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  • Does your DNA determine who you are? – Workshop with Giving Back

    On the 6th of July, 2024, I was part of a workshop about genetics research for high school students at the Amsterdam University Medical Centre in collaboration with Giving Back Nederland. The theme of the workshop was ‘Does your DNA determine who you are?’. After an introduction about genetics research and the importance of considerations…

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  • My PhD project

    Increased suicide rates in people suffering from serious mental illness, such as depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia do not even nearly explain the 15 year shorter life expectancy of this group compared to the general population. Rather, comorbidities such as cardiovascular diseases seem to play an important role in this mortality gap. In my research,…

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  • Light Pollution

    1.To start your research feels as ifyou’re walking through a busy street.The city lights shine all around,billboards, lanterns, shops compete. Structure is still hard to find,with new facts here, opinions there.Your eyes glide along high facadesto find support up in the air. Three close friends you always see,Strong Orion and the Great Bear,Cassiopeia clear up…

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  • When darkness takes hold

    As the brain is filled with more and more darkness, it spills into organs exposed to loneliness, food, smoking, medications used against the dark. The heart fills up and wants to stop too, soon. Explanation This poem is a nonet written in six minutes during the course ‘Science communication through poetry’ taught by Sam Illingworth.…

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  • Who am I?

    I have never tried that before, so I think I should definitely be able to do that Pippi Longstocking This quote from Pippi Longstocking has, consciously and subconsciously, influenced many choices in my life. All throughout high school I knew I wanted to become a researcher, so I participated in activities from universities as much…

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