Jonathan Firbank, Author at THINK Magazine

A Land of Honey

As part of the BEE-OPTECH4Honey project, master’s student Matthew Calleja is seeking to demonstrate that Maltese thyme honey is worthy of a protected status. In discussion with THINK’s Jonathan Firbank, Calleja shares how best to prove it and the benefits PGI status can bring.

Project HESS: Storing Tomorrow’s Energy

Hybrid Energy Storage Systems is carrying out research on the conversion of surplus renewable energy into hydrogen. This is an increasingly important means of reducing wasted energy, as Malta invests heavily into renewables. Jonathan Firbank speaks with project investigator Prof. Ing. John Licari about this project and Malta’s changing energy landscape.

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Unveiling Attachment Styles with AI

MindOnly has developed an Artificial Intelligence tool that can assess your attachment style. This Malta-based research project, supported by Xjenza, has created a platform that reads non-verbal cues to better understand users. This may prove to be a useful personal development tool and, crucially, a valuable resource for mental health practitioners.

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Driving Efficiency in Electric Motors

Electric motors are everywhere in modern infrastructure. If they are improved, the economic and environmental benefits are vast. Professor of Engineering Reiko Raute and his research team are developing an efficient, hybrid drive system that can be paired with induction motors or, yet more efficient, permanent magnet synchronous motors of his own design. He speaks with Jonathan Firbank about the technologies and the possibilities they represent.

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Summer Fruit Special: 🍑 or 🍈?

THINK is dedicated to answering the hard questions, those questions that leave you chewing your nails in the middle of the night. 🍑 or 🍈? Jonathan Firbank is our 🍑 specialist, and David Mizzi is the 🍈 majordomo! Two fruits, two writers, but only one can be the summer fruit sensation.

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Which Country has the Best 🍆?

Some are long and hard, others big and fat, others still are thin and bendy, while some are just short, round, and stubby. 🍆 come (usually) in all shapes and sizes, but does bigger necessarily mean better? What’s the difference between a 🍆 from the USA and one from Thailand? Join us as we take a quick tour of the different 🍆 from around the world and learn how best to handle each one!

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The Company that Cried Wolf – Part 4

De-extinction: The Case of the Dire Wolf? – The ‘de-extinction’ of the dire wolf has been one of the highest-profile scientific achievements of 2025. But the impression cultivated online is misleading – the dire wolf has not returned; it is being imitated. Five professors from the University of Malta have reacted to this complex story. In Part IV, Prof. Louis-F. Cassar considers the moral questions raised by a de-extincted future.

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The Company that Cried Wolf – Part 3

Ecological Perspectives on the ‘De-Extinction’ of the Dire Wolf (Aenocyon dirus) – The ‘de-extinction’ of the dire wolf has been one of the highest-profile scientific achievements of 2025. But the impression cultivated online is misleading – the dire wolf has not returned; it is being imitated. Five professors from the University of Malta have reacted to this complex story. In Part III, Prof. Sandro Lanfranco explores the potential ecological consequences of de-extinction’s logical conclusion: reintroducing dire wolves to the wild.

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The Company that Cried Wolf – Part 2

The Dire Wolf De-Extinction Project: Science, Significance, and the Ecology of Resurrection – The ‘de-extinction’ of the dire wolf has been one of the highest-profile scientific achievements of 2025. But the impression cultivated online is misleading – the dire wolf has not returned; it is being imitated. Five professors from the University of Malta have reacted to this complex story. In Part II, Chev. Prof. Renald Blundell recounts the science behind this achievement and what it may mean for science’s future.

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The Company that Cried Wolf – Part I

Questioning Genetics and Posing Ethical Questions – The ‘de-extinction’ of the dire wolf has been one of the highest-profile scientific achievements of 2025. But the impression cultivated online is misleading – the dire wolf has not returned; it is being imitated. Five professors from the University of Malta have reacted to this complex story. In Part I, Prof. Patrick J. Schembri and Rev. Prof. Ray Zammit speak on its science and ethics, following an introduction to the series by Jonathan Firbank.

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