Molds, also known as filamentous fungi, hide a vast capacity to produce high-value products and substitute current chemical reactions, full of pollutants, to more sustainable ways of production.
The use of molds goes from the classical fermentation of beverages and foods to the bioproduction of pigments, antimicrobials, vitamins and other molecules with application for medicine, food or textil industry, among others. But that's not all: we use can go even further thanks to the novel synthetic biology tools that allow researches to modify fungi genes as "lego" pieces to create efficient and sustainable "biofactories".
Do you want to know more about filamentous fungi and synthetic biology? Ask for a talk!

In the late 1970s, ocean scientists and geologists discovered strange geological features, lying at the bottom of the seas. There, these scientists were shocked to encounter life! In the complete darkness, at extreme pressures and temperatures, life is thriving. We will explore the peculiar geology of these places and understand how these life oases can inform us of the possibilities of life on other planets.

L'astrobiologie, c'est-à-dire l'étude des origines de la vie sur Terre et des signes de vie dans l'univers, est un vaste domaine. Des scientifiques de nombreuses disciplines y apportent leur propre expertise. La beauté de cette science réside dans les nombreuses méthodes, techniques et expériences réalisées pour répondre à une seule et unique question importante : comment sommes-nous (le vivant) arrivés ici, sur cette planète ? La diversité des personnes, des idées et des données rencontrées dans ce domaine est proprement stupéfiante ! À travers des exemples d'expériences historiques et modernes, ce webinaire propose de discuter de la philosophie de l'astrobiologie, de ses principales hypothèses et, plus important encore, de la pensée critique associée à la méthode scientifique. En plus, il pourrait y avoir quelques photos sympas de mondes lointains ici et là.

The field of astrobiology, or the study of the origins of life on Earth and the signs of life in the Universe, is a vast one. Scientists from many disciplines converge to this field and bring their own expertise. The beauty of this science is in the numerous methods, techniques, and experiments carried out in order to answer one single, important question: how did we end up here, on this planet? The diversity of people, ideas and data encountered in this field is properly amazing! Through examples of historical and modern experiments, this webinar proposes to discuss the philosophy of astrobiology, its main hypotheses and more importantly the critical thinking associated with the scientific method. Also, there might be some cool pictures of distant worlds here and there.

À la fin des années 1970, des océanologues et des géologues ont découvert d'étranges formations géologiques au fond des mers. Là, dans l'obscurité totale, à des pressions et des températures extrêmes, ces scientifiques ont eu la surprise de découvrir des formes de vie foisonnantes ! Nous explorerons ensemble la géologie particulière de ces endroits et comprendrons comment ces oasis de vie peuvent nous informer sur les possibilités de vie sur d'autres planètes.

What is a virus? How does it make us sick? Are all viruses bad for us?
In this webinar, we will explore viruses and the diseases they may cause in the form of 20 Frequently Asked Questions. We will use the COVID-19 pandemic to understand certain aspects of viral diseases, but we'll focus on much more than just human health!