Edward De Bono claims credit for saving the Olympics

Jurgen R Gatt

Aug 17th 2012, 07:48

A truly interesting article. The truth is that another Maltese intellectual is currently working on a time-machine. Could these two outstanding minds work together to re-work history? Could the Peloponnesian war be stopped? Could Caesar be saved? Could the 4th Crusade have been averted? Could we convince Leonardo da Vinci that the mirror-script was indeed completely useless? Could we stop the terror of the French Revolution? Or the atrocities of the world wars?

I am excited by the possibilities. One thing is certain. Malta will soon be able to re-write history with the help of Edward De Bono.

John Azzopoardi

Aug 17th 2012, 01:43

We need him to solve our illegal migration problem. Seriously. I have taken some of his seminars many companies actually mandate his course in some company departments.

Alex Buds

Aug 16th 2012, 17:48

Truly great people are first and foremost humble and self-effacing. It is others that extoll their achievements.

Gillian Snook

Aug 16th 2012, 16:13

Working in the UK in the '80's we were encouraged to use lateral thinking when problem solving - I didn't realise it was invented by a Maltese man. Thank you it works.

brian farrugia

Aug 16th 2012, 08:47

I must admit reluctantly that reading one of his books (the boots one!) going to London for a major medical exam did in fact help me to reorganise my attitude and mind set and helped me pass the exam I was to sit for.

Robert Mifsud

Aug 16th 2012, 07:28

He might solved the problem back then. But the following Olympics still made a lot of loss!

Henry Mifsud

Aug 16th 2012, 03:06

........................... and as yet I still encounter many students at post-secondary level who do not know who is Edward De Bono let alone what is lateral thinking.

Perhaps those who are responsible for our curriculum at primary and secondary educational level are wearing a seventh hat when they are fine tuning the system.

Another Cippus in the making. Cippus? What Cippus?

Mr Paul Galea

Aug 16th 2012, 00:18

If this is true, perhaps, this same method may be used to save the Euro!

N Mifsud

Aug 15th 2012, 23:48

So why is Edward de Bono claiming his credit 32 years after?

Jo Meli

Aug 15th 2012, 23:17

Actually a BELTI he is :)

Edward de Bono you make us BELTIN very Proud of you !!!

Ms loranne zammit

Aug 15th 2012, 23:07

this inspires me ..... maybe the world leaders need to apply some lateral thinking, maybe the world is saved from financial crisis.

James Camilleri

Aug 15th 2012, 22:06

"For God hates utterly the bray of bragging tongues. "
Sophocles

Attended seminars by Dr Debono and read some of his books. To be honest was not much impressed. The learned doctor advocates what we call common sense. However I have to hand it to him, he made a fortune out of it.

vincent a galea

Aug 15th 2012, 21:52

We need you in Paceville, Dr Debono.......

John Cole Smith

Aug 15th 2012, 20:52

This great man taught me at school , Lateral Thinking, at a very young age. It was my formation, which made me what I am. I am thus very grateful. I raise my hat.

Teresa Pace

Aug 15th 2012, 20:42

Very modest I must say.....Olympics have been round since say BC time ...since ancient Greeks...and now Edward de bono saves them in the 80's....now that's a good one! :) Success got over his head...humility and modesty is what makes a person great

Alfred Galea

Aug 15th 2012, 20:40

I would suggest to this genteleman to give us some lateral thinking about God and the soul

Dorris geddes

Aug 15th 2012, 19:49

He is really a brilliant man!

martin chetcuti

Aug 15th 2012, 18:59

''Conceit spoils the finest genius. There is not much danger that real talent or goodness will be overlooked long; even if it is, the consciousness of possessing and using it well should satisfy one, and the great charm of all power is modesty. '' Louisa May

Anthony Camilleri

Aug 15th 2012, 18:55

A man to be proud of

Lawrence Bonello

Aug 15th 2012, 18:41

Bravu Dr Debono! Now how about helping the Maltese to apply lateral thinking to solve traffic anarchy, over-development, noise-pollution, crass ignorance, arrogance, an absurd justice system, etc. etc. etc?

tony abela

Aug 15th 2012, 17:59

I have always been of the opinion that some people are good talkers and move on in life, and you may find that some of them have no substance to sustain their talking. While others may have better brains but might keep them to themselves and hardly makes a pace forward.

andreana attard

Aug 15th 2012, 16:46

It's called socialization, Dr de Bono. People learn from each other and are influenced by each other through communication and contact. I learnt this in my Social Studies lessons way back when I was in Form 1.

