Think — Issue 03 — Science in the City Special by Think

AUTUMN 2012 • ISSUE 3

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MEGA-EVENTS IN VALLETTA not just mega-buildings

CARAVAGGIO

Violence, beauty, influence, protection

WORKING WITH STUTTERING The solution is a smile away

SCIENCE IN THE CITY 2012 When art and science collided in Malta

DIGITAL EDITION

THINKIDEA SMALTARE RESEARC HPEOPLEU EUNIVERSIT HINKIDEAS SMALTAR ARESEARC CHPEOPLEU Cover photo by Norbert Francis Attard

You Are The Staircase was one of the most popular artworks during Science in the City — Malta’s first science and art festival that ran on the 28th September, 2012. Norbert Francis Attard magnified two twists of a single strand of DNA hundreds of times turning it into a spiral staircase. The artwork was set in the heart of Valletta on the cross roads of St John’s Street and Merchant Street, providing visitors with a unique viewing platform. The six metre metal structure dominated the space, asking its audience to climb its steps and ponder whether DNA is a journey to nowhere or of self-discovery. After all, all seven billion humans have a unique DNA sequence.

ASMALTAR ESEARCHP CHPEOPLEU UNIVERO TY SMALTAR RESEARCH CHPEOPLE UNIVERCOVER STORIES 13

Science in the City 2012 Special Feature Valletta through the SciArt looking glass

Beyond Science

ver summer, I met up with artists, students, and scientists. They all came together to create the first edition of Science in the City — Malta’s science and art festival, which exceeded expectations. We’ve covered the heart of the festival with 19 beautiful pages (pg. 13–31). University coordinated this festival and Evenings On Campus (pg. 45–49); it clearly is much more than a teaching institution. Festivals wouldn’t be possible without their source of inspiration: research. We have stories about how laughter is being used in therapy (pg. 36–40), how Britain and Italy fought over Malta (pg. 32–35), and some excellent research into Caravaggio’s paintings (pg. 41–44). This time round our fun section covers the book The Geek Manifesto, a game banned by Apple, and a fact or fiction question we are sure you will love (pg. 52–53). So you can easily contact us and stay updated, we have setup a Facebook page and Twitter feed — with a magazine blog available soon. If you’re a University of Malta student, alumnus, or researcher, please get in touch, we would love to hear your story — there are many ways to contribute. In the next issue, be prepared to discover some Roman secrets.

FEATURE

Laughter is the best medicine Using humour to help treat stuttering

Laughter is the best Dd medicine 41

Caravaggio

Dr Joseph Agius

Creativity and humour are being used by Dr Joseph Agius to help people who stutter. His techniques have helped

in Malta. They are now being used all over Europe, Ahundreds murderer, artistic which is no laughing matter. Words by The Editor genius, and Maltese resident

Edward Duca

Cultural Infrastructure for Mega-events

edward.duca@um.edu.mt @DwardD

Golden opportunity or golden goose for Valletta?

EDITOR

CONTRIBUTORS

CONTENTS OPINION

Prof. Pierre Mallia 11

Prof. Giuseppe De Giovanni

Lessons from legislation on IVF – a personal perspective Prof. Pierre Mallia shares his experiences on local IVF legislation

Justin Schembri FEATURE

Alexandra Fiott

Maltese History: not as we remember it

Lily Agius

How did Italy and England fight over Malta?

Ira Melkonyan

Patricia Camilleri Dr Joseph Agius

ALUMNI

Alumni talk

Prof. Keith Sciberras

Cold physics to research in rugby

Wilfred Kenely

Jean Pierre Magro

Prof. Gordon Pace 54

Costantino Oliva Graziella Vella Are you a student, member of staff, or a researcher at the University of Malta? Would you like to contribute to THINK magazine? If interested, please get in touch to discuss your article on think@um.edu.mt or call +356 2340 3451

RESEARCH

Supporting the RIDT... because research matters Building the University of the Future together

CONTENTS

STUDENTS

Students' thinking About: football, tracking dance, Malta's security, robots, pollution, and moving objects by thinking about it

OPINION

Brain Awareness, Research and Facts Prof. Giuseppe Di Giovanni talks to us about mental health

THINK

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U N I V E R S I TY

AUTUMN 2012 - ISSUE 3

EDITORIAL

Edward Duca EDITOR

PRODUCTION

FEATURE

The Wig Hunt The winner of Malta's first Transmedia competition

Jean Claude Vancell

PRINTING

Print It Printing Services, Malta ISSN 2306-0735 Copyright © University of Malta, 2012 The right of the University of Malta to be identified as Publisher of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright Act, 2001.

Did Albert Einstein say we only use 10% of our brain? Find out in our Fact or Fiction Section

University of Malta, Msida, Malta Tel: (356) 2340 2340 Fax: (356) 2340 2342 www.um.edu.mt

THINK is a quarterly research magazine published by the University of Malta.

FUN

All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of research and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. The publisher has used its best endeavours to ensure that the URLs for external websites referred to in this magazine are correct and active at the time of going to press. However the publisher has no responsibility for the websites and can make no guarantee that a site will remain live or that the content is or will remain appropriate. Every effort has been made to trace all copyright holders, but if any have been inadvertently overlooked, the publishers will be pleased to include any necessary credits in any subsequent issues.

CULTURE GENES

Meme

FIND US ONLINE www.facebook.com/ThinkUoM 58

www.twitter.com/thinkuom

STUDENT

students’ THINKing Motion tracking, Malta’s security, and pollution are some of the problems students at the University of Malta have been tackling. Here is a selection from over 3,000 graduates

Theatre, Dance & Motion Tracking: Art? THE WAY A HUMAN tracks motion is both extraordinary and inconspicuous. In both theatre and dance, a lighting graphics engineer designs visuals and lighting to match a performer’s movement. Their motions might delight the audience but are very complex for computers to detect and interpret. Despite continuous breakthroughs, there are still many issues to overcome when tracking the human body across a stage. Michaela Spiteri (supervised by Alexandra Bonnici) developed a system that allows dancers to control light effects through the dancer’s own movement. Mapping the movement of humans has several problems. Dancers tend to be highly flexible and perform very refined movements. The complex movements sometimes obscure certain body parts, which rapidly appear again, confusing the computer. The computer tracked motion through a number of steps. First, it created a mathematical model of the background image. This technique allows the background and dancer to be separated in live video, leaving the dancer’s silhouette. Secondly, the dancer’s silhouette was then thinned to a skeleton in order to obtain five points: head, hands and feet. A Kalman filter was applied, allowing the computer to continue to track motion even if a point was

Backdrop: Graphics projected here

Projector

Camera

Dancer

Michaela Spiteri self-experimenting during her research on tracking dance moves

hidden. The Kalman filter predicts location by assessing past information and predicting where it would be in the future. The study could stimulate new ways for artists to express their concepts. Additionally, the computer algorithm used can be applied in augmented reality, medicine and surveillance.

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This research was performed as part of a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) at the Faculty of Engineering.

Dancer’s silhouette after processing (actual data)

THINK STUDENT

Hand pose replication using a robotic arm

Islands and Security ISLANDS have played different and unique roles throughout history. The process of decolonisation, starting in the late 50s, led to a proliferation of small island states. These new independent nations sought to develop their own foreign and security policies. André P. DeBattista (supervised by Dr Isabelle Calleja Ragonesi) studied International Relations in Malta’s history to examine the role of small island states in regional and global security. He found that small island states reinforce security and can stabilise regions. Due to their geography, small islands can wield disproportionate influence. They may serve as military outposts and control waterways used for commerce, trade and defence. However, islands can still be vulnerable, weak and externally manipulated. For millennia, Malta has been fought over by regional powers for purposes of trade and defence. In 1964, for the

first time in its history, Malta became independent and could chart its own political trajectory. Despite political independence, it was and still is reliant on other states. Throughout its history, Malta has played an important role in the provision of regional security. It had a strong influence in both the Cold War period and also after its recent accession to the EU. DeBattista believes that Malta is well positioned to spearhead research on small islands; “as a small island state, Malta managed to adapt to different circumstances and challenges. It excelled both within its region and in the international community. This success should encourage us to conduct further research in this niche area, in order to provide solutions and policy options to other small island states.”

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This research was undertaken as part of a Masters of Arts in International Relations.

ROBOTICS is the future. Simple but true. Even today, they support us, make the products we need and help humans to get around. Without robots we would be worse off. Kirsty Aquilina (supervised by Dr Kenneth Scerri) developed a system where a robotic arm could be controlled just by using one’s hand. The setup was fed images through a single camera. The camera was pointed towards a person’s hand that held a green square marker. The computer was programmed to detect the corners of the marker. These corners give enough information to figure out the hand’s posture in 3D. By using a Kalman Filter, hand movements are tracked and converted into the angles required by the robotic arm. The robotic arm looks very different from a human one and has limited movement since it has only five degrees of freedom. Within these limitations, the robotic arm can replicate a person’s hand pose. The arm replicates a person’s movement immediately so that a person can easily make the robot move around quickly. Controlling robots from afar is essential when there is no prior knowledge of the environment. It allows humans to work safely in hazardous environments like bomb disposal, or when saving lives performing remote microsurgery. In the future, it could assist disabled people. A video of the working project can be found at: http://bit.ly/KkrF39.

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This research was performed as part of a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) at the Faculty of Engineering.

STUDENT

Bad traffic, bad air AIR POLLUTION is one of Malta’s greatest concerns. Transportation is the principal source with over 300,000 vehicles belching out smoke, which damages our environment and health. Emissions from vehicles need to be monitored and controlled, and the information used to improve the current system and ensure an acceptable air quality. In Malta, air pollution levels are monitored by MEPA (Malta Environment and Planning Authority). MEPA has 131 diffusion tubes that take monthly measurements of air pollution levels. The pollution data set used ranges from 2004 to 2011. On the other hand, Transport Malta (TM) measures traffic flow along the main arterial roads. By using the pollution data set, Nicolette Formosa (supervised by Dr Kenneth Scerri) mapped the air pollution levels and major sources around Malta. MEPA and TM take measurements at different locations. To overcome this problem, the pollution data set needed to be interpolated to extend over the whole of Malta. By interpolating the pollution

measurements using mathematical models, traffic and pollution levels can be directly compared. Malta was divided into four zones. The Grand Harbour area had the strongest link between traffic and pollution. The central area has a strong overlap but this decreased on Saturday and more so on Sunday. The north and south parts of Malta experienced lower levels over weekends. However, the northern area has a stronger link during weekdays. The areas of Floriana and St Julian’s had a remarkable link between pollution and traffic, lighting a red bulb marking priority areas for the authorities to tackle.

Overall, Malta’s air pollution problems are interwoven with its traffic volume. This highlights a problem which needs both scientific and political measures to tackle. Formosa’s studies need to be taken a step further, “there needs to be a statistical means to interpret the data of air pollution measured against traffic flows in the same areas“ said Hon. George Pullicino, Minister for Resources and Rural Affairs. If implemented, the research could help lower health care costs in Malta while improving the quality of life.

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This research was performed as part of a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (Honours) at the Faculty of Engineering.

Pollution Surface across the Maltese Islands

THINK STUDENT

ball

Hip

um Ind b ex

Ankle

Toes

bro

Eye

Shoulder

Eye

Trunk

lid &

Elbow

Eye

ist Wr

tle Lit ing R e dl id M

Fac

Lips Jaw e

Tongu a

in llow

The primary motor cortex is the portion of the human brain which is directly responsible for planning motor movement. Areas of the motor cortex are mapped by the motor homunculus, these areas are associated with separate parts of the body.

Moving wheelchairs with your thoughts BRAIN TO COMPUTER interface (BCI) devices can read a person’s thoughts and turn them into commands to move objects. They can give freedom to people suffering from movement impairments. Rosanne Zerafa (supervised by Tracey Camilleri) developed a system that detects a person’s brain patterns while they are thinking of moving a particular part of their body and translates them into commands to move a cursor. The research has the potential to remove considerable lag

Setup of EEG based brain-computer interface devices

between thinking of moving an object and it actually moving. Brain activity can be detected using an electroencephalogram (EEG), which is made up of a cap with electrodes that touch a person’s scalp. The electrical activity captured by the electrodes is then interpreted by a software program to give commands to move a robotic arm, wheelchair, or other assistive device. Zerafa tested the system on four individuals who were thinking about moving their left or right hand. Different brain

patterns from these two tasks could be identified and translated into left or right movement of a cursor on a computer screen. Taken together, the software could be further developed and tested to improve it for real-world needs such as assisting people with movement difficulties and even gaming.

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This research was performed as part of a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) at the Faculty of Engineering.

STUDENT

Football like you’ve never seen it before FREEVIEWPOINT television (FTV) is expected to become the ultimate 3D TV experience. With FTV, the viewer can choose from which angle and position to view a scene. Want to watch football from above, the East Wing, or with your fellow fans? At the press of a button, with FTV you can. For FTV to work, the same scene needs to be captured from a number of different viewpoints and the virtual scenes in between generated. To broadcast the service requires a huge bandwidth, which on your mobile would quickly soak up all your data. Current mobile FTV frameworks cannot handle the broadcast capacity required and FTV has never been deployed over a specific cellular technology. Terence Zarb (supervised by Dr Ing. Carl James Debono) proposed a framework to compress and transmit FTV to mobile devices. The system was adapted for the next generation long-term evolution (LTE) networks, currently available on high-end

smartphones. To reduce bandwidth and reduce mobile phone workload, the FTV broadcast data is processed at the transmitting end, before it is sent over the mobile network. The physically captured views are transmitted. Depending on the user’s choice, the mobile phone either presents one of these views or generates an arbitrary viewpoint. By using the novel proposed framework, the bandwidth required was reduced by over 70% compared to current methods. It also provided a better viewing experience. Taken together, the proposed framework can realistically be deployed on LTE networks, which means we might be seeing an incredibly innovative way of viewing sport, documentaries and maybe even films on our 3D TVs — is that enough to make you buy one?

