October 13 2003 * international magazine of/revista internacional de la K.U.Leuven

Verschijnt 14-daags,uitgez. juli en aug.

AfgiftekantoorHasselt 1

België-BelqiqueP.B.

3500 Hasselt 112/39

2 Editorial

4 Research

Strongest poison a gift to science

4 Research

HIV-2 older than previouslythought

5 Top FiveFive researchers about the histo-ry and future of their discipline

6 Bologna reforms

T minus one, and still coun-ting...

7 Living in LeuvenJamal Said, ICC and more

8 Proyecto de desarrollo en el PerúEstudiantes de Lovaina ayudan ahabitantes indígenas delAmazonas

8 Central Library celebrates its75th anniversary

CON TEN T Scampuskrant

photo: Jan Van Impe

In 1990, after four years of archeologi-cal research by Waelkens’s team, theSagalassos site became an official

K.U.Leuven concession. Since then, it hasdeveloped into one of the largest excava-tions in classical Mediterranean Europe.An interdisciplinary team of over 120scientists and students spends an averageof 12 weeks on the site each summer. The

archeologists have recently been focusingtheir attention on the site’s occupationalhistory and on the fluctuating ancientcity limits.

Line walkingProfessor Marc Waelkens: “It would takeseveral centuries to excavate the entireSagalassos site of about 4 square kilome-

tres. That’s why we recently fine-tuned atechnique that allows us to determinethe character of various city quarters.This is called ‘intensive prospecting bymeans of line walking’: demarcated areasof twenty by twenty square metres areexamined by researchers separated bytwo metres at most. They record all sur-face finds, which are later collected fordating and descriptive purposes. In thisway we can determine the most recentoccupational phase: fine ceramics ormosaic stones indicate a residential area,while slag or oven remnants point to amanufacturing quarter.”

“Last year we started implementinggeophysical research techniques as well:extremely sensitive instruments measu-ring magnetic sensitivity and electricalresistance allow us to identify structuresto a depth of 1.5 metres. So we were ableto map out a series of main and sidestreets as well as a previously undetectedcity square, in the area of the library andtheatre. Using the same intensive pro-specting techniques, which involve noactual digging, we are continuing toexplore the relationship between city and‘suburbs’. These villages provided thecity’s food supplies. In the Romanperiod, however, Sagalassos expanded toa regional metropolis and the surroun-ding area developed into residential quar-ters with luxurious mansions and orna-mental tombs for the city’s elite.”

The common manExcavation started in the heart of the cityand revealed a monumental central areaaround two main marketplaces. Witheach summer campaign, buildings,monuments and statues are returned toan approximation of their former glory.Waelkens: “We are mainly trying toreconstruct some general views of thecity.”

A Sagalassos Summer

City of WaterRises Again

K.U.Leuven spinoffconquers Hollywood

Special effects by Eyetronics: see p. 3

Illustr

atio

ns:

Eyet

roni

cs

Last summer, as in previous years,

dozens of scientists and students made

the trip to Turkey to dig their way

through, measure and restore the rem-

nants of an ancient city ruined by a

seventh-century earthquake. Prof.

Marc Waelkens, head of the

Sagalassos project, reveals all. New Academic Year See p. 2

continued on page 3

photo: Rob Stevens

foto: Rob Stevens

2 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L October 2003

E D I T O R I A L

Campuskrant InternationalInternational magazine of K.U.Leuven

Editorial BoardToon Boon, Karla Venken (editors-in-chief), Ronny Vandenbroele

Editorial CommitteeTrees Deloddere, Jack Dick, JohnHymers, Dale Kidd, Isabel Penne,Beatrice Navarro de la Torre-Schots-mans, Miles Smit, Paula van Eupen-Lavrysen, Leen Wyndaele

AddressCampuskrant InternationalCommunications OfficeOude Markt 133000 Leuvenphone +32-16-32 40 15fax +32-16-32 40 14e-mail: campuskrant@kuleuven.ac.be

Also on the Internetwww.kuleuven.ac.be/ck/international/

Steering Committee Campuskrant Ronny Vandenbroele (chairman), JanBauwens, Jan De Vuyst, Jan Elen, ErikGobin, Els Heylen, Bernard Himpens,Paul Thurman, Jos Vaesen, Jan Verhaeg-he

ContributorsGert Gielen, John Hymers, Dale Kidd,Ludo Meyvis, Beatrice Navarro de laTorre-Schotsmans, Miles Smit, Paulavan Eupen-Lavrysen, Olivier Vande-meersch, Reiner Van Hove, Karla Ven-ken, Leen Wyndaele

LayoutRob Stevens, Karla Venken

PhotographyRob Stevens

CartoonsJoris Snaet

Circulation 8,800 copies

PrintVan In, Lier

PublisherRonny Vandenbroele, Oude Markt 13,3000 Leuven, Belgium

Copyright articlesArticles from this edition may be usedonly with permission of the publisher

SubscriptionAlumni from K.U.Leuven can ask fortheir free copy by phoning, faxing, mai-ling to Inge Verbruggen (address: seeabove). If you would like to contributefinancially to the alumni associationAlumni Lovanienses International, youcan transfer your gift to bank account000-0136526-47 of Alumni Lovanien-ses, Naamsestraat 63, 3000 Leuven, Bel-gium.

If you no longer wish to receive Cam-puskrant International, please notify theeditor.

October 2003

Quite a crowd had gathered to witness the togatias they marched toward Saint Peter’s Church,where a mass is traditionally celebrated to formal-ly open the academic year.Afterwards, a series of speeches filled the convo-cation ceremony, beginning with Dirk VanMechelen, Flemish minister responsible forscientific research and innovation. He stressedthat Flanders is no longer lagging behind in Euro-pe, and that our country is doing its best to provi-de financial support for innovation.Rector Oosterlinck discussed the principle ofacademic freedom and some aspects of universitymanagement. A thorough university-wide dis-cussion should take place before any changes aremade to the university’s managerial structure.Isabelle Huys then spoke on behalf of the acade-mic staff. She focused on a number of problemsfacing young researchers. Bram Delen concludedthe session with an unusually sharp speech, sum-marizing the students’ concerns with regard tothe way the university is handling its social servi-ces.At the end of the convocation, rector Oosterlinckformally opened the academic year, which promi-ses to be quite busy - nothing new under the sun,is there?