It may be that your short lecture influenced someone in 1975. It's good that your audience was listening and then went home and implemented what they learnt but do not underestimate the intelligence of fellow human beings, who learn when discovering something, then developing it further. Should Lord Sebastian Coe thank you then? At the moment he is riding on glory but wait till the Parliament reels at the cost of the Olympics (billions for sure). They're going to need lateral thinking on how to explain the expenditure to the public.

Philip Micallef

Aug 15th 2012, 15:38

A rather conceited way in projecting oneself, unless it is another form of later thinking.

C. Bonnici

Aug 15th 2012, 15:17

Well, firstly, the article refers to De Bono as Mr, whereas he's actually Dr Edward De Bono. Secondly, while Dr De Bono is responsible for lateral thinking, he's not actually responsible for anything that results from lateral thinking. The fact remains, that Dr De Bono's contributions have honoured Malta. I often meet people in the UK and elsewhere, who would identify Malta as the place where Dr Bono comes from.

william cauchi

Aug 15th 2012, 15:08

Dear Edward, charity begins at home.

How about sending some suggestions to our beloved politicians to solve some of our unending problems.

Some would say why? We are the Fior del Mondo! Let's be realistic for once. Overall Malta is not a bad place to live in. Anzi. But with a little fine tuning we could make it better, much better. And it doesn't have to cost the earth. Such as less red-tape bureaucracy for one. Transport that works on time. An excellent medical service but laden with unending waiting lists. Energy supplies that are affordable and finding that elusive oil in our waters. Government departments that are anything more than 25% efficient. What have I left out? The list could go on and on.

So how about it Edward. You never know, some future politician will build a statue for you to thank you for saving Malta.

James Attard

Aug 15th 2012, 14:35

And what about Olympic Games 2004 edition which were held in Athens, and which was the event which ignited bankruptcy of Greece?

John Paul Cauchi

Aug 15th 2012, 14:13

"In 2000, de Bono advised a U.K Foreign Office committee that the Arab-Israeli conflict might be due, in part, to low levels of zinc found in people who eat unleavened bread (e.g. pita flatbread), a known side-effect of which is aggression. He suggested shipping out jars of Marmite to compensate"

He nearly saved the Middle East from its current state too - I wonder what went wrong... Not enough Marmite perhaps?

Anthony Galea

Aug 15th 2012, 14:10

Brilliant man but a little mdesty perhaps? if not some proof to back the claim....

Bruce Micallef Eynaud

Aug 15th 2012, 14:01

if he really was responsible for the success of the '84 Olympics, why wasn't he on the cover of Time?

Alex Borg

Aug 15th 2012, 14:00

It is amazing how things or business can be changed from negative to positive. It would be a great idea and initiative if the Government of Malta would ask Profs. Debono to spend some time or a number of days with the Ministry of finance to bring our finance in order and we start making some surplus. No a bad idea , no one knows it all, although some of us think they they know it all.

mark johnson

Aug 15th 2012, 13:27

I liked him when he was in U2.

Raymond Sammut

Aug 15th 2012, 13:17

Debono's texts are such a pleasure to read. Every applied science degree at a university should require the reading of at least one of Debono's texts.

I think that Debono owes his concepts of Lateral Thinking to the Maltese language. That is, only a Maltese thinker, thinking in Maltese, could have come up with something such as Lateral Thinking. This is because Later Thinking is all about how children think when left free from any outside interference. And unquestionably, the Maltese language is fundamentally more a language of children than a language of adults.

Pablo Micallef

Aug 15th 2012, 12:54

There goes our gold medalist. Now can the Maltese thinker think locally?

Ethelbert Schembri

Aug 15th 2012, 12:48

What about string a course of simple thinking for the whole Maltese population, step by step ... first we need to start thinking then trying lateral thinking !!!

Well done Edward BeBono

Mr J. Bonnici

Aug 15th 2012, 12:43

Ask the Greeks and the Spanish about the profit of the Olympic Games.
The actual cost of the London games is not yet known but when the figures are published the Brits will start asking questions.

Victor Rodenas

Aug 15th 2012, 12:25

We need him in Parlament, he might solve our DEBT problems.

Pippo De Marco

Aug 15th 2012, 12:16

Perhaps the PM should consult a lateral thinker about how to save his party from certain electoral defeat?

Or he could save himself the trouble and simply stand-down as party leader.

Pule' Carmel

Aug 15th 2012, 11:53

I remember Edward DeBono while I was in England where he was experimenting with cosmoploitan children in the same hospital asking them to find solutions as, " How could we get different animals to live together?"
I still remember the different interesting answers that so many children gave him. I believe that this was the beginnning of what is now callled lateral thinking, but in fact , the fact that there are many ways to skin a cat was long known. The generalised idea of differnet answers came from sick children in a hospital who came out with so many different answers as they were cosmopolitan children with different cultures so that answers were expected to be different, or coming from different sides hence De Bono called it Lateral thinking. If anyone needs to learn, live with children, and they come out with so many differnt ideas.