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This research was performed as part of a Masters of Science in Information and Communi-

cation Technology at the Faculty of Information and Communication Technology. The research is partially funded by the Strategic Educational Pathways Scholarship Scheme (Malta). The scholarship is part-financed by the European Union – European Social Fund, under Operational Programme II – Cohesion Policy 2007-2013, “Empowering People for More Jobs and a Better Quality of Life”.

Proposed framework to allow an incredible 3D video experience to be compressed and transmitted to mobile devices.

Actual Cameras

eNB

Virtual Cameras

Content Provider IP Network

LTE EPC MME

SGW/ PDNGW

Video Broadcast Processing Server Server

3D Scene

eNB Depth Estimation

MVD Format

MVC Compression

MVC Decoding

DIBR

Display

THINK OPINION

Lessons from legislation on IVF – a personal perspective Prof. Pierre Mallia

he draft Bill on IVF (in vitro fertilisation) was supposed to regulate a medical procedure. Yet, its very name ‘Protection of Embryos Act’ reflects that the concern lies with the embryo’s status rather than with IVF itself. The approach reflects the government’s intention, which never questioned that IVF can be useful to infertile couples wishing to have a baby. Nevertheless, one must reflect upon the constant changes in position from the ecclesiastical authorities, which have a rightful claim to still reflect most of Malta’s values. Comprehending the historical context of the present bill’s fruition will help understand the current situation. IVF has been discussed for more than 25 years. The Bioethics Consultative Committee worked on many issues to provide politicians with a bill which reflected Maltese values and morality. Bioethics in Malta started after the 1987 elections and Faculty of Theology members were instrumental in its formation. Minister Hon Dr L. Galea who was Minister of Social Policy supported this committee. It later fell under the Minister for Health. The committee soon published a document on Reproductive Technology. A strong reaction followed with sharp exchanges between the Minister and Archbishop. This reaction should have been an early warning of what was to come. The Curia was represented on the committee, and many committee members were Catholic, however what was agreed within the committee does not always reflect the position and wish of the parties involved. The present bill has changed little from the original document. The moral theologians on the committee always said that IVF

can and should be acceptable so long as legislation respects the family concept and the embryo’s status. With these guidelines in mind, we thought that IVF should be offered to legitimate couples, with no embryo freezing or experimentation. This was a sine qua non, as the conservative government in power would question these values. Morally, the committee was guided by the Church document Domun Vitae, which expressed concern on IVF, calling it illicit since it goes against normal human procreation. However, the same document says that if laws on reproductive medicine are contemplated, Catholic politicians should be guided by two principles: respecting the family and embryo.

“Theologians always occupied 20 – 40% of the Bioethics Consultative Committee” The final document should be considered an official agreement since theologians always occupied 20–40% of the BCC (Bioethics Consultative Committee). The Curia’s reactions clearly show that this was inadequate. When push came to shove, the Bishops went back to basics and spoke fervently against IVF, warning about the danger to the embryos. The bill had taken these issues into account since it only allows limited freezing to safeguard an embryo whose mother, for example, falls ill in the process. The embryo will be implanted immediately after her recovery. The first lesson to be learnt is that there needs to be official agreements between the leaders of publically influential groups — consultancy is inadequate. Differences of

values bring about conflict; it is not enough to resolve disputes. In this case, it was assumed that there was no conflict, that all parties were agreeing in principle to IVF but had to resolve the disputes. It cost us dearly to realize that the leaders of the Church were not happy with the values involved. A second lesson is that we need to be sure what we are talking about. We cannot speak about different moral problems within the same pot. Therefore, the legality of IVF has nothing to do with problems such as embryo freezing. This led to many issues being confused, like IVF being labeled as wrong because of embryo freezing and experimentation that occurrs in other countries but not in Malta. The misunderstanding shows that the issues have also been misinterpreted. Lesson three is simple: make no assumptions. The moral position has always been clear, but having ecclesiastical representatives at all stages does not mean that the Curia will agree — despite continuous reassurances that their representatives are on the committee. I would like to think that this was not done purposely, but moral theologians have suffered a big loss along the way. Bioethics committees cannot continue to assume that theologian’s advice will satisfy the Church. Many people working in good faith on the committees have suffered considerable damage to their careers unless they pulled the traditional line.

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Pierre Mallia is Associate Professor in Family Medicine, Patients’ Rights and Bioethics at the University of Malta. He is also Ethics Advisor to the Medical Council of Malta, and Chairman of the National Health Ethics Committee.

OPINION

Brain Awareness, Research and Facts Prof. Giuseppe Di Giovanni

rain illnesses are among the most important causes of death and disability worldwide. While 0.4 million people die from breast cancer every year, 1 million commit suicide. Add death due to drugs of abuse, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative disorders, and the numbers skyrocket. Yet, despite the high numbers, social awareness of brain research is low. Mental illness is still perceived as an indulgence, a sign of weakness or punishment. For patients, it carries powerful negative attributes in all of their social relations. The situation must be improved. Neuroscientists need to work together with the media and educators to raise awareness among the general population and politicians. Mental illnesses are just as important as other physical illnesses, only much more complex, due to the limited understanding of our brain. In order to improve mental health, research needs support. Funding is needed from national and international authorities for both basic and clinical research, patient care, and to support patients’ families. Brain research is important: a message that needs to be understood by all societal sectors including government, academia, industry, and the general public. In Malta, biomedical and in particular neuroscience research is in a period of growth. Thanks to a number of talented people, the number of research groups focusing on brain function and disease has

increased. This growth has pushed Maltese groups into the international scientific spotlight, which helps provide our students with both local training and work. Malta still has a long way to go. Research funding is limited and the government body responsible for research policy, the Malta Council for Science & Technology (MCST) through the National R&I Programme, focuses on academic research done in partnership with industry.

“Mental illnesses are just as important as other physical illnesses” Unfortunately, the number of industrial partners interested in neuroscience is limited. Like other European and worldwide funding organisations, Malta needs to provide financial support for basic research. Ideally, the programme grants will be between 3 to 5 years, which allows for the initial scientific discoveries to be developed into new technologies. These developments can sometimes take much longer, but science can only contribute to the economy when it has solid basic discoveries. Science awareness in Malta is poor. Neuroscientists at the University of Malta are fighting on all fronts. My colleagues and I are trying to improve our understanding of devastating pathologies that underlie epilepsy, drug addiction, stroke, Alzheimer’s

and Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders. Outside the lab, we are constantly searching for new funds and European grants to continue this research and I am helping to connect my colleagues to Europe by informing them about available funds. To communicate recent discoveries in neuroscience, I have started Neuroscience Days at the University of Malta: day-long seminars dedicated to neuroscience. This year, the third Neuroscience Day will be part of the VIII Malta Medical School Conference 2012. As members of the Malta Chamber of Scientists, we also communicate the workings of the brain to the general public. But all our efforts are in vain without you. We need your help to unlock the mysteries of the brain.

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The author is an associate Professor at the Faculty of Medicine & Surgery, an honorary senior lecturer at the University of Cardiff and the Maltese representative for the Biomedicine and Molecular Biosciences domain at COST. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of the Malta Chamber of Scientists journal called Xjenza (http://www.xjenza.com), a peer-reviewed journal on all branches of science, technology and humanities. Xjenza’s main aim is to offer training in scientific writing for young researchers and publish studies by established academics. If you would like to know more contact Prof. Di Giovanni directly at giuseppe.digiovanni@um.edu.mt facebook.com/neuroscience.uom @neuroscienceUoM

SCIENCE

THINK IN THE CITY

SP E C I A L F E AT U R E

n the 28th September, Malta’s Science and Art festival launched to over 12,000 people, as part of the EUwide celebration Researchers’ Night. Science carnival parades, busking, art installations, performances and more filled Malta’s capital with over 20 events — bleeding into the Notte Bianca festival. Science and art are usually seen as two separate cultures. Some humanities branches have directly rejected it, but other fields are embracing science. In Malta, top artists leafed through books, or had a chat with University of Malta scientists to find sources of inspiration (or criticism). Valletta became filled with giant fruit flies and DNA strands (see pg. 20 for more). You could even have sat down, had a coffee, and pondered why there were acetate brain slices hanging in front of Malta’s »

SCIENCE IN THE CITY

National Library. The city could be viewed through a different lens for a few days. There are other ways science and art can interact. Science and technology can be used to explore art and analyse it. Van Gogh’s Sunflowers was recently examined by chemists, identifying why the pigment was becoming a mucky brown, shedding insight on how to reverse the degradation and bring back the artist’s true vision. Artists and scientists can come together to collaborate on new research. Recently in Ireland, a weaver visualised a large data set by making a huge tapestry. The scientist then analysed the giant carpet to interpret her data. Art can also be an excellent way to explore the ethical implications of science — its potential harm, benefit or relation to society. Science in the City was simply a start that dipped its toe into this new pool. It saw researchers and students combine their efforts with artists and performers to bring together a range of events (read about Alexandra Fiott’s experience on pg. 23). Nine scientists (see pg. 31 for list) appeared live on prime time TV to talk about their research with prominent entertainers Angie Laus and Pawlu Borg Bonaci. From within large crowds, science students performed science demonstrations, while MCST (Malta Council for Science and Technology) held a highly successful science fun fair for kids, with another kids activity at Auberge D’Italie by MARes (another EU funded project). Scientists met politicians at Science in the House organised by the Malta Chamber of Scientists. There were talks on the health benefits of local honey by Simone Cutajar (science graduate), mathematics and piano recitals by Tricia Dawn Williams, electronic and flute performances from Italy with compositions based on the Chaos Theory that explains hurricanes, and a bit more. The big night was followed up by talks and discussions. Ira Melkonyan spoke about the new field of BioArt (see pg. 29) while there was even a discussion on human cloning after the play A Number by Caryl Churchill. Over the next few pages, THINK has selected the major artworks created for Science in the City.

Photos by Elisa Von Brockdorff

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Words by the Editor, full disclaimer: author is the project manager of Science in the City.

SCIENCE

THINK IN THE CITY

Photo by Edward Duca

Joyride Emmanuel Bonnici Scientists consulted: Roberta M. Rizzo Location: St George’s Square Sponsor: St James Cavalier

magine a bus with no front and no back, no doors, just windows. Joyride is a doughnut-shaped bus built to scale — if buses were round. Circles have fascinated humans since the dawn of recorded history. The Greeks saw it as the perfect form, pushing science, agriculture, and technology. Our fascination with circles has also led to conservative ideas that have held back science and technology. The dual aspects of circles are intrinsic within Joyride. Genetic engineering is a powerful and frightening new technology. It involves the insertion, or manipulation, of DNA — the stuff of life. Joyride provokes viewers to ponder about what tinkering we should do. Through gene therapy, genetic engineering could cure incurable diseases

Photo by Elisa Von Brockdorff

from cancer to Alzheimer’s, but it could also lead to ecological devastation through certain genetically modified organisms. A circle’s qualities could also be perceived in research. Is all research needed and useful? Does some research simply go round in circles? It is up to the viewer to decide, whether the circle is futile or a masterstroke of nature and science. The artwork also challenges its viewers to question our cultural identity by re-modeling the familiar Maltese Bus. The artwork is a means of facing both our personal and cultural identity face on. Never obliged to change our views, but offered the chance to play out the full extent of our relationship to such ‘cultural images’.

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SCIENCE IN THE CITY

cortex Raphael Vella Scientists consulted: Dr Mario Valentino and his team Location: In front of the National Library, Pjazza Reġina, Republic Street Sponsor: Nexos Lighting Technology

ortex makes us reflect about the different physical and behavioural factors that make humans similar to other animals that have often been perceived to be ‘inferior’. It is a transparent sculpture made of twelve thin, acetate sheets that look like a human brain, but is actually composed of twelve mammalian brain slices: from domestic animals like goats and horses to the Rhesus monkey and a Californian sea lion. A slice of the human brain is also included, but which one is it? What, indeed, makes the human being stand out among fellow creatures in the world? And what makes us similar to other animals?