Dear Reader,

This is already the tenth issue of CampuskrantInternational, your gateway to what is happe-ning in your beloved Alma Mater. In the follo-wing pages, you will get an impression of themany facets of life in Leuven. Research is, asalways, boldly going where no one has gonebefore. Judge for yourself in the article on thetransfer of the HIV virus from monkey to man.And what about Eyetronics, a spinoff from theengineering faculty, which is now contributingto the special effects in Hollywood blockbust-ers. And in Turkey, Leuven archaeologists arecontinuing their work in Sagalassos, one of the major sitesof Mediterranean Antiquity. As you may have heard, university education too is on thebrink of thorough innovation. The Bologna Declaration,which is transforming education all over Europe, is beingimplementend in K.U.Leuven as well. All programmes arebeing thoroughly overhauled, and the kandidaat or licenti-aat degree will, from next year on, be replaced by the bach-elor’s and the master’s.

It is my sincere wish that this magazine will keep your con-nection to K.U.Leuven, your K.U.Leuven, alive and kicking.

Professor Guido LangoucheVice-rector International Relations

Estimado lector,

Éste ya es el décimo número del Campuskrant Interna-tional, vuestro vínculo directo con lo que está pasandoen vuestra querida Alma Mater. En las páginas siguien-tes, os podéis hacer una idea de las distintas facetas de lavida en Lovaina. La investigación, audaz como siempre,está abriendo caminos inexplorados. Podéis comprobarloen el artículo sobre la transferencia del virus del sida des-de el mono al hombre. Y cómo no recordar el caso deEyetronics, procedente de la facultad de ingeniería, queestá ahora contribuyendo a los efectos especiales en loséxitos de taquilla de Hollywood. Y en Turquía, losarqueólogos de Lovaina siguen trabajando en Sagalassos,

uno de los sitios principales de la Antigüedad mediterránea.Como quizás habréis oído, la educación universitaria también está enel ápice de una innovación significativa. El acuerdo de Bolonia, queestá transformando la educación en toda Europa, se está aplicandotambién en la K.U.Leuven. En la práctica, significa que todos los pro-gramas son objeto de una detenida revisión, y que los títulos de ‘can-didatura’ o ‘licenciatura’ serán sustituidos, a partir del año que viene,por los títulos de ‘bachelor’ y ‘master’.

Sinceramente deseo que esta revista siga asegurando vuestro contac-to con la K.U.Leuven, vuestra K.U.Leuven, de manera activa y evolu-tiva.

Profesor Guido LangoucheVice-rector Relaciones Internacionales

Opening of the Academic Year 2003-2004

Articles with the K.U.Leuven monogramCasual wear, lace, pen sets, keychains, umbrellas, Seds pins, books and much more

K.U.Leuven ShopCatalogue on:

www.kuleuven.ac.be/boetiek/index_eng.htmOrder via:

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October 2003 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L 3

K . U . L E U V E N S P I N O F F

Eyetronics, a K.U.Leuven spinoff specialized in3D scanning technology, is beginning to leaveits mark in the world of special effects. Holly-wood has found plenty of uses for the Eyetro-nics technique of converting 2D images to 3D. Ashort list of some recent films in which theirtechnology played a vital role: Star Trek: Neme-sis, Die Another Day, Buffy The Vampire Slay-er, Bulletproof Monk, Agent Cody Banks, TombRaider 2, and most recently the visual effects forthe invisible man in The League of Extraordina-ry Gentlemen, played by Tony Curran.

There’s an unforgettable scene in Star Trek:Nemesis where the Romulan senators areexposed to Thalaron, a lethal green radiation,

resulting in the senate being dissolved. Literally. Theirbodies rot from the inside out leaving nothing more thanashes. Getting an actor to decompose onscreen is proba-bly asking too much, even of those who are serious abouttheir craft. Special visual effects come to the rescue. Apicture of the actor is transformed into a 3D model, andwith a clear conscience the model can be subjected to themost horrible tortures imaginable.

Dirk Callaerts, Eyetronics CEO, explains: “We makethe images using a ShapeCam. This is a portable frame-work to which a digital camera and two flashes are atta-ched. We take two pictures of the subject in question,one right after the other, the first with a regular flash andthe second with a gridflash, which projects a fine gridonto the subject. The deformations in that grid provide

us with the information for the 3D images. The processis repeated a few times. If we’re modelling a face, forinstance, we take one frontal photo, two side views andone of the chin. With the help of our ShapeMatch soft-ware, we put the images together, resulting in a perfect3D image. The next step is to apply animation.”

Plastic surgeryThe 3D technology from Eyetronics is not the only play-er in the market. An older system is still in common use:the laser scanner, which registers the object point bypoint. Callaerts: “That technology is very slow comparedwith ours. We require little more than a simple photoshoot, and the software does the rest. Another thing: oursystem is easy to transport, which is a crucial benefit

when you have to travel to all corners of the globe.The actors don’t come to us; we go to the film set”.ShapeWare has proven itself not just in the enter-tainment industry. Callaerts: “The archeologicalteam in Sagalassos (see p. 1) uses our technology toscan historical objects. They can then study thescans while the actual object is safely stored away.There are also a lot of medical applications. Plasticsurgeons use our technology to show their patientswhat they will look like after the operation. Ortho-dontists can use ShapeWare to see the externaleffect of an internal alteration like moving the cheekbone. And pediatric surgeons can use the system incases of newborn babies with skull deformities. Cor-recting that type of deformity requires a special sortof helmet which is designed with the help of Shape-Ware”.

In the public eyeWord-of-mouth marketing began to pay off. More andmore Hollywood contracts started rolling in and Eyetro-nics opened a branch in California in November, 2001.And yet, the company is still in its growth phase, withinvestment costs running higher than revenues, at leastfor the time being. There are lot of misunderstandingsabout that since, more than most spin-offs, this is a com-pany in the public eye. Callaerts: “After working on theBond film, we were on television a few times. Then youget e-mails like: ‘You guys are making piles of money onthe university’s coat-tails!’ Everyone associates block-buster movies with big money, and the top actors domake astronomic amounts, but we’ll be happy if we canreach the break-even point this year.” (rvh)

A Sagalassos Summer

“Restoration work is based on the principle of anastylosis, inwhich only building blocks present at the site are used. Suchreconstruction only makes sense when at least 95% of the ori-ginal construction material is available. Missing pieces are onlymade from scratch when they are essential for structural purpo-ses, and only using stone varieties close to the original”.