Here is some lateral thinking from children. One day a child at school was naughty and the teachers gave his a copy, " I must not talk in class" to write 200 lines of it. The next day the child came to school writing only 100 lines and the teacher increased it to 300 lines and again the child could not cope . On the fourth day, after the child presented his work to the teacher, the child realised that the teacher was confounded as to what copy punnishment he was going to give to the child. The child looked at the teacher while the teacher loked at the child and then the child seening the teacher so confounded he thought to give him a had using some lateral thinking, " Hit me, Sir!" he uttered to the teacher. The teacher understood, ruffled the child's hair and told him, " go and play child, go and play" and then when the child disappeared the teacher said to himself, " That child taught me a lesson, thank God for little children teaching us lessons!"
Some ideas which I thing originated from Maltese people.

* The impulse jet, was made by Christinu Muscat of Rabat many years before the was and it made so much noise that he was afraid and shelved it till he say a photograph of the German Bomb during the last war.

* Many ideas and patents where made by my brother Joseoh Pule' who invented a few technical aides to make the maintenacnve or aircraft so much easier, His ideas saved the sparof the Camberra Bomber frrom corrrosion. He also made a system where the sealing compund for rivets was much betterthan what the supplier provided, economising on the issue and working faster. He was given a few Hand outs for his ideas.

* I myself came across what is now called the Zener Effect in PN junctions.When working with transitors at Newcastle University my colleagues where working on Active Amplifiers, Negative impedance convertors, Gyrators, and one of them was making a Voltage to frequency convertor which would stop increasing the frequency after a certain maginitude of volatage was applied, he could not solve the problem and he asked me to give him a hand. I had no difficulties in understanding transistors in those days and I diagnosed the fault to a voltage breakdown between the emmiter and base when the voltad was reversed. For Germanium transistors thsi occured at about 12 volts and for sillicon this occured at 7 to 8 volts. I rearranged the circuit so that these reverse voltages would not be applied to the base of a transistor. It was a transitor that I handled and not a diode. I never bothered to talk about it but had I published it it would have been known as " The Pule' effect"
* twenty years ago I told Rev Professor Peter Serracino Inglott, that," NEVER IN THE HISTORY OF MALTA SINCE THE PHOENICIANS CAME TO MALTA was there a FORMAL course to produce teachers of technology!! Peter Serracino Inglott was amaised and he said, "Noooooooooooooooo?" I said "Yessssssss!"
So off i went and for the first time ever in Malta I started a formal course to prepare TEACHERS OF TECHNOLOGY FOR THE MCAST I HAD PLANNED. So I like to have on my grave headstone," Here is the man who invented formal coursed for Maltese teachers of technology!"
* I know Maltese people who invented new shapes for propellors and wing tips. The ant vortex wing tip seen on many modern aircraft was invented in Malta by modellers who flew planes where the Farson's factory now stands. These modelers noticed that the spitfire models had a tendency to stall and so they made winglets stopping this stall. It worked but they never bothered about publishing it making a nave for themselves.
Maltese person designed the solid blade of a propellor such that the angle at the boss was just enough to screw through the fluid at high speed but did not bite at high speed, the high speed pull was obtained by the outer 2/3 of the propellor whhile the inner1/3 was not pulling. However when starting the inner part with a smaller pitch efectively could bite at lower starting speeds and so the accelleration was better.
One man in Malta desiogned the outer profile of a sea propellor such that both the leading and trailing edge RAKED back and any vortexes will be shed at the tip and not going in to the boss to erode the propellor. He claims that the latter idea was nothis invention but simply an observation of fish and birds whose wings and tails and fins are like that.
If any man wants to discover new ideas, play with children and have a walk amongst natural things. People seldome invent anything, but they do observe it around them.
I do believe that the only thing that man invented was the fully rotating joint as nature could not do it as the blood supply is severed and any joint had to be a rocking jjoint so that the bloood supply is possible to keep it alive. About 30 years ago I disected two ducks to studey the bone structure to see what they are like.
I concluded from a duck's boine structure that nature iis so economical in its design that it makes all bones to be exactly the same but each bone is given a paramiter which changes the bone according to the position it finds iteself within the structure, In other words bpnes are an adaptive control system and thus the information during conception of a child is so obeying the compression code systems we now find in elelctronic information, which in additon to the data has compression and error detecting codes similar to the self healing tissues in our bodies.
Maltese people have a brain like any body else and I salute all the silent Maltese Inventors who keep so quiet enjoying their own inventions which never surface in public.
Incidentally years ago I was approached by Maltes inventors who made continuously variable gearboxes, Wave generators,
I had a person who thought that he could get power out of strong permanent magnets, He spent over £50,000 to get this machine working, but I told him that he would never get it to work as what he had was a gear box and not an engine.
I had another Maltese man who 40 years ago made a variable compression engine, but when I saw it , I told him that it may fire once or twice but it would not give continuous power. he exclaimed, " THat is exactly what it is doing" After I explained his false engineeing principles he thanked me for he had been working on it for 20 years. I hated myself for telling him that it will not work , but he respected me till he passed away for not leading him up the garden path.
I also knew a Maltes man whom other described him as , " he is so clever with electronics that he could make a television out of a piece of wire!" Well there are ver clever Maltese inventors, but I never met one that could do that.
We should have a playing field for Maltese inventors. How about a University Annexe at Cottonera, because we need a place where raw earth's materaial are trasposed from place to place rather than a place where talkiing takes place.