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Photos by Elisa Von Brockdorff 16

SCIENCE

THINK IN THE CITY

Humanised Fruit Flies Liliana Fleri Soler

Scientists consulted: Dr Edward Duca Location: Merchant Street, St James Cavalier, now located in the Biology Department to be permanently exhibited in the new medical wing at the University of Malta

ruit flies are red-eyed insects usually found circling bananas. They are 2mm pests that devastate and spoil millions worth of crops every year. Due to their similarity to humans, they are used as research subjects. Findings due to fruit flies have taught us humans a lot about ourselves. Liliana Fleri Soler’s five-foot tall papier-mâché sculptures reflect this similarity in the fly’s complex courtship rituals, which go along these lines. The male sees an ‘attractive’ female and positions himself in front of her at an angle so that he appears bigger. Then, the male goes round and taps the female sending her many signals with his touch. He swivels back in front of her vibrating his wings to ‘sing’ and ‘soothe’ her. The female then allows him to explore her. At this point, he attempts to copulate with her. If she likes him, the two fruit flies mate. As you can see, this ritual is eerily similar to us humans. Photo by Elisa Von Brockdorff

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SCIENCE IN THE CITY

silence in strait street Chris Briffa Architects Team: Chris Briffa, Justin Schembri, Joe Galea, Michael Quinton, Alex Spiteri Gingell, Andrew Doneo, Ryan Xuereb, Lily Agius, Maggy Mitter and Matthew Pandolfino Sponsor: Halmann Vella Ltd, Ecotechnique, Doneo and Nexos Lighting Technology

Words by Justin Schembri

rchitecture has always been a craft of logic and reason. The profession can also be considered a ‘talent’ by uniting it with a creative reflex. When an individual creates something, be it an object, a sound, a building — anything that can be acknowledged on a perceptual level — he is taking on the mantle and role of ‘the artist’. Whether or not he may be considered a good artist — that, as always, depends. On the other hand, ‘the scientist’ solves, reasons and deduces — he performs the act of thinking. When an individual is faced with an obstacle, he is impelled to the point of obligation to provide a solution. He is obliged to crunch numbers and use his problem-solving abilities to remove the obstacle. Some consider finding the solution to a problem a wholesome, satisfying feeling. But there is an immediate flaw in the above artist-scientist distinction. If we claim that the artist’s role is to create and the scientist’s role to think, the question is instantly raised: is not the scientist’s “thinking” simply a means to an end, that end being the creation of something? Does an artist, who “creates”, not think or reason as well? Nothing worthwhile can come from careless thoughts, and good artists and scientists do not fall into the trap of half-baked ideas. The truth is that while the ultimate goals of the artist and scientist differ, on a more metaphysical level they are both thinkers and creators. Perhaps the concept of art and science being separated has become more redundant with the passage of time. Silence in Strait Street was an experiment in solving an acoustical problem in an elegant way. Our brief: to create an acoustically insulated space in Strait Street that simulates a low-echo, quiet room, somewhat similar to anechoic chambers of recording studios. Luckily for us, typical solutions to this self-imposed problem are appealingly aesthetic.

Photo by Elisa Von Brockdorff

Initially we wanted to physically (by working with certain types of materials) recreate a high quality, acoustically absorbent enclosure, but we soon modified our ideas due to realistic budget constraints: acoustic insulation materials (be they foam or fibreglass) are extremely costly. The sound engineers in our workgroup suggested — and went on to produce — a very particular sound that would help simulate silence. It compensated for the use of less adequate insulating materials. This sound may be described as a sort of pulse, almost like heartbeats, that steadily crescendos into silence. The brief, “false” second silence would be created by a sudden absence of sound. We imagined it as a sort of silence of contrasts, similar to the way rests work in written and performed musical scores.

“Perhaps the concept of art and science being separated has become more redundant with the passage of time” With this sound prepared, we set out to design our enclosure. Many solutions and permutations were investigated in an organised, almost scientific way. Some of these solutions were drawn and modelled, then scrapped. But it was a productive scrapping, and each time we learnt something new. Our design was concluded a few weeks before the launch of the first edition of Science in the City. The finalised design involved the water-jet cutting of rigid thermal insulation boards that would form the imagined enclosure. The linear distance of water-jet cutting was over 1.2km! Large rectangular panels

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Red Rum, Red Room Art critic Lisa Gwen Baldacchino on Silence in Strait Street :

“the claustrophobic redness engulfing, soothing, menacing. A rising hum threatens to deafen; yet as fast as it began, it subsides. The mood lingers, it pervades. It seeps within, with an unbeknownst clarity. And it commences all over again. On a loop, loop, loop, loop...”

of acoustic insulation were cut into six smaller, now slender, pieces. These foam cut-outs now had a carefully designed saw-tooth profile, which allowed us to reduce waste drastically, since “negatives” of our cutting process became “positives” instead of being discarded. Each of these wedges had small 16mm holes punched at their ends. When these wedges were slid through the metal rods and baseplates we had prepared, the interlocking mechanism created large walls with a texture like an egg carton. Amusingly enough, egg cartons are often considered the poor man’s acoustic insulation and are often used to insulate areas where bands practise. Construction began hectically a few days before the event’s opening. There were stability issues that required immediate resolving on site as well as other technical issues with lighting and sound. As Science in the City was opening, at 7 pm our installation was launched. The crowd’s reaction

— and, more importantly, their attitude — was excellent. People were intrigued and interested. We also achieved our ultimate goal since the acoustic performance of our enclosure worked surprisingly well, which was a relief to all of us. The entire experience, from inception to completion, was a typical collaboration between ‘the sciences’ and ‘the arts’. Without our ‘scientific’ study in acoustics, this entire exercise would have had no point, and without a strong ‘artistic’ visual element tying it all together, the events outcome would have been less satisfying. ArtScience collaborations like Silence in Strait Street are regular occurrences, even the most cynical amongst us would be forced to admit that most professions which concern themselves with the manipulation of the physical world need both the arts as well as the sciences to continue to function and survive.

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You are the staircase Norbert Francis Attard Scientists consulted: Prof. Alex Felice Location: Merchant Street Sponsors: Nexos Lighting Technology, Kee-Klamps system, Joseph F. Spiteri and Co. Ltd Mad About Video Multimedia 20

Photos by Norbert Francis Attard

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climbing your dna the editor talks about a single strand of DNA which transformed Valletta’s streets

NA is the stuff of life,” said many famous scientists. The discovery of DNA has revolutionised biology. It proves that all life came from one primordial ancestor, which means humans are very closely related to other animals. DNA supports a reason for sex, needed to make sure we are all individuals with a unique code. DNA is so powerful because its four letters contain a code which, when read, make practically every organism that ever lived. Norbert Francis Attard waded into this maelstrom. His artwork You Are the Staircase took two twists of a single strand of DNA and magnified its outline hundreds of thousands of times into a six metre metal structure. It was perfectly set on the cross roads between St John’s Street and Merchants Street in Valletta. The structure was based on a spiral staircase inviting any visitors to climb and gain a previously impossible unique vantage point. The idea formed during a conversation over brandy with Prof. Alex Felice in his living room. Prof. Felice began outlining what DNA is, its significance in the scientific world, and how it has advanced biology and medicine. An extremely enthusiastic Attard asked question after question, but I noticed that the sparks started flying when the images started rolling on Felice’s Macbook. The four colours used by DNA sequencing machines flew up: red, green, blue and black, they became integral in the light strips that swirled around Attard’s artwork — although he didn’t stick to them religiously. Sequencing machine data output results in graphs with elegant peaks, and four repeated letters: A, T, G, C. These DNA letters represent a three-letter code, which relate to 64 different combinations. For example, ATG is a sequence that signals other components

to start reading a gene. That gene will eventually be translated into proteins, which form our hair, teeth, eyes and heart. Attard incorporated this into the style and content of the light strips. Unifying everything, threedimensional artist designs of DNA provided Attard with his elegant swirl. Science was integral in inspiring and structuring the artwork. In their research, Felice’s team use DNA technology continuously. A former Ph.D. student, Dr Joseph Borg, studied a Maltese family to investigate the disease thalassemia, common in Malta. With an international team of people, he sequenced stretches of this families’ genome to find a mutation in the KLF1 gene, which helped family members cope with the blood disease. If researchers manage to turn off this gene in adults suffering from this disease it would help stop dangerous complications in millions around the world. Apart from this form of gene analysis and therapy, locally researchers are also using organisms with unique genetic inserts that help their investigations. Dr Mario Valentino uses mice whose neurons shine green when a laser is lit on them (see pg. 27). With this technique, his team can study how stroke develops in humans. Dr Ruben Cauchi uses fruit flies that have had their genetic code modified to study the human muscle wasting disease spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). The mutation causes the flies to develop a disease very similar to humans (see pg. 17). Other scientists are using techniques based on our knowledge of DNA to study cancer. In the future, we might be able to sequence a cancer and give patients a treatment that specifically treats that unique tumour — not every cancer is equal (last year there was an international conference on this issue in Malta). We will also be able to take samples »

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of skin cells, and turn them into fully-fledged organs to replace failing ones. DNA has given us a bright future full of the technology that usually fills science fiction novels. DNA has now become mainstream in the art world. Be warned. There is a lot of gimmicky DNA ‘art’, some pushed by leading magazines. DNA seems to have become a fad. You can send in a swab and receive back a DNA portrait, which is just a technique applied on your DNA giving pretty fluorescent bands separated by size. The method is a very common, and cheap, laboratory technique, followed by some Photoshop colour replacement. The DNA can be printed on t-shirts, posters, gifts, calendars, shoes, and more all for your friends, office, restaurant, or lounge — it overwhelms even this geneticist. Fortunately, it is not all commercially driven cheap tricks. A two-mile cycle path winds through Cambridge’s beautiful streets created from the colours used in DNA sequencing. Apart from the aesthetic, the path identified a stretch of DNA found in breast cancer patients. Staircases are also quite common. In Florida, USA, a Dali Museum has a 75-foot spiral DNA staircase, while in Strasbourg, France, two DNA helices wind around each other creating an impressive design dominating the interior of a building. Attard’s work differs in many important characters. By placing a harsh metal structure in the middle of a Baroque city, progress seems to have clashed headon with tradition. Yet, unexpectedly, many passersby commented how it seemed a natural part of the city. Some suggested a permanent residence. The artwork also had a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde persona. The contrast between day and night is stark. The day’s grey scaffolding was transformed at night when the LED strips sprang to life transforming the art piece and bathing the surrounding square in coloured hues. The stairs are central to the piece. By climbing these stairs are we simply going nowhere? A criticism on science? Or is it a shared collective experience (6 at a time)? On the other hand, as everyone has a unique sequence of DNA, the staircase is a unique journey of discovery of the city and upon introspection: ourselves.

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G C

GC A G

100

G A C A T G

G G C C C

G G G

DNA sequence of a Maltese family. Taken from a research paper by Dr Joseph Borg, Prof. Alex Felice and an international team.

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Destroying boundaries through

Science in the City Biomedical Ph.D. student Alexandra Fiott (TV show and logistics) shares her thoughts on why the walls between the public and scientists need to come crumbling down

cience has long been depicted as something unreachable and isolated by non-scientists, something shrouded in mystery and excessive complexity. There seems to be an insurmountable obstacle between scientists and the rest of the world, with divisions simmering between the different scientific fields. Even cartoons show mad scientists seemingly cut off from reality and either bent on world domination or carrying out some stunningly convoluted experiments. Such depictions have fed a fear of science, a fear that is unfortunately passed on from one generation to the next. It has also led to numerous stereotypes of scientists, such as scientists having a god-complex and no respect for human life. These ideas are clearly unrealistic and create additional barriers. They need to be demolished. Science is not the terrifying sector it is believed to be. On the contrary, science is something that we are surrounded by and embrace in our everyday lives. It strives to improve the health and quality of life, and sometimes even has an element of fun. The aim of Science in the City, part of the EU initiative named Researchers’ Night, was to bring science closer to the general public and therefore try to remove some of these misconceptions. Different scientific disciplines were shown, while the events and exhibits were designed to attract a varied audience. Science was also portrayed from an artistic aspect, showing that art and science may go hand in hand.

Behind the scenes, scientists were working non-stop for weeks to make sure that this event was a success. Everyone involved in coordination, events, or exhibits had to constantly push forward to overcome problems that never ceased to crop up. Pleading with transport providers, attempting to fit in multiple meetings in an impossibly short time, never-ending lists of urgent emails and work-filled weekends became a norm, with pressure rising and culminating with the start of the event. The event, the bulk of which only lasted a few hours, took months of hard work, before and after the 28th September. On the whole, I believe that Science in the City did manage to make science more attractive and understandable to the general population. By having several areas dedicated to different audiences, everyone could find something suited to them. Children were exposed to the more entertaining side of science and by showing the scientific basis behind everyday things that we might take for granted. Different scientists came together to show the high level of research happening in Maltese laboratories. Previously shot video footage gave insight into life behind a laboratory’s walls, exemplifying the scientific work that goes on away from the public eye. Although they involve a great deal of hard work, further efforts need to be made to bring science closer to the general public. Without the public’s understanding and acceptance, a great deal of scientific effort will be hindered and research growth will be stunted.

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Screengrabs from Ruby’s video

From DJ to videographer:

Ruby on Science Lily Agius, the artistic curator of Science in the City met up with DJ Ruby to talk about science and art. Ruby created a video for Science in the City that will be available in 2013 on scienceinthecity.org.mt Recently, you progressed from DJ to VJ (video jockey). Was it a hard transition? No, not really, because it has taken quite a few years to get it in motion. For the past 5 years I have been working with videography on an amateur basis, but all of a sudden at the beginning of this year I decided to take it on professionally, and in a matter of few weeks I learned all that I needed to.

Have you ever been to a festival of its kind in Malta or abroad before? It was a first for me, and was very impressed about how professional the event was.

Which was the art installation or event that you enjoyed the most? Certainly the live music session by Andrew Alamango and Mario Sammut a.k.a Cynga. It was electronically based, which is my cup of tea.

Did you expect to see something more from the festival? Is there anything you would like to see at the festival next year? Well, from my point of view it may be no surprise to hear me say: more music.

One of the exhibits in the exhibition at St James presented fruit flies within their own eco system in bulbs. These organisms are used to investigate musclewasting diseases, obesity, cancer, diabetes, and more. Did you ever imagine that humans could be related enough to a fruit fly to use them to learn more about human disease? I never knew about it before. I was mesmerised to find out at the exhibition at St. James. That was very interesting!

How would you describe the audience of the Science in the City Festival? People of all ages and from all walks of life were there — it was certainly an event for everyone!

How did you feel when interacting with the art: climbing the DNA staircase, or entering the echo-proofed room in Strait Street? It was an amazing experience, not just as a regular person attending the event but also as film maker while on the job.

Do you think that art can be used to explain science? Yes it can, Science in the City proved that. How does science play its part in your own life? I am very into IT, computers, software, gadgets and electronic music/visual. Technology is all around me and with me everyday, and forever evolving and improving.