“In this way we have reconstructed a late Hellenic fountain,and are currently working on a Heroon, a large monument, anda massive Roman ornamental fountain - Sagalassos is alsoknown as the City of Water. This implies painstakingly piecingtogether thousands of large and small fragments. Many statues,coins, as well as glassware, stoneware and jewellery have beenrestored with, ideally, minimal interference”.

“Inscriptions on monuments and public buildings, some ofthem referring to patrons and sponsors, have taught us manythings about the city’s prominent inhabitants and its adminis-trative elite. By now, we have become familiar with the leadingfamilies and their relations with the Roman emperors forinstance, their marriages, etcetera. But for some years now wehave also been excavating the residential quarters, in residentialareas and large communal buildings in which several ‘groups’ ofpeople lived together, as well as in the manufacturing quarterswith their workshops and stores”.

“Archeological research is now mainly focused on ‘the com-mon man’: social differentiation within society, the subdivisionof the larger communal buildings, daily habits and diet. Plantremains in buildings can give an indication of their former use,for instance as stables. Food scraps, especially exotic imports,yield data about the social status of each room’s occupant”.

Ash rainThe project has generated 25 PhDs to date, half of them in theexact sciences, which is another indicator of the project’s inter-disciplinary character. The extensive research team consists notonly of archeologists and geologists, but includes cartographers,architects, bio-engineers, paleobotanists, archeozoologists andcomputer scientists.

“The geomorphologists, for instance, are currently focusingtheir attention on landscape reconstruction by means of drillingand pollen analysis. Drilling to a depth of 12 metres has revealed12,000 years of vegetational history. They have uncoveredtraces of volcanic activity, in some places they have discoveredlayers of volcanic ash up to a metre thick. Though Sagalassos isover 100 kilometres from the coast, ash remains have beenfound from the gigantic volcanic eruption on the Greek islandof Santorini around 1625 BC. Last year, geologists were able tofind substantial evidence to indicate that Sagalassos is situatedon a fault line - seismic activity caused landslides of up to 10metres in some places in the historical layers, while the direc-tion of these landslides corresponds with the cracks in the buil-dings that were destroyed by the earthquake of the seventh cen-tury that effectively meant the end of Sagalassos”.

“Each summer about half a million objects are collected -clearly we not only need a large team of conservationists, butalso computer specialists to help us inventory everything wedig up. Scientists from the Department of Electrical Enginee-ring and a team of European colleagues are currently workingon a three-dimensional visualization of the site, in effect, a vir-tual walk through the ancient city. They are now finalizingenvironmental details and are working on the colours of thebuildings. They will succeed where we have ‘failed’: in presen-ting an accurate reconstruction of what has been lost forever”.(kv)

• www.sagalassos.be• www.esat.kuleuven.ac.be/sagalassos/

Ornamental Fountain Uncovered

The latest excavations at the Sagalassossite in Turkey have once again yieldedseveral important archeological finds.This year’s highlight was the partial

uncovering of a two-story ornamentalfountain. The monument dates from

around 128-138 AD, during the reign ofHadrian, and may well have been a tri-bute to the emperor. So far, the nine-metre-long east wing of the fountain(which is three times that in size) has

been laid bare. Archeologists havefound fragments of two five-metre-high statues of emperor Hadrian andempress Sabina, as well as two bas-

reliefs each depicting a dancing muse(pictured is Clio, the muse of history).

The research team is confidently expec-ting to unearth more statues next year.

continuation of page 1

Brinkman, the bad guy in Agent Cody Banks, gets what he

deserves by accidentally swallowing a pill that brings his body

to the boil. Luckily for actor Ian Mc Shane, a simple picture suffi-

ces for Eyetronics...

“Scan me, Scotty”

4 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L October 2003

R E S E A R C H

Botulinum toxin A, a protein produced by thebotulinum bacteria, is the strongest naturallyoccurring poison. It is ten million times more

potent than the most poisonous dioxin: two billionths ofa gram suffice to kill an adult human being. In the 1990s,UN inspectors found barrels of the stuff in Saddam Hus-sein’s chemical arsenal.

The protein temporarily blocks the transmission ofstimuli between nerve and muscle, thus effectively para-lyzing muscles. Though this effect had been known forquite some time, botulinum was adopted for clinical useonly in the late 1970s. A U.S. ophthalmologist used theprotein successfully to paralyze certain small hyperactiveeye muscles in patients suffering from strabismus (asquint). For the past 20 years, the protein has been usedmainly in the treatment of motor problems and spastici-ty. More recent applications include the blocking ofhyperactive sweat glands and the suppression of motortics in people with Tourette’s syndrome: these are invol-untary brief muscle spasms such as a violent jerking ofthe head or frequent blinking of the eyes.

The toxin has garnered fame recently for its applica-tion in cosmetic surgery, to combat wrinkles formed bymuscle contractions, through excessive frowning forinstance. Botox injections into the facial muscles cause atemporary paralysis which allows the skin to recoverfrom the continuous ‘stretching and bending’ to which ithas been exposed. Botox, by the way, is a registeredtrademark.

Long-term relaxationCerebral palsy leads to severe muscular tension, whichnot only causes the child to have poor control over cer-tain movements, but also deregulates normal musculardevelopment. This shortening of the muscles in its turn

causes a deformation of the bone structure which canonly be corrected by several operations.

Dr. Guy Molenaers: “Between the ages of one andseven a child doubles in height. Surgical interventionstherefore have only a temporary effect at this stage andhave to be repeated regularly, each time with sufferingand a lengthy period of hospitalization. Botox has beenused for the past eight years to combat so-called equinusfoot in children with cerebral palsy. But in 80% of youngpatients the knee, upper leg and hip muscles are affectedas well. It is not difficult to imagine that well-plannedand repeated Botox treatments in several muscle groupsat the same time can positively influence the pathologicalprocess.”In 1996 Dr. Molenaers started using Botox treatmentcombined with physiotherapy and specially adapted, ins-truments that support the body and correct irregularitiesin growth. He first studied the effect of a single Botoxtreatment in over fifty children with cerebral palsy aftertwo, six and twenty-two months. This objectively esta-blished the positive long-term results for the first time.

“In cerebral palsy, it is primarily the bending musclesthat are affected by continuous muscular tension. Theparalyzing effect of a single Botox session has a chemicaleffect (chemodenervation) that lasts three months onaverage, but in that period the stretching muscles aregiven the opportunity to develop and the bending mus-cles can finally be stretched - which is why physiothera-py is such an important part of the treatment. This mak-es for a long-term relaxing effect.”

