Lieven Scheire: “It has never been easier than today to become an inventor. The fab labs shoot like mushrooms from the ground, the hardware is affordable and accessible, and above all: the knowledge is very accessible. Anyone who wants to build or develop something today has left from the start. What I love about it Team Scheire, is that we can illustrate that with very specific cases. ”
Name one?
Scheire: “The first episode features Kenny, a young man from Boechout with a muscle disease. Kenny is in an electric wheelchair that he controls with a joystick: his hands are the only thing he gets some movement in. Despite his severe handicap, he has already managed to release two CDs of self-produced electronic music, and to create his own graphic designs – he is part of a collective of graphic artists. He is an immense fan of graffiti, especially large ones murals, and his big dream was to put his own design on a wall without help. Anthony Liekens, our very own nutty professor, has built a graffiti machine that Kenny used his first in Antwerp last year mural has put. That is the strength of today’s maker culture, that you can find tailor-made answers to even the most specific questions. And it all works too. ”
Would you like to tinker yourself?
Scheire: “Oh yes, to the extent that I have already made attempts here and there. Quite confronting to see what junk you come up with when you are surrounded by top players in the genre. ”
Now you make me curious.
Scheire: “I have just written a book about insects together with Peter Berx, an entomologist from Limburg. Insects, it is simply called, and it will be released on October 21. At one point, Peter explains how you can get acorn ants – tiny ants that live in a hollowed-out acorn with about 200 – to move to a nest you made yourself. Most people use test tubes or glass vials, but I have a 3Dprinter, so I thought: you know what? I’m just printing a house! Under my computer screen, on my desk, is now a 2 centimeter high house with a gable roof, a front door and a window. And right now I see an acorn ant strolling through the front door. That creature has just gone to get some honey – 10 centimeters from the house is a cotton ball with water, a few dead fruit flies and a drop of honey. Note: this house is iteration five – next to my printer are four failed houses. ”
Iteration five?
Scheire: “Iterations, or iterations as our makers say, are different versions of a creation. I’ve learned that by now, you don’t start with the idea of a first version: this will be it. You make a first draft to see what is wrong with it, so that you can correct your mistakes. It took several iterations before I managed to equip my 40 centimeter long Lego version of the ISS with real solar panels instead of Lego little pieces. Now I can charge my phone with it: nice, you know. ”
Can I throw a completely different subject on the fire?
Scheire: “Be my guest.”
Who do you think will succeed you as the smartest person in the world?
Scheire: “Gosh … Ella Leyers has of course her family name, because both her father and her sister have already been highly successful in the past. The smartest person. And I saw that Fatma Taspinar and Liesbeth Van Impe also participate, two journalists: I would keep an eye on them just because of their profession. And I am also very curious about what Serine Ayari, a stand-up comedian from Vilvoorde, will make of it. I’ve been following her for a while: she posts quite a bit of her stand-up material on Instagram. ”
You believe less in the chances of born strikers like Ben Crabbé or Jan Verheyen?
Scheire: “In itself I believe in that, but during my participation I noticed that as a late thirties I had to give up the role a bit when it came to topics that concern the young generation, such as the TikTokkers, the YouTubers and the Taylor. Swifts of this world. Most of the editors are younger than me, and therefore certainly younger than Ben Crabbé and Jan Verheyen. I suspect that they will experience this firsthand, because it is the editors who formulate the questions. People of that generation are on the social media and watch streaming channels – newspapers and linear television are much less familiar to them. ”
Do you still watch TV linearly?
Scheire: “I do, yes. The court I never miss, and also Level 4 I am following, because it can be done in Ghent this season. I try to see through Eric Goens’ video game layer: I especially enjoy the inimitable humor of the average Ghent cop. They recently picked up a young drug dealer: the moment they throw him in the combi, you see a whole gang of street bastards standing threateningly next to that combi. ‘Allee,’ says one of those cops in flat Gents when he wants to leave, ‘thanks for coming, everyone.’ Then I really do hiccups in my chair. ”
How are you doing in these harsh times?
Scheire: “Given the circumstances, pretty good: I keep busy. The big dreams – and I’m mainly talking about England – are on corona break, but I would be crazy to complain about that. If I compare it with others, also within the sector, then I put it right. ”
What exactly do you hope to achieve in England one day?
Scheire: “The science comedy is a genre in its own right, with its own scene that I like to connect with. I have already performed at some science festivals and other stages in England, and I would like to keep doing that. Hopefully there will be a TV project in it someday. Over the years I have made some friends on the QIeditors, and that of the No Such Thing as a Fishpodcast, so who knows. ”
I note: your wet dream is a regular panelist in QI?
Scheire (laugh): “Where can I draw with my own blood? ”
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Team Scheire, Canvas, Tuesday October 13, 9:15 PM
© Smoke
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