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For more information on DJ Ruby: www.pureruby.com or www.facebook.com/djruby. For Ruby’s videography and visual work: www.facebook.com/puremediamalta

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How to get rid of fruit flies? Sarah Maria Scicluna Scientists consulted: Dr Edward Duca and Dr Ruben Cauchi who studies muscle wasting diseases using the fruit fly

n interactive exhibition in the upper galleries of St James Cavalier aimed towards adults and children. It ran from the 28th September till the 28th October as part of the Science in the City festival. The exhibition brought science and art together with local artists exploring various scientific phenomena. How does the human mind work? How can a fly be compared to a human or be useful towards the future of the human race? How is a child born with a deformity? How does something stretch but get fatter?…

The fruit flies used for this work were housed in lightbulbs modified to provide them with everything they needed to survive. The flies were flightless mutants, since their genetic code had been altered to stunt their wing growth. The mutation provides irony to its name and renders it unable to survive in the wild.

Photo by Elisa Von Brockdorff

How?

Fruit flies are commonly viewed as pests by the agricultural industry and in households. Scientists view these insects differently, having studied them for over 100 years. They’ve found out how organs develop, how genes are inherited and learn more about obesity, diabetes and muscle-wasting diseases — these killed Chinese chairman Mao Zedong. At the University of Malta, Dr Ruben Cauchi is studying similar muscle-wasting diseases. Fruit flies share around 70% of human genes that cause disease, allowing scientists to use fruit flies to understand ourselves — an ironic twist.

Each artist reflected on scientific research, and had the opportunity to work with Maltese scientists in their chosen area for inspiration and accurate results. Exhibition Sponsors: St James Cavalier, Nexos Lighting Technology, Malta Arts Fund

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the techibots Elisa Von Brockdorff Say hello to the TechiBots! Technology is a welcome element to contemporary living, yet it can often create a society dependent on it. It can transform man into ‘programmed’ creatures, on which many decisions, procedures and strategies are often based. Systems collapse once technology fails, even momentarily! Agitation and anxiety soar! Inspired by George Ritzer’s McDonaldization of Society, the TechiBots are constructed out of pill sheets, utilizing the structured material element as a basis for this rampant creature.

O Ye of Little Faith (heart) Matthew Farrugia We all need a heart to live. Your body dies within minutes if it stops. The heart is mostly pure muscle, it is around the size of your fist, and located a little to the left in the middle of the chest. The heart’s job is to pump blood around your body to provide oxygen and nutrients. This responsibility leaves the heart prone to complications. The most common complication is heart failure, which is when it cannot pump enough blood to the rest of the body. Most of the time this is because of a heart attack when blood flow is blocked, which is the most common kind of complication. Other more severe heart diseases include Angina which is when the heart isn’t getting enough blood, giving a severe pain in the chest.

-hEx: inverted geometry by the rubberbodies collective see pg. 29

Photos by Elisa Von Brockdorff

The Human Brain: The only known structure that can study itself Michael Xuereb Scientists consulted: Dr Mario Valentino and his team who study the mouse brain When scientists research, examine, and map the brain, they are using the same organ they are studying. This simple fact is celebrated in Xuereb’s installation. He magnifies a single connection point from the trillions of connections in our brain called ‘connectomics’. Connectomics is used by scientists to project complex brain images. These connections transfer signals and commands that together compute our thoughts. These can be thoughts about what to wear, who we love, mathematical calculations or even reasoning our emotions.

4.1868: The Theory of Heat Adrian Abela, actors & performers: Tia Rejlić, Martha Vassallo, and Aidan Corlett

brain study Scientists consulted: Video by Dr Mario Valentino and Dr Christian Zammit Dr Mario Valentino (University of Malta) has carried out extensive studies on mouse brains to find out how brain injury occurs and develops in humans. During this research, Dr Valentino captured striking 3D images of mouse brains, which were then displayed in St James Cavalier. The images are mainly focused on mouse vasculature on the surface of the brain and the close association of cells called astrocytes that maintain the blood-brain barrier, which is essential for the survival of neurons.

Scientists consulted: Prof. Kenneth Camilleri and his team who research biomedical engineering at the University of Malta. 4.1868 discusses various theories of how life began, such as that by Charles Darwin, using both a visible camera and a thermal imaging camera donated for this exhibition by Prof. Kenneth Camilleri and his team at the University of Malta. Adrian Abela interprets the traditional story of Melqart, the God of the Sea and Underworld, through a scientific eye. Thermal imaging cameras are used to diagnose disease and study medical problems. They detect radiation in the infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum (roughly 9,000–14,000 nanometres or 9–14 μm) and produce images of that radiation, called thermograms. The installation was a 40 minute video.

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Photos by Elisa Von Brockdorff

The Cuckoo’s Nest (brain) Matthew Farrugia Scientists consulted: Prof. Giuseppe Di Giovanni and his team, and Dr Neville Vassallo who are studying brain diseases at the University of Malta The brain is a wonderful organ — what would we be without it? It is able to absorb information and hold memories and keep it stored for years to come. The brain is divided into various parts, all linked and working together. The brain is more complicated than the heart, and is prone to going wrong. Addiction, epilepsy, Huntington’s, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, are all illnesses the root of which lies in the brain.

Medical School: How does medicine define the body?

Photo by Edward Duca

Raphael Vella Scientists consulted: Textbooks used by medical students at the University of Malta A series of fifty, small mixed media works were displayed on the walls of a classroom within a room in St James Cavalier, complete with blackboard. The images are photographic transfers on paper, reworked in ink, graphite and additional layers of Chinese paper. This installation of fifty framed, photographic images transports us from the beginnings of the power of medicine over the infant’s body, through the internalisation of medical knowledge via the mechanical components of ‘public health’ policies and systems, and ending with postmortem analyses that conceptualise murder and suicide in the cold language of science. How does medicine define the body? How is the body constructed in the image of medical textbooks? And how does the inaccessibility of medical knowledge to ordinary persons affect their understanding of their own bodies?

Humanised Fruit Flies Liliana Fleri Soler see pg. 17

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Glowing rabbits, inverted geometry, and feeling normal Words by Ira Melkonyan

o me, the idea of having art and science in one’s life is not surprising. As I am writing this article about my artwork in a science and art festival, I sit working in a research laboratory wearing a white lab coat. My challenge might be how easily society accepts this combination. In the 2012 edition of Science in the City festival, my participation was marked by two events: a digital performance installation -hEx: inverting geometry and a talk at Malta Café Scientifique called Bioart: Merging borders between art and science. The starting point for -hEx was the research of Prof. Joseph Grima and his team on auxetic materials. The term refers to particular molecular structures that make a material become fatter when stretched. Normal material, like fabric or rubber band, becomes thinner. So, what does this feature have to do with art? Or how can such a structural and scientific topic become art; it definitely is not arty-colourful! This contradiction is exactly what inspired us to distill the technical side of meta-material research and turn it into a pleasing aesthetic. Beyond beauty, perhaps we also wanted to stimulate individual associations, abstract thoughts, and conclusions. The artistic team involved two performers, video, and sonic artists. We started from basic keywords and concepts, worked separately, and then joined our independent achievements into one artwork. Rebecca Camilleri and I created the choreography. It was based on the geometrical lines that auxetics have to offer. Video artist Anthony Askew »

-hEx: inverting geometry the rubberbodies collective (Rebecca Camilleri, Anthony Askew, Ira Melkonyan) Sound Designer & Composer: Andre Borges Scientists consulted: Prof. Joseph Grima and the Auxetic Materials group, UoM Photos by Elisa Von Brockdorff 29

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also created a clinical, sterile environment by working with lines. At the same time, he emphasised the transformation and deconstruction elements of auxetic materials. He created two videos which became part of the installation. The first introduced visitors to the background information on what they were going to see in the installation space. The second was integrated into the main installation and directly affected by the performer’s spatial movement. This video showed hexagonal shaped structures being constructed and deconstructed. Through in-built coloured light bulbs, the performers could control how the shapes developed using specially created software. The choreography could literally dictate structural changes. Sound was created using different household and acoustic equipment. It was looped as the 10-minute long choreography repeated six times. There was no definite beginning or end. We didn’t want to give a digested illustration of auxetic materials. Instead, -hEx is an aesthetic experience aimed for anyone to appreciate. Along with scientific linearity translated into visual surroundings, the piece was meant to raise questions of a live performer presented as an inanimate object in the context of an art gallery. Routine was evident in the purposefully looped sound and movement, while we touched on the audience’s personal associations with outer space, extraterrestrial life, and robotic technologies. I noticed a striking difference between the audiences over our two performances. The first night was the exhibition opening for a selected range of invited people, the second evening’s audience were mainly families with many young children. Our artwork was very conceptual and rather intellectual. However, the installation appealed to the elite architect or curious housewife, elderly University professor or a young boy. Everyone could control the time they spent at the performance; some stayed to observe for only a few minutes but as our video documentation shows several people stayed for the whole hour of looping actions. Many hour-long observers were young children. I am unsure what was going through their minds, what kind of science-fiction cartoons our

movements triggered in their imaginations. It showed how artwork is about energy flows that have to connect to its audience and less about the concept. I also gave a talk on Bioart at Malta Café Scientifique. Bioart is a relatively new term that refers to many different artworks that deal with or use different methods of biotechnology, a science that aims to create useful products by using or modifying living organisms. The talk mainly covered examples of conceptual visual and installation art. Such artworks include bacteriamade paintings, genetically modified human cells, floral and animal tissues, photographs and paintings portraying the invented reality of our bio-technologically modified future or scientifically oriented present. The after-talk discussion was rather heated, picking up on several basic concepts. What is art? What is the idea behind an artwork or its execution? What is ethics? Why does bioart raise scathing ethical debates? And is it legitimate to call genetically modified animals an art piece, for example the glow-in-the-dark rabbit of Eduardo Kac? No doubt, this debate pointed out an existing interest of local people towards the crosseffect of two disciplines. Nevertheless, there is a need to question all of these ultra-modern tendencies and whether they are suitable for a calm, tiny Mediterranean island. While asking questions and looking for answers are essential human activities, both art and science are ways of channeling these activities through different reference points. In this way, festivals like Science in the City are a great opportunity for people like me to feel normal for a change, despite operating within the oftenquestionable union of Science and Art.

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For more on bioart: www.bioartira.com and the rubberbodies collective: www.rubber-bodies.com

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Main Funders

EU FP7 Programme Malta Arts Fund

Organising Committee

University of Malta (Coordinator) Research Innovation & Development Trust (RIDT) Valletta Local Council Where’s Everybody Lily Agius Gallery Malta-EU Steering & Action Committee (MEUSAC) iCreatemotion St James Cavalier Malta Chamber of Scientists Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)

Partners & Sponsors

Malta Council for Culture & the Arts Malta Council for Science & Technology Nexos Lighting Technology Microsoft Innovation Center Notte Bianca Malta Association of Contemporary Music Ministry of Education and Employment Science Students’ Society (S-cubed) Malta Association of Dental Students (MADS) IEEE Malta Student Branch JEF University Engineering Students’ Association (U.E.S.A) Information Communication (ICTSA) Malta Medical Student Association (MMSA) Valletta 2018 Foundation (V.18) Kee-Klamps system Joseph F. Spiteri and Co. Ltd Mad About Video Multimedia Vodafone Malta iValletta.com Chemic Ltd Levo Lab Services Ltd Angelica Papier Plus Studio Hulda Festival Chris Briffa Architects Spooky Monkey Econetique Halmann Vella Ltd Doneo Skolasajf (2012)

Organising Team Prof. Alex Felice Dr Edward Duca Wilfred Kenely Karen Fiorini Conrad Attard Dr Alexiei Dingli Fabian Galea Chris Gatt Albert Delia Lily Agius Kevin Ellul Stefania Cassar Dr David C. Magri

Scientists Involved Prof. Kenneth Camilleri

Dr Owen Falzon Dr Ing. Stephen Abela Ing. Paul Refalo Dr Joseph Borg Alexandra Fiott Prof. Ing. Simon Fabri Dr Ing. Marvin Bugeja Prof. Joseph Grima Dr Daphne Attard Dr Ruben Gatt Simone Cutajar Dr Neville Vassallo Dr Mario Valentino Dr Christian Zammit Dr Godfrey Grech Jeanesse Scerri Prof. Christian A. Scerri Jackson Said Prof. R. Muscat Dr Stephen Abela Massimo Pierucci Antonella Marino Gammazza Gergely Orban Prof. Giuseppe Di Giovanni Dr James Borg Prof. Irene Sciriha Dr Gabrielle Zammit Dr Adrian Muscat Audrey Zammit Gianluca Valentino Dr Ing. Nicholas Sammut Dr Ralph Assmann Joanna Vella Clint Mizzi

Artists & Performers Involved the rubberbodies collective

Chris Briffa and his team (see pg. 18-19) Raphael Vella Tricia Dawn Williams Alistair Attard Ruben Zahra Corrado Pasquotti Federika Lotti Alvise Vidolin Emmanuel Bonnici Norbert Francis Attard Malcolm Galea Pawlu Borg Bonaci Angie Laus Ingrid Desira Buttigieg (Malta Dance Council) Carnival Makers (Joe Griffiths, Henry Caruana [Kiku Carnival], Norman Hill, Paul Mizzi) Andrew Alamango Mario Sammut (Cygna) Cesar Zamacola Parama & James Micallef Grimaud (Troglodyte) Liliana Fleri Soler

Thanks to everyone else who helped out or supported the first edition of Science in the City.

Calls for 2013 Science in the City

Science in the City: Thank You!