In a second phase of Dr. Molenaers’s research Botoxtreatments were repeated at specific well-chosen inter-vals - the timing of the treatment is important in order toavoid the formation of antibodies - and the effect on the

pathological process was studied. “The development of muscular shortening was clear-

ly reduced, which also led to fewer secondary deforma-tions - deformations of the bone. Children treated withBotox from an early age had a significantly better overallcondition, and were five times less likely to require sur-gery. The results are positive at all levels, from foot tohip. Using the same simple treatment we have also suc-ceeded in combating spasticity in the psoas or hip ben-ding muscle, a feat that had been deemed impossibleuntil now.”(kv)

photo: Rob Stevens

HIV-2 older than previously thought

However, research by doctoral student PhilippeLemey has shown that the leap from apes tohumans must have occurred sometime between

1890 and 1945. To reach this conclusion, Lemey studied 33so-called genetic sequences of the virus. Scientists haveentered these sequences, which we can consider the blue-prints of the virus, into an international database and theycan use them to trace viral spread. The techniques they usecan be applied to court cases, where a close genetic rela-tionship between the viruses of two patients can be sub-mitted as corroborating evidence for direct infection.

That the virus led to human epidemics only decadeslater shows the importance of societal factors to the spreadof HIV, says Lemey. The exponential growth of HIV-2infection coincides with Guinea-Bissau’s war of indepen-dence from Portugal,during which the socialstructure fell apart and theincidence of casual sexualcontact increased. Accor-ding to Lemey, this sort ofresearch is also importantbecause it allows us to forma clearer picture of how avirus spreads and develops,thus teaching us lessonsthat we can learn from inthe future. The results of

this research underscore the enduring importance of pre-vention campaigns.

Also, the impact of increasing globalization should notbe underestimated. Lemey: “At present, it is above all themovement of the host that makes a virus dangerous. Inter-continental contact has become the norm in the world vil-lage, as have all its consequences. But the medical world isaware of this, and has evaluated the situation well, whichwe saw with the successful countermeasures to prevent thespread of SARS.”

The dating technique that Lemey used had already beenused earlier in the laboratory of Prof. Annemie Vandamme,of the Rega Institute’s Clinical and Epidemiological Virolo-gy department, to research HIV and related viruses. Withthis research, a team from Leuven was able to demonstratethat HIV-1 made the leap to humans before 1930, whichoverturned the theory of Edward Hopper, a British journa-list. In his book The River, Hopper theorized that the trans-fer occurred in the Congo through infected polio vaccina-tions that weren’t used until the 1950s.

Contact between humans and the sooty mangabey

probably lies behind the transmission of HIV-2 in the first

half of the 20th century.

Botox combats cerebral palsy

Strongest poison a gift to science

Essential in the follow-up is the observation of the patients’

movements, the so called ‘gait analysis’, performed at the

Clinical Motion Laboratory (University Hospital Pellenberg).

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Alongside the HIV-1 virus, the cause of the massive AIDS epidemic in southern Africa, the HIV-2 virus alsoleads to AIDS, just more slowly. Scientists have known about the existence of this virus in Guinea-Bissau (westAfrica) for quite some time, where it first assumed the form of an epidemic in the 1960s. It was generally accep-ted that the virus had crossed from monkeys to humans just prior to that through some sort of blood contact.

In the last few years, the botulinum toxin A has made a name for itself in the field of plastic surgery, but ithas a longer history of varying clinical application. A recent study by Leuven physician Guy Molenaershas established that botulinum has a positive effect on the natural course of the disease cerebral palsy inchildren.

October 2003 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L 5

Professor Marc Swynge-douw is a political sociologist. “That is a specializationwithin a young science -sociology itself is barely 200years old. Political sociologyhas its origins in a philosophi-cal and sociographic approachto political phenomena. In themid-20th century, there was amove to empirical testing oftheories. One of the propo-nents of this was Paul Lazars-feld, an Austrian-Americanwho I would claim belongs inthe sociology pantheonalongside Marx, Weber orDurckheim. He laid the foun-dations of modern multivaria-te analysis (for nominal varia-bles), which allows multipleaspects of a particular pheno-menon to be studied simulta-neously. His book The People’sChoice (1944) examined elec-tion campaigns in a trulygroundbreaking fashion. Hedidn’t really found a school,but it is clear that all empiricalsociology is in his debt.”

“In my field there is a lackof sufficiently reliable andcomprehensive analytic tech-niques. We are very good atdealing with metric variableslike age and income. Nominaldata - for example Catholic ornot, man or woman - can alsobe easily analyzed. But it ismore difficult to come to gripswith data at the ordinal level,which tell us whether a certainfeature is more or less present.Of course, this is not just aproblem for sociologists; itexists in many fields.”

“The holy grail for a socio-logist is to understand how anindividual relates to society,how individuality and collec-tivity are connected to eachother. This problem is alwaysbeing reformulated, alwayswith new answers beinggiven. There will likely be nofinal, definitive answer. Apartfrom that, there is alwaysroom for more interdisciplina-ry investigation, thoughsociology scores fairly well inthis respect. There is, forinstance, more and more inputfrom psychology, mathema-tics, and so forth.”

TopFive Campuskrant asks K.U.Leuven researchers about the most important breakthrough, or even revolution, and thebiggest challenges in their discipline. Ludo Meyvis

EmpiricalSociology:Multivariateanalysis

4.Professor Herman Ramon ofthe Faculty of Agricultural andApplied Biological Sciences spe-cializes in the machinery utilizedin primary production, agricultu-re and the food-processingindustry. He names precision far-ming as the biggest break-through.

“It is not a matter of one sing-le technology, but an entire para-digm which started to emerge atthe beginning of the 1980s. Preci-sion farming is very closely rela-ted to location-specific farming.In the post-war period of large-scale mechanized agriculture, afield was regarded as a singleunit. Each part of the field got thesame amount of seed, the sameamount of fertilizer, and so on;but of course a field is far from ahomogeneous entity. Using thetechniques of precision farming,you can spray herbicide whereneeded, with whatever dosage isneeded. You can monitor yourcrops using computers, so thatyou know exactly what is neededon which part of the field. Natu-rally, this requires rather expensi-ve equipment, but there are alre-ady commercial systems on themarket which repay the cost of aworker within one year, which ishardly surprising when you bearin mind that savings of up to 80%are possible. The outcome of pre-cision farming is higher and bet-ter yields with lower costs, andwith much less environmentalimpact. It may sound strange, butenvironmentally friendly far-ming is very high-tech.”