Cecil Herbert Jones

Aug 15th 2012, 11:46

They say a profit doesn't have success in his own village but outside in some foreign land (Gibral Khalil).

Why shouldn't a Maltese thinker succeed in influences foreign enterprises, of whatever nature?

As to the state of Malta and Maltese thinking, well I think (no pun intended) I said enough.

Anna Marie Navarro

Aug 15th 2012, 11:45

This great thinker has always done us Maltese an honour, his lateral thnking went round the four corners of the world - cant readers for once give credit when credit is due.

Michael Bugeja

Aug 15th 2012, 11:44

Sur Debono, kemm il maltin izjed japrezzawk, li kieku kull politiku malti ,jrid jaghddi min test ,jew min kors min tieghek,forsi flus zejda ma nibqawx nonfqu, forsi l-affarijiet jsiru ahjar minghajr hela, u forsi l- FIP(first in priorities) course ikun hafna ta' benefficju ,ghall Malta taghna, biex nonfqu skond il- htiega, l-ewwel.

Joseph Grech Attard

Aug 15th 2012, 11:42

No type of thinking could change our present government's ways. Why? Its brian has shrinked to nil!

Mr Mark-Anthony Falzon

Aug 15th 2012, 11:27

If you can't win a medal ...

stephen koludrovic

Aug 15th 2012, 11:25

The reasons why the 1976,1980 and 1984 games were disastrous was because of political interference in the games.

In 1976 almost all African countries boycotted because of New Zealand.
In 1980 most western countries led by the USA boycotted the Moscow one because of Russian intervention in Afghanistan.
In 1984 The Russians and most of Eastern Europe boycotted the Los Angeles games as retaliation for the earlier boycott.
And in 1988 eventually some common sense prevailed and the Seoul games became a success.

Luciano Pace Parascandalo

Aug 15th 2012, 11:24

interesting since he learned what he needed from a short talk.....i don't think it was so complex after all

Mark Shaw

Aug 15th 2012, 11:15

I once wrote an essay when i was MUCH younger about green energy and how it would be nice if we could use energy from the air, i handed it in and got reasonable marks but i wonder, am i responsible for the new industries of wind and solar energy?...by the same logic it seems i am :)

DR EMMANUEL BEZZINA,MA,MAG.JUR.[EU Law],LL.D.,

Aug 15th 2012, 11:13

Prof. Debono has given alot to the World by the theories he helped evolve in Lateral Thinking, Parallel Thinking, Creative Thinking, and the numerous works he wrote and published most of which I have purchased, read and had to study as I followed one of his Courses right after I commenced my practise in Law way back in November 1977.

Regrettably his health has not been optimal in recent years but the influence of his evolved theories are evergreen. I use them in my everyday work as a lawyer and they assist in getting so much done in any single day. I will not go into the ultimate conclusions of this letter published today..............for sure anything positive is always of immense contribution: on the latter`s score, much credit to this great Malta Man.

Anthony Borg

Aug 15th 2012, 11:12

"Please Sir; can you introduce your very successful Lateral Thinking into Arriva Malta Ltd. management?

Perhaps you as a Maltese can finally save us from our daily hardship and frustration! The commuters of Malta would be forever grateful.”

P.S. This plea is neither sarcasm nor a joke.

Mr Tony Gatt

Aug 15th 2012, 11:09

What he should do is go to Malta and sort the out shambles that passes for government.

Joseph Mizzi

Aug 15th 2012, 11:01

You must give the credit to this gentleman: he really knows how to promote himself.

J. Borg

Aug 15th 2012, 11:00

It will be good if these thinking methods are also used to help improve the Law Courts in Malta to avoid people being fined Eur 60 only. See: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120815/local/police-expected-to-appeal-marsaxlokk-brawl-sentence.432933