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Want to make your idea happen? Want it to be seen by over 12,000 people? Science in the City is looking for scientists, artists, performers, and volunteers for 2013. Please get in touch if you are interested by emailing

info@scienceinthecity.org.mt The committee will be looking for ideas after the proposal deadline. For more information: http://bit.ly/SitCIDEAS

FEATURE

News extracts from the pro-Tory dailies Yorkshire Post and Morning Post, 3 November 1933

THINK FEATURE

Maltese school children waving the Union Jack at the Manoel Theatre in the mid-1930s

MALTESE HISTORY: not as we remember it

Patricia Camilleri meets up with Professor Henry Frendo to look behind the making of his new book Europe And Empire: Culture, Politics And Identity In Malta And The Mediterranean

he book is a doorstopper” — Professor Henry Frendo didn’t altogether appreciate this comment. Of course, it was meant as a compliment since the book rigorously covers over 150 years of Malta’s history and two World wars — the events help to understand Malta’s current trials and triumphs. What the author does in these twenty-two chapters is bring Malta to life. He creates the coordinates for an understanding not simply of the facts but how those facts have intertwined to make Malta’s past. One of his aims was to achieve, “[…] a sustained critique of Colonialism” showing “Colonialism with regard to human rights and democracy and more”. Frendo is clearly concerned with examining what Colonialism was in Malta and in the British

Empire, especially in the Mediterranean. His narrative shows the personalities of the day within the context of Colonial rule and tries to explain what that rule meant. How did these meanings influence the development of the islands’ politics, economy, and overall identity? Through these pages, the reader observes how the Maltese saw themselves over nearly two centuries of British rule. Frendo sustains that those two hundred years have left a mark on the Maltese identity and induced a modus operandi that is not easily changed. However, he also asks the question: is it legitimate to go on ‘blaming’ or ‘explaining’ things through Malta’s colonial paradigm? Clearly, what the Maltese were and what they are is important. It might also reflect Malta’s future. »

“Colonialism imposed its control of the social production of wealth through military conquest and subsequent political dictatorship. But its most important area of domination was the moral universe of the colonized, through culture, of how people perceived themselves and their relation to the world.” wa Thiongo’o Ngugi, Decolonising the Mind (1986)

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The author has used his skill as a historian sleuth to access archives and libraries in at least six different countries (Tunis, Italy, UK, Malta, Australia and the USA). He was persuasive enough to receive very early access to the Fascist archive at the Farnesina in Rome. Historical evidence is found in official correspondence, the occasional personal letter discovered amongst the documents, dissertations, maps, photographic records, biographies, autobiographies, as well as documents provided by private individuals. The author also refers constantly to the local and international media, using vivid examples of cartoons and memorable extracts from the plethora of material available for the period. However, apart from his undoubted talent as a researcher, it is the skill with which Professor Frendo has translated those facts on to the page that has created a fascinating, eminently readable, and profound work. The book spans the period from 1800 to 1964. The context is Malta as a Mediterranean island within the British Empire. Great Britain was present in the Mediterranean before it got involved with Malta and the first chapter sets the stage for that intervention. The whole period is studded with major events on the international scene which were happening outside Malta but which

inevitably affected the islands. The panoply of protagonists ranges from significant governors to influential Bishops, from local politicians to foreign statesmen. Familiar names such as Manwel Dimech, Lord Strickland, Carmelo Borg Pisani, Nerik Mizzi and myriad others are all discussed with deep understanding. Frendo’s style engages the reader through constant reference to the social scene with examples of local culture and grassroots reactions.

“Is it legitimate to go on ‘blaming’ or ‘explaining’ things through Malta’s colonial paradigm?” One of the overriding themes is, inevitably, the ‘language question’. Frendo follows this thorny issue as it runs through the narrative like a leit motif, linking practically every aspect of the colonial period. The author examines the British language policy in other colonial contexts and clearly expresses the complexity of the ‘assimiliation-resistance’ paradigm. The analysis goes a long way to explaining why the issue still fills today’s newspaper columns and political discourse. Ethnic identity among Maltese migrants is another of Frendo’s significant themes. He has published extensively on this issue. On this occasion, the author analyses how

Orazio Laudi

language, religion, and other factors impinged on the feelings of self-esteem and self-preservation amongst Maltese migrants in North Africa. He mainly achieves this through his close examination of the newspaper Melita, published in Sousse, Tunis in the 1930s. In the chapter ‘Strains in Anglo-Italian Relations in 1934’, Frendo traces the disintegration of those relations and its effect on Malta’s language culture. He discusses, amongst other issues, the last thrust by Sir Ugo Mifsud’s administration to maintain the teaching of Italian in elementary schools. He recounts how, in 1933, Governor Campbell ‘unequivocally refused’ to hold a vote in the legislative assembly on the matter. When, the legislative assembly passed a vote of confidence in the Mifsud administration, London simply dismissed the Cabinet. This action, coupled with others reducing the importance of Italian, sounded the death knell of the primary position of the language in Malta. For example, Italian was removed from entry exams to secondary school, and the law was changed making it unnecessary for notarial deeds and judicial proceedings. The final blow came in 1934 when the Letters Patent made English and Maltese the official languages of the colony. Along with these serious reflections, Frendo also cites an excerpt from Johnnie Marks’s farce Il ‘Lingua Nostra’ performed in 1932 at Teatru San Ġorġ, Bormla. The play satirizes, in a most amusing way, the use of Italian in judicial courts. Marks’s dialogue might bring a smile to our face but the chap-

THINK FEATURE

ter entitled: ‘From Prison to Exile Without Charge’ certainly does not. The unforgettable events surrounding the exile in 1942 of a group of forty-seven Maltese, suspected of sympathising with the Italian cause, is clearly outlined with references to a wide range of writings on the subject. In the previous chapter, ‘The Clampdown on “Disloyalty” in Malta’, Frendo paints the background scenario in great detail, describing the events that led up to the decision. The list of deportees is fascinating as it includes people from very diverse backgrounds: amongst them well known personalities such as the Chief Justice Sir Arturo Mercieca, Vincenzo Bonello and Herbert Ganado as well as members of the Latteo family who worked in the food market and in a travel agency, and the Laudi brothers, all dockyard fitters. Frendo asks searching questions about the motives behind the action and suggests avenues of investigation which are still unexplored.

Prof. Henry Frendo

His well-researched pages remind us that history ‘as we remember it’ is not a viable option if a country — any country — is trying to understand the complex issues within society: identity, vision for the future, legacy, ethics, or human rights. Facile, emotional historical attachments linked to powerful and very immediate media interaction must surely be a recipe for a mis-reading and mis-understanding of society’s present. In the words of Simon Shama, paraphrasing Cicero: ‘to know our past is to grow up’. This is where university scholarship assumes a crucial role in the public domain. This is also where the study of the humanities becomes a vital tool for self-understanding and community in the search for truth and its interpretation. Although elements of universality are pervasive in human history, Frendo believes in analyzing diversity as well as the individual’s contribution to the big picture. After all, this is what history and especially ‘nation building’ is about.

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Tea Party given at The Colonial Restaurant Valletta to 100 school children on the occasion of the coronation. Edward VIII’s coronation in 1936

FEATURE

Laughter is the best medicine Dd Dr Joseph Agius

Creativity and humour are being used by Dr Joseph Agius to help people who stutter. His techniques have helped hundreds in Malta. They are now being used all over Europe, which is no laughing matter. Words by The Editor

The Smart THINK Intervention Strategy (SIS) prepare & motivate

Parents

tuttering affects around 70 million people worldwide. This amounts to one percent of the world’s population. In Malta, this means that over 4,000 people stutter. I am one of them, so I was really looking forward to meeting the speech language pathologist Dr Joseph Agius. Dr Agius didn’t start off treating his clients using humour. “My first client was an 8 year old child who stutters. After two months, he became very fluent under a fluency shaping programme. It’s a behaviour programme, like when you use slow speech to stutter less [ED: a technique I use] or when you use some modifiers to relax your vocal cords — prolonging speech. So he became fluent, discharge, success. Ten years later, I met his mother again […] he’s very depressed, he doesn’t want to go to a psychiatrist, he wants to come to you. I thought this must be a relapse. When I met him, he was still fluent, but he kept saying that he stutters, he stutters. […] It took me ages to understand. His mind was still viewing himself as a child. That perception remains. Then I realised that we can’t just work on fluency, but also the attitude.” This led Dr Agius to laughter.

Changing Perceptions In 2007, the ‘Think Smart, Feel Smart’ strategy showed his vision to incorporate creativity and humour to change attitudes. The ten session programme focuses on developing thinking skills to help people (usually school age children) with stuttering. The main idea is that by changing thoughts, a person’s feelings can be changed. For stuttering this is perfect, since although stress or anxiety do not cause stuttering, stressful situations can make it much worse.

Dr Agius illustrated the power of changing attitudes with a story about a stuttering nurse*. A girl phones me crying and crying, I had to do something. I asked her if stuttering had helped her in some way. And she told me: ‘as if it never helped… well, maybe, I’m a good listener, I’m very sensitive.’ Like this, I showed her how it was a gift. ‘You know its true, without stuttering I don’t think I would’ve become a nurse’.

“By changing thoughts, a person’s feelings can be changed” The nurse now is a regular public speaker. But to develop public speaking skills, the strategy also incorporates Dr Agius’s earlier methods of fluency shaping and basic communication skills. For example, every eight minutes the presenter should show a clip, crack a joke, and so on since that’s the limit of our attention span. A major difference is that the programme makes it fun. Humour helps people enjoy it providing the motivation they need to stand and speak on the pulpit. And that’s exactly what Fr Ivan Scicluna (another client of Dr Agius) had to do in front of 150 other religious figures at a mass in Rome. ‘I cannot go up on the pulpit and give a sermon.’ I asked him if he ever talked about it to his parents. ‘No, no how could I tell my parents, that’s unheard of ’. Friends? ‘No, no.’ Then I managed to convince him that »

school-age child who stutters

THINK SMART, FEEL SMART ATTITUDES PERCEPTION HUMOUR

COOL SPEECH FLUENCY TECHNIQUES, PUBLIC SPEAKING SKILLS

CHALLENGE THE DRAGONS DESENSITISATION EXERCISES, TREAT FEAR DIRECTLY

INTO THE ‘REAL’ WORLD HOME SCHOOL COMMUNITY

FEATURE

“Today the real cause of stuttering is still unknown, however several clues are appearing from genetic and brain studies.” he can be a very good public speaker even though he stutters. I managed to do that by training him in public speaking. While studying in Rome, he sent me an SMS: ‘You were right Joe, I have just addressed 150 Capuchin brothers, yes I stuttered but it went excellent.’ He then told me that he wants to do a thesis on spirituality and stammering and was wondering if I knew other priests who stutter. This person who never wanted to talk about stuttering wrote one of the nicest theses that I have seen called God’s Power made Perfect in Weakness: Towards a spirituality for stuttering priests. Harry Potter also features in his approach. In the third Harry Potter movie, Professor Lupin (a good werewolf ) teaches the children to cast the Riddikulus charm against Boggarts. The creature terrorises its victims by taking the shape of their most feared nightmare. The spell changes the fear into something ridiculous. For example, the wizardly school children turned their most feared teacher into a cross dresser. “In psychological terms this is desensitisation, using humour as a desensitisation technique. You are having fun and enjoying the sessions and perceiving that it [stuttering] is not a problem. I do not use the word problem, I do not see it [stuttering] as a problem […] but a condition”, said Dr Agius.

The programme was developed into the Smart Intervention Strategy, targeted at school children who stutter. By documenting the strategy and comparing it with a control group that received a different programme, he showed that “there is a significant positive change in attitude towards communication and themselves” — it helped people cope with stuttering. The research formed part of his doctorate and the strategy is now being used all around Europe.

Causes of stuttering: the evidence In the movie The King’s Speech, King George VI is seen spitting out pebbles after being treated for stuttering. The King obviously wasn’t helped, but he had it easy. Others before him had their tongues cut, reduced in size, chopped off, golden forks placed to support the tongue, and even more bizarre treatments. Today the real cause of stuttering is still unknown, however several clues are appearing from genetic and brain studies. Dr Dennis Drayna and his team identified three mutations in Pakistani and North American families. The three genes which malfunctioned in stutterers are related to

the cellular lysosomal pathway, which sends proteins to the cell’s garbage dump. It’s a bit unclear how this is related to stuttering. Another study by Professor Shelly Jo Kraft, Wayne State University gave more promising clues. A genome-wide association study linked stuttering to 10 genes in the development and function of neurons, plus behaviour. The above nods towards stuttering running in families. “60% of my clients have a family member who stutters” mentioned Dr Agius. People can be predisposed to stuttering, in my case (the author): I had my mom. She grew out of it, I needed speech therapy and a lot of willpower. If your child is developing a stutter it’s much easier to take them to a therapist at an early age, with much higher chances of success to learn coping skills. The genetic study also hinted towards the brain, rather than the tongue, being responsible for stuttering. The idea is supported by brain imaging studies on adults. Dr Agius referred to recent studies showing the over activation of the right side of the brain rather than the left. Auditory processing is the most activated brain area. To find out if the hyperactivity causes stuttering—or the other way around — scans need to be performed in children. Unfortunately, scanning

THINK FEATURE

children is unethical since it requires utter stillness and long exposures that can be dangerous. On the plus side, recent technological advancements might make the studies possible and really find out what causes stuttering. What is clear is that the ancients had it all wrong and stuttering is hereditary and mostly based in the brain.