“One of the significant chal-lenges in my field, and in agricul-tural production, has to do withthe lack of fully automatedmachines. In an ideal world, thefarmer would never have to setfoot in his field again, but couldleave everything to ultra-preciseand robust machines, fitted withsensors able to recognize obsta-cles. Machines like this are cer-tainly on the way. John Deere,one of the largest manufacturersof farm machinery, already mar-kets a tractor without an operatorcab, which runs virtually byitself. This trend presupposesthat farm machines will get smal-ler, and so safer and less destruc-tive of the soil.”

AgriculturalMechatronics:Precision farming3.

Professor Herman Parretteaches philosophy of langu-age and aesthetics. He hassome difficulty picking out areal breakthrough. “Philosophy is a field whereyou don’t really know morethan you did a century ago. Inphysics or biology there is acertain degree of progress, butnot in philosophy. The disco-very of a new dialogue by Pla-to or a new work by Kantmight seem like a break-through, but that is an illu-sion.”

“If I had to select a high-light, I would pick Kant’sthree Critiques, from the latterpart of the 18th century.Kant’s critical philosophyintroduced a rationality andanti-dogmatism that formed aturning point in philosophy. Italso had a direct effect on poli-tics and morality. A more con-temporary milestone might bethe fact that 20th-century phi-losophy has come down fromits ivory towers. Philosophersnowadays engage with otherdisciplines instead of onlywith other philosophers.”

“A further healthy trend isthe ceasefire between theAnglo-Saxon and the conti-nental approaches to philoso-phy. That battle has given wayto dialogue. A final point isthat philosophers are no lon-ger armchair scientists: theyreflect on what is going on inthe world around them. Thishas led to greater focus onbio-ethical problems, socialissues, etcetera. I think thismentality shift is very heal-thy.”

“A shortcoming? Philoso-phy is still largely practised inuniversities. It is too closelyassociated with a pointlessand outdated academicismwhich creates arbitrary divi-sions. Philosophers ought tobe ecumenical, not tied to asingle tradition or field. Theyshould have an elegant, broad-based view of reality, with ahigh degree of intellectualtolerance and openness. Per-sonally, I also think there is alack of interest in contempora-ry literature and culture.”

Philosophy ofLanguage:Kant’s criticalphilosophy

1.Professor Erik Smets is spe-cialized in plant systematics,which studies the classifica-tion and similarities of plants.His main focus is floweringplants. “For biology in general,and also in my own field,Charles Darwin’s theory ofevolution is probably the mostimportant milestone. WhenOn the Origin of Speciesappeared in 1859, modern bio-logy was born.”

“As a more recent break-through, I would point to therise of molecular systematicssince the beginning of the1990s. Now we use DNA datain the construction of familytrees, in addition to existingmorphological data. Workingwith nucleotide sequencesresults in new ideas and some-times far-reaching changes toold theories. For instance, weused to think that nettles androses were unrelated becausethey have such a differentmorphology. Now we knowwith some certainty that theyare actually related.”

“The biggest problemfacing my discipline is that weare still a long way fromhaving a complete overview oflife on earth. New species arebeing discovered quite regu-larly, including by members ofour own lab. Often these dis-coveries are not even small orunobtrusive life forms: recent-ly we found a hitherto un-known species of tree inGabon. According to estima-tes, between 10% and 25% ofplants still remain to be disco-vered. No descriptions ofthem are available, so theycannot be classified. Everyplant systematician’s dream isto some day acquire a comple-te overview of the variety oflife forms, the earth’s biodi-versity. Usually you hear thissaid in the context of the dis-appearance of known species,but it is very probable thatmany existing plants, particu-larly in the tropics, will disap-pear before they have everbeen studied. This deprives usof useful information for esta-blishing a good classification.”

Plant Systematics:Evolutionarytheory5.

Professor Ann Swillenteaches in the Department ofRehabilitation Science andholds an appointment as aneducational researcher at theclinical genetics section of theDepartment of Human Gene-tics.

“Depending on the Zeit-geist, people used to look forthe cause of a mental handicapeither in the environment(education) or in genetic fac-tors. It was only in 1959 thatJérome Lejeune discoveredthat trisomy 21, a chromoso-mal condition, was the causeof Down syndrome. With thediscovery of a genetic cause,many parents were relieved oftheir feelings of guilt overtheir child’s handicap. Lejeu-ne’s work opened the way tothe detection of chromosomalcauses of mental handicaps.”

“I see two major shortco-mings in my field. First, thereis a need for a thorough ethicalreflection. The enormousprogress made in genetics,with the possibility of preven-tion and early diagnosis ofhandicaps, has outpaced theneed for concrete answers toconcrete questions. Thismeans that some people whohave a medical answer to theirproblem still have to wrestlewith major ethical questions -and so do their doctors.”

“Secondly, there is a lack ofappropriate instruments formeasuring mental handicapsand behavioural disturbances.A description like ‘a ten-year-old who functions at the levelof a six-year-old’ is not veryhelpful: someone who is ten isfundamentally different fromsomeone who is six, even ifthe former has a handicap.Our instruments are focusedtoo much on intellectual abili-ties, while a handicap also hasa lot to do with the ability tointegrate socially, or withsocial and emotional develop-ment, etc. These things arerarely measured, if at all. Weare too restricted to what isrelatively easy to quantify, butthis yields an incomplete pic-ture of a person with a concre-te handicap.”

Orthopedagogie:Genetic origin ofmental handicaps2.

photo: Rob Stevens

photo: Rob Stevens

photo: Rob Stevens

photo: Rob Stevens

photo: Rob Stevens

6 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L October 2003

E D U C A T I O NAlumni Record Form

As an Alumnus I wish to forward the following information foryour records in the ‘Alumni K.U.Leuven - International’ databa-se for Country:...............................................................................City:....................................................................................

Personal DataName:.................................................................................Maiden Name (if applicable):................................................Date of Birth:..........................................Sex:........................Nationality/Citizenship:.........................................................

Home AddressStreet:..................................................................................Town:.........................................Postal code:........................Country:...............................................................................Phone:........................................Fax:...................................E-mail:.................................................................................