Science behind humour Research into the benefits of humour started in the 1980s. The magazine editor Norman Cousins had very severe and painful arthritis. After discharging himself from hospital, he started watching candid camera and comic movies at home. He noticed that 10 minutes of laughter reduced his pain by two hours. The observation motivated him to write the book Anatomy of an Illness. It wasn’t research, but inspired

artists and scientists alike, which led to numerous studies. Dr Rod Martin reviewed all of the literature investigating the beneficial health effects of humour. Immunity, blood pressure, diabetes, and more have been studied, but pain tolerance shows the greatest consistency. The idea is that having a laugh will make you feel better and reduce chronic pain. The other conditions, while exciting, haven’t borne consistent fruit and await further research. Humour’s role in relationships is another hot topic. According to Dr Agius the trend tends to be that “a girl wants someone who makes her laugh, a guy wants someone who laughs at his jokes.” He contin-

ued by explaining that this holds true in the beginning of the relationship, later on when the relationship gets serious “a girl doesn’t want someone whom she is telling something serious and he changes it into humour. Girls can’t stand this. In a well established relationship a sense of humour can detract.” »

L LO

Famous people who stutter King George VI

nicole kidman

Bruce willis

Highly popular King of Great Britain during World War II, immortalized in the movie The King’s Speech.

Award-winning actress known for: The Hours, Batman Forever, and Moulin Rouge!.

Action movie actor who rose to fame with the Die Hard series, followed by Pulp Fiction, Armageddon, and The Sixth Sense.

Samuel l. Jackson Activist and actor known for Goodfellas, Jurassic Park and Pulp Fiction.

isaac newton One of the greatest scientists who ever lived famed for his work on light, gravitation, and the three laws of motion.

FEATURE

The dark side of humour is also under study. Gelatophobia, or the fear of being laughed at, is a big research area. Dr Agius collaborated with researchers from the University of Zurich who wanted to know how many people suffer from the condition. Malta topped the charts with 33.7% of people compared to Switzerland’s 5%. Dr Agius explained, “being a small island everyone knows everyone, also because we were a colony we have a bit of an inferiority complex. They all contribute to make us rather obsessed and suspicious about what others are thinking.” Malta’s results were comparable to Fiji, another island. The studies indicate that if you’re in a group and hear someone laugh, around one third of Maltese would

think: yes they must be laughing at me, and not in a good way. “This is our Maltese character,” said Dr Agius. Together with an international team, he is now studying how gelatophobia affects stutterers. In general, people who stutter tend to find laughter malicious, they don’t like being teased. In non-stutterers it sometimes helps relationships. The extent of the phobia gets even worse. In non-social laughter, when stutterers even hear any laughter it causes discomfort. Even reading a comic describing laughter can annoy stutterers. “People who stutter tend to view laughter as evil and associated with bad emotions”. This could be related to bullying, but that question awaits other studies. Perhaps predictably, Dr Agius is constantly telling stories and cracking jokes — rather

Did you know?* •

Over 4,000 Maltese and 70 million people worldwide stutter.

• •

Stuttering affects four times as many men as women. Approximately 5% of children pass through a stuttering period that lasts around six months. Three-quarters will recover by late childhood, leaving about 1% with a long-term condition. Studies show that there is no difference in intelligence between people who stutter and those who don’t. People who stutter are self-conscious about their stuttering and often let the disability determine the vocation they choose. There are no instant miracle cures for stuttering.

• •

* taken from The Stuttering Foundation website (see Further Reading)

good ones. His approach is a breath of fresh air compared to the formality of most therapies. And, while stuttering might not be considered life threatening, it has unfortunately long been linked in popular culture to being a bit stupid, shy, or someone easily pushed around. History has proven otherwise with Marilyn Monroe, Winston Churchill, and others (see textbox) being famous, ultra successful people who used to stutter. Yet, stutterers do need therapy, a shameless fact. I’ll leave the final words to Dr Agius “during The King’s Speech, they contacted a consultant speech pathologist. The director asked: what is the breakthrough in the film? When they started working, they realised it was not in some particular therapy, but in the therapeutic alliance between the therapist and patient. So the breakthrough is when the speech pathologist is asked to sit with the king’s family. […] Looking back on my clients, I can remember hundreds. If you asked me what is success in stuttering, I would tell you: it’s when I have the client and he creates this bond with me, of respect, trust, and is capable of talking to me freely.”

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Part 2 of the article will talk about the work of Dr Helen Grech who developed an assessment tool to detect speech and language problems in Maltese children. Read all about it in the next issue of THINK.

FURTHER READING • McGhee, P. Humor. The Lighter Path to Resilience and Health. 1st edn, (AuthorHouse, 2010). • Agius, J. G. The ‘Smart Intervention Strategy’ for School Age Children Who Stutter. Themanummer Logopedie: Special Issue Speech Fluency 4, 4–11 (2012). • The stuttering foundation. http://www.stutteringhelp.org • The groundbreaking initiative that incorporates Dr Agius’s approach. http://www.ecsf.eu

THINK FEATURE

Caravaggio, ‘Beheading of St John the Baptist’, Oratory of the Decollato, Valletta

C A R A V A G G I O ...was a murderer, brawler, and one of the greatest artists that ever lived. As he travelled from Rome to Malta, he inspired fellow artists in different regions who developed distinct styles. In Malta, he left some of his greatest artworks

Prof. Keith Sciberras

hen on 6th October 1608, Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio escaped from detention in Fort St Angelo on the Island of Malta, he became Malta’s most wanted fugitive. He was one of the world’s greatest

artists and a Knight of the Order of St John of Jerusalem, Rhodes, and Malta. Ironically, his arrival on the island some fourteen months earlier was also that of a disgraced fugitive, of a person who was trying to rebuild his career and social standing through an impressive network of protectors. »

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“Long hours in taverns, brawls, blasphemy, gaming, the colourful aspects of street life, and consorting with prostitutes…”

Caravaggio, ‘St Jerome’, Oratory of the Decollato, Valletta

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He had escaped from Papal Rome after murdering Ranuccio Tomassoni and surprisingly deciding to go South rather than North. In doing so, he also shaped the character of South Italian early Seicento painting. Afterwards, he sought to try his fortune with the Knights of Malta. The artist’s search for new patrons and protectors, his patrons’ desire to have him in their service and the misdemeanors of his lifestyle all impinged on the character and influence of his art.

The story of ‘Late Caravaggio’ is that of a fugitive who produced some of the most powerful pictures of the entire century and, indeed, of the entire story of art. He was constantly on the move and, in many instances, looking over his shoulder. This movement, conditioned by the artist’s fast-paced lifestyle, brought about the fast spread of Caravaggism in the central Mediterranean (South Italy, Sicily and Malta). Caravaggism is the stylistic umbrella of works influenced by Caravaggio. Caravaggio’s story is filled with powerful patrons who sought to protect him despite knowing that he was a fugitive and that protec-

tion could lead to diplomatic consequences. It happened in Naples, Malta, Syracuse, Messina, Palermo, and Naples. Wherever he went, the artist was honoured and protected. Patrons were interested in securing his brush rather than justice. The artist first arrived in Malta in mid-July 1607, starting an exciting fifteen-month-long Maltese period. In this time Caravaggio, still yearning for Rome, produced outstanding masterpieces only seen by a handful of the great artists. The Knights of Malta honoured his virtuosity and elected him Cavaliere in July 1608. At his first opportunity, the artist proudly signed his name as Fra [Knight] Michael Angelo, painted in the blood oozing from Saint John’s head in the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist painted for the Confraternita della Misericordia’s Oratory of the Decollato in Valletta. As a Knight of Magistral Obedience, Caravaggio’s social life took on the entirely new dimension of chivalry; he was now bound by obedience, respect for his superiors, and by the »

FEATURE

strict observance of the Statutes of the Order. Long hours in taverns, brawls, blasphemy, gaming, the colourful aspects of street life, and consorting with prostitutes were to become a thing of the past. He was now obliged to be obedient and decorous in his demeanour. But Valletta was a cosmopolitan city and temptations were around every corner. It was also a violent city, full of young nobles from various langues, arrogant and difficult to contain. Duels and violence were the order of the day. For a man of such a tumultuous nature as Caravaggio, Malta was a dangerous place. The artist’s turbulent nature could not be contained for too long. His chivalry was disgraced barely four weeks after being knighted. Recent archival research refers to Caravaggio’s involvement in a brawl. In Valletta, on the night of 18 August 1608, a fight broke out in an organist’s house. The organist was from the Conventual Church of St John. The fight involved seven Italian knights and an illegal pistol which was fired. The Organist’s front door was smashed and the knight, Fra Giovanni Rodomonte Roero, Conte della Vezza di Asti, was seriously wounded. The Venerable Council was immediately notified. An investigation was set up the following day. On 27 August 1608, Caravaggio and his companion Fra Giovanni Pietro de Ponte were identified and detained in Fort St Angelo. Caravaggio escaped soon afterwards. Caravaggio has been studied inside out, and in some cases even turned upside down. At the University of Malta’s History of Art Department a programme has been set up just to concentrate on Caravaggio. Over the past ten years, Caravaggio’s 400th anniversary has been celebrated in one form or another. Despite the public successes that the name carried, no one single exhibition (and publication) can be considered to have satisfied all scholars, even though some were obviously much more valid than others. The speed of research on the artist is fast and keeps on growing, but this Caravaggio craze has taken research off on tangents. A

“Were the Knights responsible for his death?” vast plethora of opinions, attributions, and judgments has split Caravaggio studies and many new issues have surfaced. Many questions about Caravaggio’s life and art have been answered, with scientific tools helping to solve problems of attributions and dating. Most major pictures now have a documented story behind them. Over the past decade, Caravaggio’s late years have come under intense study revealing many important findings. However, several questions remain unanswered. What are the precise reasons why the artist came to Malta? Who directed him towards the island? Why did the Knights support a full Papal pardon? What happened on his eventual return to Rome? Were the Knights responsible for his death? These subjects are still being debated. How Central Mediterranean Regional Caravaggism was ignored or excluded in major exhibitions and publications is another concern. Caravaggism is not a unified movement. There are important regional differences in Caravaggio’s influence on artists. When Caravaggio died prematurely in 1610, he had not set foot again in Rome. In Rome, his followers’ work had rooted itself strongly and had become so established that his death at Porto Ercole did not affect their style. Roman Caravaggism became the ‘mainstream’ type of Caravaggism, but the artist’s movements outside Rome, specifically in Naples, Malta, and Sicily had established other regional styles within the wider context of Caravaggism. These regional styles led to important and unique works of art.

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FURTHER READING (KEITH SCIBERRAS)

• ‘Frater Michael Angelus in tumultu: the cause of Caravaggio’s imprisonment in Malta’, in The Burlington Magazine, CLXIV, April 2002 • ‘Riflessioni su la Malta di Caravaggio’, in Paragone Arte, 37-38, 2002 • ‘In Memoria Principis: Dying Well in the Late Baroque’ in Journal of Baroque Studies, Vol. 1 No.3, International Institute for Baroque Studies, 2003 • with David Stone, ‘Caravaggio in bianco e nero: arte, cavalierato e l’ordine di malta (1607-1608)’ in Caravaggio L’Ultimo Tempo 16061610, Electa Napoli 2004 • ‘Due persone à lui ben viste: The identity of Caravaggio’s companion for the prospective Knighthood of Magistral Obedience’ in The Burlington Magazine, CLXVII, January 2005 • with David Stone, ‘Malaspina, Malta, and Caravaggio’s ‘St Jerome’, in Paragone Arte, 2005 • Cat. Entries in Vittorio Sgarbi (ed) Caravaggio, Skira (Milan), 2005 • (with David Stone), Caravaggio: Art, Knighthood and Malta, Midsea Books, 2006 • ‘Caravaggio and Realism in Malta’ in Caravaggio and Paintings of Realism in Malta, Foundation of St John’s Co-Cathedral, 2007 • ‘Caravaggio, the Confraternità della Misericordia, and the original context of the Oratory of the Decollato in Valletta’ in The Burlington Magazine CXLIX, November 2007 • Baroque Painting in Malta, Midsea Books, 2009 • ‘Caravaggio en la encrucijada’, in ARS, V.3, N.7, Madrid, 2010

THE WIG HUNT I

magine a crime story told through film, photoshoots, autopsy reports, audio recordings, emails and more — how would you read it? Where would you start? This is the nature of transmedia, taking a universe and spinning from it many stories and subplots. Its an exciting way of telling a story, used to advertise Game of Thrones, the latest Batman mov-

ies and the Star Wars franchise. But even a church can be a Transmedia experience with statues, sermons, stained glass, and architecture retelling the Bible’s stories. At this year’s Evening on Campus, Josianne Mamo’s The Wig Hunt entry won the first Transmedia Storytelling Competition ever held in Malta. I managed to meet her just before she left to Scotland. »

TRANSMEDIA SPECIAL

THINK

Transmedia Competition Winner

Josianne Mamo

TRANSMEDIA SPECIAL

What is The Wig Hunt? The Wig Hunt starts off with a car crash near Loch Lomond (North of Glasgow). In the car they don’t find anyone, just blood. A short distance away they find a brutally murdered and sodomised woman. And, PC James Murray — he’s the investigating officer — is quite new to the business. He’s not really doing well, but he slowly builds his skills as he goes along. Is he inexperienced? He was in a different field, but because of love he changes his career. He moves to Glasgow to be closer to the person he loves, but this move has made the relationship difficult. Probably inspired by my own life. He was in scuba diving before moving into police investigations. He finds the suspect... I shouldn’t be giving too many spoilers. Let’s just say there is another murder and the investigation takes a whole new turn. It’s a story about sex, drugs and crime in Glasgow. I’m trying to take freemasonry as we know it in the Mediterranean and place it in Scotland. Will that be successful? We’ll see.

Photography by Brian Grech

Where did the inspiration come from? House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski was a major influence in my writing. What’s fascinating about it is the form in which the story is told, which inspired me. My story started off as an exercise in free writing and then it moved from there. The idea was to give bite sized information. I tried to keep the reader going by giving snippets of information then moving on to the next part and the next part and the next part. It fascinates me how a titbit of information grows and becomes never ending. Of course, at the end you need to find a resolution — you need to tame your idea.

Many of my friends won’t read novels or anything longer than 2000 words. That’s why I chose this form. The idea was to simulate something that you would find on the internet. Let’s say you found a newspaper article and it got you piqued, and you moved to the next article. It’s like surfing the web and letting those bits of information unfold. What media do you use? The actual text, simulating official documents (autopsy reports, police reports and so on); a short film on the website; audio clips similar to police investigators talking into a recorder and hearing the conversations as they go along. The idea is not just to give a manuscript but supplementing it with other material. Following the story through different media is what is exciting about it, because it is so different. I moved on and created a website with a timeline where the reader could actually go and read whichever piece of information he wanted, be it the video clip, audio, and you don’t need to read all the titbits. If he’s more interested in the personal relationship then there is another section he can go into. The reader can choose what he wants to read and how to read it. What changes did you need to do to make it as a writer in the way you thought of the story to be able to write in a transmedia style? How did you research your novel? I went there as a writer of historical novels and I ended up writing a crime novel. That went beyond my wildest imagination — it was something major. I had to change in my way of thinking. The fact that I am studying at Glasgow opens various doors. What I did was instead of approaching actual people, I read genuine reports that were leaked online, like David Kelly’s

Joseph Zammit and Malcolm Galea in character. Shots taken from scenes of The Wig Hunt

report and various others. I try to go online. My next step is to go to this crime writing festival called Bloody Scotland, which I am very excited about. There will be the likes of Ian Rankin and Denise Mina whom I met at an event at the University of Glasgow. On a whim, I bought the tickets before I started writing the story, now it will be even more exciting. One of the talks will be on how they do research, some people do go all the way and follow police officers and some of them have been police officers, like Karen Campbell was and then she started writing. There are different degrees of involvement.

“It was refreshing for me to write in these different media, that actually helped me in the writing process”

You had the likes of Malcolm Galea, and other big names in your photoshoot and film. Why do you think they agreed to get involved? I’m still asking myself that question. Malcolm was a major plus for me. He kept using a word when I was showing him a particular character I wanted him to act out (Val Gina — a transvestite performer), which was ‘fun’. Injecting a bit of humour into my script might have helped get him on board. I always had him in mind for that particular part — it was a major thing for me to get him involved. »

The Other Participants ed Reality, web-based role playing game (MMORPG), Twitter and Facebook.

blogs, Vimeo, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Physical Installation, and Graphic Novel.

Cyber Secrets

The Dark

Daniela Azzopardi, Marta Vella & Graziana Agius The University of Malta’s Media Faculty blog has been hacked and secrets... dark secrets... are being exposed. The shameful side of lecturers and students are being exposed. Everyone has a secret — whose will be next? Media: blogs, online forum, mobile app, TV series, and novellas.

Dreams of the Undeserving Angelus

Simon Theuma, Gabriel Borg, Mark-Anthony Fenech & Jean-Luc Portelli Post-war 1950’s. A new city has sprung up in the desert where life is dictated by God. You are wellcome as long as you have God in your heart, but what does that mean? Media: an Alternate Reality Game, Novels, Live Events, Comics, TV Series, Webisodes, Podcasts/Radio, Newspapers, Augment-

Ivan Xuereb Insomnia! Everyone can suffer from it, but just imagine if you never slept. This is the Sandman’s fate. He offers people the chance to have their dreams... at the expense of others. Media: website,

Jean-Marc Chapelle & Karl Xuereb In Malta a secretive research company called Obertek finds a dome under Mdina. Inside it they find an artefact which has extraordinary powers but after a failed experiment the artefact vanishes. The dome’s carvings hold a mystery that must be solved to reclaim the artefact. Media: website, TV series, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, videogame, mobile app, email newsletter, QR codes.

The Underdogs

Neil Attard & Valentina Cassar Coming from a difficult background Donovan finds it difficult to succeed. He has problems with work, colleagues and his girlfriend. After meeting a stranger in a bar, he is darkly reborn and seeks revenge on his employers. Media: webisodes, film, comics, game, website, television, other promotional media.

TRANSMEDIA SPECIAL

How it all started

very story has a beginning. This competition was inspired by a BBC TV programme which highlighted the Transmedia approach of telling stories. After watching this, Patricia Camilleri got her team hooked onto the idea, at the same time as Jean Pierre Magro was organising the first Transmedia seminar in Malta. The rest, as they say, is history. This year there were six entries. Daphne Kelleher, the event’s organiser said, “I was intrigued by the stories […] I wanted to see them visually and what they could come up with, […] they captured the imagination”. Josianne Mamo’s entry was the one which gave the most various and well prepared media. For next year, Daphne suggests, “Go into what you know and use it in detail, be enthusiastic and form a team with people who have different skills.” Transmedia uses different media, but instead of having one storyline, build a universe and from it draw many stories. To be continued… new competition launched in March 2012, see: www.facebook.com/UoMtransmedia

Jean Pierre Magro presenting Josianne Mamo the trophy for her winning entry in the Transmedia Storytelling Competition. Photo by Tufigno.com

Did you find it hard to write for so many different types of media and why was this a Transmedia story? More than the writing it was producing it that was very demanding. The challenge was making sure that the tone for each document was right. It was refreshing for me to write in these different media. That actually helped me in the writing process. One big challenge was trying to inject flavour, characterisation, bringing them alive, especially the actual murdered victim. In the crime scene, I tried to strike an emotional chord through the photos. As for the actual investigator, having that subplot going on hopefully makes the character three-dimensional. What does Transmedia bring to storytelling? I would say that it adds richness.

Telling a story is challenging. As a writer you have a picture in your mind and you have to place it in words. Showing that picture that you have to the reader is exciting and a writer of a traditional manuscript would have to transmit that only through words. In my case I am doing this with various different means, photos, audio clips, so people can hear the suspect speaking. The challenge was to link all this together to make sure that there are no loose ends. Perhaps this might inspire next year’s participants: “It is a fantastic opportunity to be working on something you really love and winning this transmedia competition means I’ll have even more time to work on this project,” said Josianne Mamo. “You learn so much by doing something different. And, I loved it,” she said

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Simon Theuma presenting his story on the night to the judges, from left to right: Prof. Ivan Callus, Alison Norrington, Jean Pierre Magro, Caldon Mercieca and Dr Alexiei Dingli

TRANSMEDIA SPECIAL

THINK

Projects developed by Jean Pierre Magro. Left: poster of Henry Waltz, middle: screenshot of No Pets Allowed.

From Hollywood to Cannes JEAN PIERRE MAGRO shares his journey to understand storytelling

he appreciation of a good story is a gift that is not granted to any other species on this planet. It is reserved for humans alone. Over the centuries, we have come to understand that stories have a clear function. Stories care for us from infancy to maturity, from our maturity to our second infancy, and then lead us to our exit. This phenomenon always fascinated me, so I decided to stop my studies in law and read for a degree in Communications at the University of Malta. I graduated in 1998 and saw myself as a writer. I was wrong. I wrote and produced my first feature film Genesis. It wasn’t successful, but failures did not deter me. It helped me realise I needed to learn much more. I embarked on my quest to understand storytelling. I entered the documentary scene, and over the years my programmes were shown on all major channels in Europe and the US. Some of them won a few awards along the way. In 2006, I was lucky enough to meet David Howard, Dean of University of Southern California. His mentorship was an invaluable experience that helped me grow as a story analyst and a professional. I went on to Edinburgh Napier University for a Master of Arts in Screenwriting and

in 2009 was nominated for a BAFTA (New Talent) for a short film I wrote. I was then employed as Head of Development for FishCorb films. My job was to buy properties (books, graphic novels, video games) and develop them into scripts. There I collaborated with a number of award-winning writers like Barbara Turner and Victor Maldonaldo. I am currently working on a Ph.D. focused on transmedia narratives and migratory cues for children under the tutorship of Dr Dan North and Don Boyd, Governor of the London Film School. My work with producers such as Jimmy Veres and Yan Fisher Romanovsky provided me with the inspiration, as well as a ‘laboratory’, for my dissertation project – an online world based on fairytales in which children can interact, play games and read stories. My vision is to create a virtual library that is both engaging and fun. The same characters that populate this universe will also appear in a TV animated series, comic series, console game and feature film. The visual impact of this project is very important. Hence, I am building the visual narrative with Oscar-nominated animator Geza M. Toth. Kevin A. Brown, Art Director and Game Designer for Sony Play-

Station’s God of War is mentoring me on gaming. On February 28th of this year, together with the Malta Media Desk, I organized the first transmedia seminar on the islands. I invited Michel Reilhac, Head of Arte Cinema, Alison Norrington, Chairperson of Storyworld, and Dean O’Toole, producer of “Kick Ass.” We also had two Skype interventions; one with Emmy Awardwinning Producer, Nuno Bernardo, the other by Jeff Gomez, creator of the transmedia bible for both “Avatar” and “Halo.” Over the years I have developed a number of workshops and masterclasses for professional companies and institutions. Together with Savina Nerotti, I am also working with the Torino Film Lab to set up a yearly workshop on web series production and design. Our main aim is to pioneer digital content creation, strategy and innovation through strong multimedia story engagement. Finally, on 18th May, I launched a number of transmedia projects in Cannes.

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Jean Pierre Magro was the main consultant behind the Transmedia Competition. His advice was critical in turning the competition into a success. The Editor was also part of the team.

ALUMNI

ALUMNI talk Life after University: from quantum mechanics to rugby

The Exotic World of the Very Small DR ANDRÉ XUEREB shines a light on some of the coldest atoms in the Universe I HAVE ALWAYS known myself to be infinitely curious, forever asking questions to my poor parents and siblings. Being mathematically inclined, reading for a B.Sc. (Hons) degree at the University of Malta was a natural next step after completing my ‘A’ level studies. Subsequently in 2007, I flew to Geneva and spent the summer working at CERN as part of the first group of Maltese summer students. Acting on a whim, I went to Southampton to read for a Ph.D. in new methods for cooling atomic gases. Why did I find this interesting? Cold atoms are essentially a “blank canvas” whose properties we can tailor at will. An incredible variety of different experiments are possible, all to explore an astonishingly wide swathe of modern physics. My research is theoretical, and during my PhD I focused on devising ways of cooling almost any atom or molecule to temperatures very close to absolute zero (which is -273.15oC, a lot colder than anywhere on Earth). This work gave rise to several scientific articles, and a rather long thesis, which has just been published as a book. After graduating from the University of Southampton, in early 2011, I moved to the Leibniz University in Hanover, Germany, for several months,

and then back to the United Kingdom to work at the Queen’s University in Belfast. I am now a Research Fellow of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, which allows me to work on problems of my choice and devise my own research programme. I split my time between Belfast and the University of Malta. Recently I had the honour to be the first Maltese representative at

the Meetings of Nobel Laureates at Lindau. This year’s meeting was dedicated to physics. It brought several hundred young scientists together with twenty-six Nobel Laureates to discuss physics and foster collaborations, a once in a lifetime opportunity. Much of my current research is in the field of optomechanics, where we study the behaviour of (relatively) large objects at temperatures a small fraction of a degree above absolute zero. I entered the field when it was small but growing rapidly, and had the opportunity to collaborate closely with some great pioneers. A central point of my research is to figure out why we don’t see quantum mechanical behaviour in our everyday lives: in quantum mechanics, an atom quite happily passes through two slits simultaneously, while a human would have quite some trouble passing through two side-by-side doors at the same time. A surprising number of questions are still open in physics, and there are few things more fascinating than being at the forefront of science, pushing the boundary of human knowledge. I have never stopped asking questions -Nobel laureate Roy J Glauber called me “my favourite bully” at the Lindau meeting — and I do not plan on stopping any time soon.

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THINK ALUMNI

Photo by Marco Cecchini

A sports addict confesses DR SHAWN AGIUS shares his return to University to combine his interest in sports medicine and neurosurgery TO GET A JOB in neurosurgery, I read for a Masters in sports medicine at University College London. Naively, I thought it would be a piece of cake because I had read an article here and there. I was soon to learn otherwise. My time in London overlapped with the Olympics that sent my lecturers wild. All they could talk about were injuries and biomechanics as if they were the simplest and most obvious things. This wasn’t the case and the exams were tough. The course absorbed a huge chunk of my time, ironically by studying sports medicine I was not able to train and compete as much as I wanted. In the meantime, I was working on my research project to complete my course. The project my supervisor convinced me

to do was on how heart rate changes after concussions. Rugby players were the ideal test subjects, they practically self-induce concussion. Before any testing took place I read, got in the rugby players good books, and filled a large stack of forms. I needed to assess twenty athletes before and after a rugby game. Seven came for the pregame assessment, two were injured badly, and five came for the post-game assessment. Of these five, most came drunk — 20-year old rugby players after a game; I should have known better. I pleaded and contacted other teams but had to make do with this data: thankfully I had attended nearly all the statistics and SPSS lectures. So when I compared the data with other similar studies the numbers were similar. My study was feasible, but

with difficulty. This pilot study needs to be increased to 200 rugby players, a daunting task — they would probably need to be physically forced. Through this degree I re-visited university years and met awesome students and lecturers. Halfway through this degree, the job I wanted appeared in Malta i.e. the need for me to do this course vanished. But this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. I had my moments of ‘I don’t need this, why do I even bother’ and the obvious ‘I will definitely fail this.’ But I had supportive colleagues at work and in the course, so I managed to push myself through. Now I can combine the job I’ve been wanting in neurosurgery with the passion I’m addicted to. It was fun, it was thorough and totally worth it.