Former Studies & School:.......................................................Stay/Studies at K.U.Leuven:...................................................-Faculty:...............................................................................-Department:.........................................................................-Director/Staff:.....................................................................-Institution:............................................................................-Period:................................................................................-Obtained Degree:................................................................-Class Year Graduation:.........................................................- Supervisor:.........................................................................-Thesis/Dissertation Title:...................................................................................................................................................

Employment & Professional ParticularsDesignation: ........................................................................Profession: ...........................................................................Office Address/Institution/Department Name: ................................................................................Street: .................................................................................Town: .................................................................................Postal code: ........................................................................Country: ..............................................................................Phone: ....................................Fax: .....................................Telex: ..................................................................................E-mail: ................................................................................

Interest in Alumni ActivitiesAcademic: OProfessional: OSocial: OCultural: OK.U.Leuven Development: OOther, please specify: ...........................................................

‘Alumni K.U.Leuven-International’ Group in your City/Country:Non-existent: OWill be formed: OExistent: OContact Person/Secretary: ...................................................Address: ............................................................................Town: .................................................................................Postal code: .................Country: ..........................................Phone: .....................................Fax:....................................E-mail: ...............................................................................

Contact with Belgian Embassy: OAdditional Information:...................................................................................................................................................

Please send to Mr. Erik Gobin, Atrechtcollege, Naamsestraat63, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium, phone +32-16 32 40 02, fax+32-16 32 41 90, erik.gobin@alum.kuleuven.ac.be

The requested data will be inserted in the Alumni K.U.LeuvenInternational database. This database is registered accordingto the Privacy Law of December 8, 1992. The personal data ofthe alumni are legally protected. Every alumnus registered inthe database is allowed to consult and change his or her per-sonal data. The Alumni K.U.Leuven International database isused to inform the alumni worldwide of international activitiesand events taking place at K.U.Leuven.

On March 26, 2003 a new Belgian law was passedregulating the social-security status of internationaldoctoral students and postdoctoral researchers.Insofar as doctoral students and postdoctoral resear-chers are non-EU citizens and are not permanent resi-dents in Belgium, and insofar as they are not coveredby any international treaty governing social security,their scholarships are henceforth subject to the redu-ced contribution to the Belgian social-security system.In return, the doctoral student or postdoctoral resear-cher will receive child allowance benefits just like Bel-gian citizens, they will be entitled to health insurancelike employees and they will be covered by the law on

occupational safety and workplace accidents. Unem-ployment rights and pension rights, however, are notincluded. Doctoral scholarships are exempted fromtaxes for 4 years; postdoctoral scholarships are exemptfor 3 years.

On February 6, 2003 a new Belgian law was passedregulating the employment of non-Belgian citizens.Section 2, sub 5 of this law stipulates that starting fromApril 1, 2003 international postdoctoral researcherswho receive a postdoctoral scholarship are exemptedfrom the requirement to secure a work permit.

Will the introduction of a bachelor’s and master’sdegrees change the K.U.Leuven’s admission policy?In general there is no change of policy. Students seekingadmission to a bachelor’s degree programme must beable to demonstrate that in their home country theywould gain access to the same level of studies. In coun-tries where similar studies do not exist, it is enough toshow that you would have access to higher education ingeneral.For admission to an initial master’s programme, in prin-ciple a bachelor’s degree is sufficient. The equivalence ofyour degree is established by the university itself. Foradmission to an international master’s programme, amaster’s degree will be necessary. In certain cases, abachelor’s can be declared sufficient. In all these cases,the degrees obtained already will have to meet some sub-stantive criteria: obviously a bachelor of laws will not besufficient to gain admission to a master’s degree in medi-cine. Specific details for each programme are given inK.U. Leuven’s information packages.

What is timetable for introducing the new bache-lor’s and master’s programmes?In 2004-2005, K.U.Leuven will launch the first year ofthe bachelor’s programmes. Some of the internationalmaster’s programmes will also start at that time. Thesubsequent years of the bachelor’s and master’s program-mes will be introduced step-wise: second year of thebachelor’s programmes in 2005-2006, third year in2006-2007; first year of an ‘initial master’s’ - followingdirectly after a bachelor’s degree - from 2007-2008. Most

of the international master’s programmes, which requirea prior master’s degree, will start in 2004-2005 or 2005-2006. By 2009-2010, universities in Flanders will no lon-ger be allowed to confer the old degrees of kandidaat orlicentiaat.

What will happen to degrees obtained prior to theintroduction of bachelor’s and master’s program-mes?All students who obtained a final university degree at thelatest in 2003-2004 will keep their old degree names.After the 1st of July 2005, they will be allowed to use theadditional “master’s” title.All students graduating with a final university degreefrom 2004-2005 onwards until the bachelor’s and mas-ter’s programmes have been fully introduced, will obtainthe old degrees (licentiaat, engineer, etc.) but the qualifi-cation master’s will be added to their degree. Studentsstarting an international master’s programme will obtainthe master’s degree immediately.After the complete introduction of the bachelor’s andmaster’s scheme every student’s degree will be called eit-her a bachelor’s or a master’s.Although most students are keenly awaiting the new orthe additional master’s qualification, this does not meanthat the old programmes are inferior to the new ones orthat they will no longer be recognized. In most cases, thetotal programme duration will not change, and sincerecognition in other countries is more a matter of intrin-sic criteria than of names, the old university degrees arestill valuable.

T minus one, and still counting

Bologna reforms: FAQThere is no escaping it: the far-reaching reforms to higher education announced in the Bologna Declaration are enet-ring the final phase. The new programmes of study at K.U.Leuven will be officially announced in November. Mean-while, we can respond to a few frequently asked questions regarding the implementation of the new system and itsconsequences for our international students.

Recent changes in social-security law

Application deadlinesNon-EU citizens must apply before February 1st for theDutch-language programmes, and before March 1st forthe English-language programmes. EU students with therequired background and language fluency may registeruntil the end of September, but we would appreciatereceiving the applications before June 1st. There is nodeadline for pre-doctoral and doctoral programmes, nor

for international and visiting scholars. Application formsand detailed information about our university, its admis-sion policy, study and research programmes and theirdiploma and language requirements etc., can be found onour website www.kuleuven.ac.be/studeng/, via admis-sion.officer@dsa.kuleuven.ac.be or at the Office forinternational students and scholars, (t) +32 16 32 42 71, (f)+32 16 32 37 73, trees.deloddere@dsa.kuleuven.ac.be.