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. 83. 82. 5. 84 81. 6. 8 80 .8 .7 87 . 8

BOOK REVIEW by The Editor

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The Geek Manifesto

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100 WORD

ideas to change MALTA

Legal Contract Drafting Support by PROF. GORDON PACE

The notary drafts the contract on her computer – fixing a highlighted typo, ignoring the complex grammar warning. More worrying is the clause highlighted with an explanation of how it conflicts with another contract her client has signed. A few modifications later, she presses ‘Send’... You open the document, selecting ‘Simplify’ to view a version leaving out legalese linguistic somersaults. But the complexity is still overwhelming. You click ‘Query’ and ask ‘Can I always cancel an order within 24 hours?’ A detailed scenario is presented, involving different time-zones, a re-order and another agreement. You start composing a reply to your notary...

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Mark Henderson SCIENCE IS EVERYWHERE! A common calling card, Mark Henderson (Head of Communications, Wellcome Trust) takes it one step further. Henderson demands that science pervades everything and that our lives would be better off for it. The Geek Manifesto starts with a call to arms, in a similar vein to Karl Marx. By the end of the book, Henderson demands that geeks should unite! Being geeks, the call is not to the nearest rifle or pitchfork, but towards good science, evidence, lots of computers, blogging, and a bit of well meaning activism — none of that chaining yourself to stuff. Henderson makes a good case why science should always be considered in politics, government, media, economy, education, justice, healthcare, and the environment. Some instances are obvious; few people would support new health procedures that are not based on evidence. Others, like justice and government, might be new to readers. The author focuses on UK problems, but they resonate locally. The problem is that science is rarely considered in decision-making, since few scientists (or persons with a solid scientific background) occupy public decision-making positions. How many scientists occupy these positions in Malta? Scientists also rarely raise their voices against policies based on thin air. The idea: you have a vote so use it. In the UK, science was the only sector that did not suffer budget cuts when the coalition government came to power. In

contrast, the humanities suffered a 25% reduction. Why? Science is Vital started after the cell biologist Jenny Rohn heard cabinet minister Vince Cable smear science with false facts: ‘45% of public funds rewards research that is not of an excellent standard’, Britain is a scientific world leader. Rohn wrote a blog which went viral, received celebrity endorsement, followed by a protest that chanted ‘Hey! Osborne! Leave our geeks alone!’ Within two weeks, they lobbied over 140 MPs to sign a petition and obtained over 33,000 signatures (I signed it myself ) — government realised the fallout from science cuts and decided to freeze the budget instead. Science was saved. The case raised easily applies to Malta. Instead of large educational reforms that seem to follow the latest fad, perform pilot studies with proper controls to see what works and what doesn’t. In politics, instead of abusing the evidence and shouting the loudest, which Henderson labels as cargo-cult politics, let policies be formed by independent rigorous data. Like in the UK, our drugs policy is driven by political ideology rather than evidence — as is crime and sexual health. The manifesto doesn’t push science above all else, but asks for policies based on evidence. Review the relevant data, if it doesn’t exist then fund a good study, afterwards construct your policies. Instead of pushing your own agenda, exploit science to resolve questions. The Geek Manifesto is a recommended read for any scientist, science student, or concerned citizen.

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GAME REVIEW by Costantino Oliva

Phone Story Production: Molleindustria, 2011 Platform: Android

WHAT IS THE STORY behind our smart phones? Phone Story retraces the production stages of our favorite products, showing us the dramatic working conditions behind their assembly. It seems like Apple didn’t like it: the game is now banned from the App Store. Mass riots and frequent suicides shed a dark light on Foxconn, the company that assembles product for the likes of Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon. Afterwards, it became impossible to ignore the conditions of the workers that mass-produce contemporary tech gadgets. Enter Molleindustria, the software house funded by Paolo Pedercini, responsible for

a remarkable series of ferociously satirical, “serious” games (check molleindustria.org for more — it’s worth it). Phone Story takes us through an uncomfortable ride of funny minigames with classic, familiar mechanics juxtaposed to harsh vignettes: underage miners extracting silicon, suicidal workers jumping from the roof of the factory, and an army of Apple — pardon, “Pear” — fans taking a flagship store by storm. Don’t expect a radical new gaming experience with Phone Story, but pick it up if you’d like to reflect on the process that brought you your mobile, while you’re actually holding it in the palm of your hand.

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FACT or FICTION?

Did Albert Einstein say we only use 10% of our brain? «» Probably not. It has been misattributed to Einstein to explain his great intelligence. The idea being that if only we used more, we would unlock the powers of our mind, become mathematical geniuses, perhaps even become telekinetic. Unfortunately, even when we think we are being lazy, like sleeping, our minds are quite busy. Is all hope lost? Are we stuck with the intelligence we have? Probably a good education does not hurt and cognitive scientists have identified two methods that can push our brains further. The

first involves focus. By concentrating on a single task, you can use more of your brain and tackle those complex mathematical formulae. The brain is usually very distracted. The second strategy is optimisation. It involves letting your brain find the optimal solution by stopping to think and considering many alternatives before jumping on one answer. Creativity can use a totally different ball game. Sometimes it is best to let your brain wander and simply consider all alternatives. Our brain is too complex for a few basic strategies to apply to all situations.

RESEARCH

Supporting the RIDT …because research matters

hen researchers are at work, they are taking steps that will eventually change our lives. Some steps are very small and will take years to complete, while others are faster and larger. Researchers are part of a global process that will provide solutions to a multitude of challenges. They can resolve our problems to provide energy, safeguard the environment, maintain food supplies, improve healthcare, and sustain efficient transportation. These solutions need innovation and the research that fuels it; this is the only way for societies to survive… let alone thrive! Our future needs hard work and new approaches, ‘doing what we’ve always done’ will not be enough. The globe’s successful economies all invest huge amounts of money in research; much more than Malta, even if scaled to our economy. Locally, research is particularly relevant since we all know that Malta’s only real resource is the resilience, ingenuity, and diligence of its people. THINK magazine helps pay tribute to the valuable work of researchers within the University of Malta. Over the centuries, the University has supplied Malta’s intellectual driving force. This institution has produced the graduates who have transformed a small barren archipelago into a civilised developed country within the European mainstream. Apart from a strong academic orientation,

the University of Malta is an increasingly important centre for world-class research projects, across a wide range of disciplines. The University also collaborates with other major seats of learning, educational centres and institutes in a number of significant projects. This publication is committed to expose research and its social benefits. For the University of Malta to fulfil its true ‘University of the Future’ role, a much greater emphasis on research and innovation is needed. This will serve as a catalyst for on-going development and progress. For this future to happen, society, and the individuals within it, will need to support the University of Malta’s thrust to prioritise research and innovation. Malta will then achieve a better, more sustainable, and ‘higher value added’ future. The Research, Innovation and Development Trust (RIDT) has been set up with this specific goal: to engage with all sectors of society in a drive to support research activity. During the past year the RIDT has managed to secure an encouraging number of supporters who have made a donation towards its mission. Private companies, public institutions and individuals have come forward with their donations — large or small — because they believe that for a country to thrive and prosper it needs the backing of a strong University that maintains its role as a higher education institution and as a centre for research and innovation.

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How can you help? If you share our objectives, please consider what you or your organisation can do to help us to achieve them. • Has the University of Malta helped you arrive at where you are today? • You can donate financially through the RIDT website. There you can choose whether your contribution goes to the current priorities of the RIDT, or to a faculty, institute, or centre of your choice. • Why not consider leaving a contribution to the RIDT in your will? Talk to us for more details. Your gift, of whatever size, will play an important part in enabling the University of Malta to increase its research activities and to develop the necessary environment for excellence. You can donate and get to know more about the RIDT by visiting www.ridt.org.mt

THINK RESEARCH

Thanking our donors During 2012 the RIDT received an encouraging number of donations from individuals, companies and public institutions. The University recognises the generosity of donors and would like to publicly thank them. Together with these donors mentioned here, the RIDT received a number of donations from individuals and organisations that preferred to remain anonymous.

The Central Bank of Malta The donation of the Central Bank of Malta will go towards the establishment of The Central Bank of Malta’s Chair in Economics at the University of Malta. The chair will be instituted within the University’s Faculty of Economics, Management and Accountancy. The agreement will run for five years, starting 1st October 2012.

Malta Freeport Terminals Ltd. Malta Freeport Terminals Ltd will be supporting the Research, Innovation and Development Trust (RIDT) of the University of Malta, over a five year period starting 1st January 2013. The funds will be received through the University’s Research Trust, and will be administered by RIDT’s Board of Trustees.

Evolve Ltd. Through the RIDT, Evolve Ltd, a subsidiary of Attard & Co that provides laboratory products and services, donated three instruments to the Chemistry Laboratory of the University of Malta. The instruments include a Gas Chromatograph, a Particle Sizer and a FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrophotometer). The new equipment will enable the Department of Chemistry to increase its research activity while providing better facilities for post-graduate students.

Music and Research Two university students, Christine Zerafa and Philip Attard, came up with a brilliant idea earlier this year. They put their musical talents to good use and managed to raise funds that were donated to the RIDT. Christine is finishing her Ph.D. in Chemistry and has recently obtained a Master’s degree in performance music, making her an accomplished concert pianist. Philip is doing a Bachelor’s degree in Music Studies and is fast becoming one of Malta’s leading saxophone players.

CULTURE

Cultural Infrastructure for Mega-events

Graziella Vella for the Valletta 2018 Foundation

successfully regenerated area improves citizens’ quality of life by enhancing physical, social, and economic wellbeing. The process is similar to walking a tightrope, where positive impacts can easily cross over with negative outcomes. Cities are using culture as a tool to regenerate themselves. Events are commonly used to generate impact. Large scale events, such

as the Olympic Games and the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) have become a significant catalyst of urban change. In staging these events, considerable investment is required. The huge impact they need is not always sustainable if cities plan development exclusively for a single event and do not consider long-term impact. The European Capital of Culture (ECoC) was originally created to celebrate established cultural cities, but has developed into

an opportunity for cites to create urban, cultural and social regeneration. Today, ECoCs mainly focus on achieving the following: sustainable long-term development, urban regeneration, infrastructure development, social inclusion, and more visitors. Recent ECoCs’ capital expenditure budgets from 2005 onwards range from €984 million in Liverpool to a €30 million in Essen (2010). Investing in cultural infrastructure is a prime objective, but this investment

THINK CULTURE

often lacks a long-term perspective. Many times, ECoCs end up with ‘white elephants’, infrastructure which is under-utilised or not utilised at all after the event. One of the most common types of infrastructure development is the construction of landmark buildings in decaying areas of a city. They attract increased visitor attention but can remove the element of creativity and innovation, which is an essential ECoC element. In contrast, the ‘Barcelona model’ takes a different approach. During the 1992 Olympic Games, Barcelona wanted to regenerate itself, using the games as a catalyst for urban change, transformation and renewal. Contrarary to other Spanish cities, like Bilbao with the Guggenheim Museum and Valencia with its City of Arts and Sciences, Barcelona did not choose to be associated with one building but looked at an overall picture of sustainable longterm investment, which 20 years later is still going strong. ECoC cultural infrastructure development is not only about large-scale investment. The creative industries can be used

to showcase the uniqueness of a city. The development of cultural quarters has often been used to regenerate cities and specific areas in a sustainable manner with a longterm vision. Urban regeneration can take place through the re-creation of a vibrant city space. Culture should be integral to the vision for the regeneration of an area. A cultural infrastructure strategy that places culture-led regeneration at the centre of this strategy will give a city and its citizens what they really need after ECoC is over. Strategies include the re-use of existing buildings and local engagement to ensure full project ownership. It is vital to focus on developing human capacity in the Creative and Cultural Industries. Developing human capacity will make ECoC sustainable. Malta’s capital city, Valletta has recently won the ECoC title for 2018. The bid, V.18, encompasses the whole of the Maltese Islands spreading investment, activities, and events throughout the whole territory. One of its most immediate concerns is the development of cultural infrastructure. V.18 has

recommended a number of projects after a wide engagement process. These recommendations reflect the needs for Malta’s cultural and creative scene in the long term. Overall, one has to look at the importance of optimal governance and management to ensure that these projects are implemented in the best way possible. This is ultimately the challenge faced by V.18 and the Maltese Islands to ensure that 2018 leaves a long lasting legacy. The way Malta devises the road to 2018: the planning, management and coordination involved, will ultimately reflect how its citizens will feel on 1st January 2019.

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UNeECC This article has been adapted from a paper presented at the Vth University Network for the European Capitals of Culture (UNeECC) General Assembly and Conference in Antwerp (2011). UNeECC is an international non-profit association which works at fostering inter-university cooperation in former and future ECoCs. Since 2011, the University of Malta has been a member.

FURTHER READING • Ministry for Tourism, Culture and the Environment, 2011. National Cultural Policy, www.maltaculture.com • Creative Economy Working Group, 2012. Draft Strategy for Malta’s Cultural and Creative and Industries, www.creativemalta.gov.mt • Palmer, R. 2004. European Cities and Capitals of Culture: Part I and II. Brussels: Palmer/Rae Associates, http://ec.europa.eu • Richards, G. and Palmer, R. 2010. Eventful Cities: Cultural Management and Urban Revitalisation. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. • Valletta 2018 Foundation, www.valletta2018.org

MEME

culture genes

MEME THINK

ISBN: 978-99957-0-277-9

www.um.edu.mt

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