October 2003 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L 7

1) Why did you choose to come to Leuven?“I did my studies in Turkey, at the Middle Eastern Technical University. Mybrother, who was studying at Birzeit University in Palestine, got a scholars-hip in Leuven in the framework of the PEACE programme. He gave me apositive opinion of the university, the city and the people. He told me thatthere were good opportunites for doing a PhD here, with a grant of the uni-versity. The quality of education is also very good. I looked into it, on theuniversity website. I found interesting research topics, applied, and wasaccepted. First, I did a Master of Engineering, then I started on my PhD Ori-ginally, I thought I would get a K.U.Leuven scholarship, but it turned out tobe a mistake, and I got a grant from Belgian Technical Cooperation for thefirst two years. For my last year, I did manage to obtain a K.U.Leuven scho-larship.”

2) What is the first thing you told your friends/family back homeabout Leuven after your arrival?“When I came here, my brother picked me up at the airport and brought meto Heverlee. I only saw the city itself on the second day. The first thing thatstruck me was the number of students on bikes. In our country we use bikesas a hobby, not as a transportation tool. The second thing: the university isspread all over the town, it gives a really nice atmosphere of a real universitytown. In our country, we have only campus universities, which is a totallydifferent thing.”

3) What do you like most about Leuven and the university?“As far as the university is concerned, it covers all the needs of the students,from academics to economics (student jobs), and social life. When I firstcame here, I had a lot of contact with students in Pangaea, we did a lot ofthings together, parties, trips, and so on. I was also a member of Portulaca. Iwas impressed with the facilities offered to both national and internationalstudents. The sports facilites are great as well, I go almost every day to thesports centre. Students can practise any hobby they like. The most importantthing, of course, is the academic reputation of the university. The medicalfacilities are amazing as well, and of high quality. About the city: there isalways life in the city, there is always something to do, the city is very lively.When you are feeling down, you can always find something to distract you.What makes Leuven very interesting as well, is that it is so close to the capi-tal Brussels, you can do your shopping there or go to events. Leuven is one ofthe most beautiful cities I have seen, and I have travelled widely.”

4) What do you like least about Leuven and the university?“The fact that the university does not force students to take Dutch languagecourses. In Turkey, Turkish language studies were obligatory. Here, it is leftto students to look for language courses. In my Master of Engineering stu-dies, there were no Dutch courses available. I do think it would benefit stu-dents both academically and socially. Housing is another problem: housing isonly reserved for international students with a particular type of scholarship.Another, maybe minor, problem is Alma. Muslims don’t eat pork, and a lot ofdishes are pork-based. We did ask for at least one fish dish a day, because wedo not like to eat beef or chicken every day. Another strange thing is that Bel-gian students go home in the weekends, which makes the city quite empty.And finally, driving a car in this city is very complicated with all the one-waystreets and pedestrian areas.”

5) Would you come to Leuven if you could do it all over again?“I think this question has already been answered. I am currently trying hardto stay on in Leuven, and to find financial means and research opportunitiesto do so. I have proposed a postdoctoral project and am waiting for an answerin June. I have learned a lot of things here in the university, in the city, whichgave me a positive outlook, and I would like to keep the link with Leuvengoing.”

L I V I N G I N L E U V E N

International Contact ClubFive Questions for ...

The International Contact Club (ICC) was established in 1971 on the initiative of the lateProfessor P. De Somer, then K.U.Leuven rector. Run by a group of some 15 volunteers, theICC seeks to assist in the smooth ‘integration’ of foreign scholars and their families in Leu-ven. These foreign visiting professors, post-graduate and post-doctoral students areoffered a wide variety of programmes and activities that are designed to build bridges ofunderstanding and promote cultural exchange. ICC’s main objective is to ensure that theseforeign scholars and their families truly feel ‘at home’ in Leuven.The club’s activities and programmes are both diversified and practical. Ranging from citytours, elementary Dutch language courses, English and French, cooking classes, aerobicsclasses, lectures on various aspects of life in Belgium (and in Leuven), social gatherings, tospecial activities for children (for example the Saint Nicholas celebration), the ICC pro-grammes cater to everyone’s needs and interests.But even beyond these organized activities, the ICC volunteers are available to our foreignfriends whenever problems occur that require individual attention or assistance.

We would encourage our readers to contact the ICC or to drop by their clubhouse.The ICC is having an ‘Open House’ on October 25th, from 3 - 5 pm. (bs/pve)

• ICC clubhouseBegijnhof 16, Leuvenwww.kuleuven.ac.be/icc

In a country where bicycles are the mostcommon mode of tranportation, it is impor-tant that K.U.Leuven students and foreignvisitors know not only how to ride a bicyclebut also recognize the traffic signs. With these two aims in mind, K.U.Leuven held a bi-cycle skills course for international students, as part of its Orientation Days in September.In the first part, students learned information useful for navigating the streets: the mea-ning of traffic signs, traffic offences and fines, traffic accidents and insurance issues, andadministrative formalities. In the second part, students learned more practical things: howto ride a bicycle, how to react to dangerous situations, and safety-related precautions whenriding a bicycle in Leuven. All the instructors and participants found this course to beextremely useful and relevant to every single international student and scholar. About 100students took part in the bicycle skills course, with considerable interest from the media.

Bicycle skills: an asset!

A state-of-the-art electronic registration system has reduced waiting times for students wishing

to enroll to an average of 13 minutes each. In addition, no money changes hands at the time of

registration; students are handed a bill. At the time of going to press, K.U.Leuven had registered

more than 26,000 students, over one thousand more than last year at this time.

...

Jamal SaidPalestine,PhD in Informatics

photos: Rob Stevens

8 C A M P U S K R A N T I N T E R N AT I O N A L October 2003

E S T U D I A N T E S

Expedición de un proyecto de desarrollo en el Perú

Estudiantes de Lovaina ayudan ahabitantes indígenas del Amazonas

Los estudiantes de Derecho KarolienMaertens y Bert Bekaert iniciaronel proyecto. Participaron en una

misión de observación que visitó el dis-trito de Putumayo en diciembre del 2002.Muy impresionados por las pésimas con-diciones de vida en la población, Maer-tens y Bekaert decidieron avanzar un pasomás y elaborar su propio plan de desarrol-lo. Con iniciativas concretas en materia desalud, derechos humanos, organización yenseñanza querían ayudar a los pueblosde esta región.

Para este fin, reclutaron en las aulas dela universidad de Lovaina un equipo mul-tidisciplinario de voluntarios con médi-cos, bio-ingenieros, biólogos, juristas,antropólogos y científicos sociales. Para elfinanciamiento de la empresa organizaronactividades como el ‘día Putumayo’ en elparque de la ciudad, un desayuno muysabroso a domicilio y por supuesto la fie-sta de beneficio. La expedición pudo con-tar también con el apoyo de algunas emp-resas y ciertos conventos.

Bañarse con las pirañasPieter Verlooy (bio-ingeniero), junto conVincent Vanassche (ciencias de la comu-nicación) y Dominique Bulckaert (médi-co) se dieron cita en la jungla peruana. “Alprincipio hay que acostumbrarse. Habíaunos servicios que funcionaban con aguade lluvia. Cuando el agua se acababa,teníamos que irnos a los bosquecitos. Laducha no estaba mejor, así que para lavar-nos a diario, íbamos normalmente al ríoPutumayo, que, para colmo, estaba llenode pirañas y serpientes de agua. Y porcausa de la temperatura tropical y del altonivel de humedad, no podíamos hacergran cosa entre el mediodía y las tres de latarde.”

Por razones de seguridad, los miem-bros de los dos equipos en general sequedaban juntos. Eso es normal, porqueconstituían los primeros blancos (poten-ciales) desde hacía diez años en unaregión donde el movimiento guerillerocolombiano FARC ataca a cada momentocon grupos paramilitares. Los equipossólo podían visitar algunos pueblos siiban acompañados por militares. Estasituación tenía consecuencias para elproyecto. Uno de los dos equipos nopudo dar seminarios sobre los derechoshumanos porque la población local temíaque el tema estuviera demasiado politiza-do.

Proveer de agua potable a los pueblosera una de las prioridades del proyecto.“Construimos un filtro de agua a base delprincipio de vasos comunicantes. Eraimprescindible porque las muestras quecogimos del agua del río, estaban llenas debacterias y materias químicas. La genteutilizaba esta agua para beber y cocinar,también se lavaba en ella. Yo mismo tuvedos veces una infección intestinal, lo queahí no es nada anormal. E incluso despuésde haber hervido el agua y haber disueltopastillas de cloro adentro, tuve diarrea.Ahora el agua está purificada, y la mayoríade las partículas sucias han sido eliminad-as por el filtro.”

Existían más planes para mejorar elestado sanitario. “Encargamos una grancantidad de medicinas por avión, sobretodo material básico como antibióticos ydesinfectantes. Cada pueblecito tenía unlugar sanitario con un ‘técnico’, alguienque podía tratar las enfermedades máscomunes. Pero faltaban medicinas a causade los problemas de transporte desde lacapital del distrito. Por esta razón, la gen-

te utilizaba con frecuencia la medicinatradicional. El ‘curandero’ y una gran par-te de sus remedios parecían eficaces. Porejemplo, alguien de nuestro grupo sufríamucho de picaduras de mosquitos (zan-cudos). Ninguno de nuestros remediosclásicos tenía efecto pero el jugo de algunaplanta local sí.”

Máquinas de cocerLa organización del gobierno en lospueblos era pésima.

“Los jefes tenían cada uno una visónsobre una cierta parte del problema perono había cooperación entre ellos. Ahorahay una reunión mensual del pueblo parainformar e intercambiar ideas. Tambiénhemos intervenido en la enseñanza. Laescuela local estaba compuesta por dossalones de clases, cada uno de unos cin-cuenta niños, entre cuatro y catorce años.Había solamente un profesor que teníaque irse de una clase a otra. Era una expe-riencia sorprendente. Los alumnos nosabían nada, o casi nada de la materia queencontraban en sus manuales, únicamen-

te los mayores podían contestar a veceslas preguntas. Hemos conseguido que losniños tienen que ir a la escuela sólo algu-nos días por semana y que al mismo tie-mpo reciben cursos en pequeños gruposde la misma edad. Así el profesor puedeacompañarles mejor.”Seguramente el año próximo partirá unasegunda misión para seguir y amplificarlos proyectos con nuevas iniciativas.“A través de un estudio de las costumbresde comida nos hemos dado cuenta de que

la gente casi nocome ni fruta niverdura. Sinembargo, losminerales y lasvitaminas reper-cuten favorable-mente en lasalud tal como elagua purificada.El año próximopodríamos haceralgo en este sent-ido. En compara-ción con nuestraexperiencia deahora necesitare-

mos menos materiales que para construirun filtro de agua, de modo que podremosahorrar en los gastos de transporte. Lapoblación local también presentó algunasideas. Pedían por ejemplo máquinas decoser para poder hacer su ropa ellos mis-mos en vez de comprarla a los comercian-tes colombianos. Sólo esperamos poderjuntar a suficiente gente interesada paraque la próxima expedición tenga el mis-mo éxito.”(ov)

www33.brinkster.com/putumayo

Durante seis semanas, dieciseis (ex-)alumnos de la universidad de Lovaina han recorrido la región de Putu-mayo, en la frontera entre el Perú y Colombia. La expedición quería - junto con las ONGs locales - mejorarla calidad de vida en diez pueblecitos peruanos, y encontrar ideas para futuras misiones. Los estudiantesdejaron temporalmente su propio confort para poder mejorar el de los habitantes de Putumayo...

Our university’s central library has a troubled past. Over the courseof fifty-odd years, it has survived two incinerations (at the outbreakof each World War) and one split (in 1968, when Leuven’s universi-ty was split into a French-speaking and a Dutch-speaking institu-tion). Maybe its current condition proves its remarkable talent forsurviving even the worst mishaps. But this year is a year of celebra-tions for the venerable building and its rich holdings. On July 10th,the 75th anniversary of its current location was celebrated. Indeed,in 1928, after being burnt to the ground at its old location in theUniversity Hall, a new building was formally opened on the Ladeu-zeplein, largely sponsored by American donations. Seventy-fiveyears later, a series of celebrations marks the anniversary. In the pre-sence of the American ambassador, an exhibition was held, showinga number of treasures from the University of Pennsylvania’s library,with which K.U.Leuven collaborates very closely. The celebrationalso marked the end of a meticulous restoration of the tower, roofsand outer walls, and the installation of a new lighting system whichgives the building a very classy atmosphere. Special publications,musical events, and more, will add to this festive year.

Central library celebrates 75th anniversary

Take a walking tour or read about the library’s

turbulent history and world-famous carillon on

www.bib.kuleuven.ac.be/bibc/english/

photo: Rob Stevens

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