Interviews

Miscellaneous interviews and newspaper articles

in AEI.org podcast on "Political Economy" Jan. 12th 2022: Didier Sornette: external page Risk-taking, scientific revolutions, and economic progress, New discoveries, inventions, and innovations — ideas — are at the heart of scientific progress and economic growth. But that means a growing economy depends on an accelerating production of new ideas. In this week’s episode of “Political Economy,” I’m joined by Didier Sornette to talk about where these ideas come from, why they’ve been in decline, and what we can do to foster greater scientific knowledge and a growing economy. Didier is Professor on the Chair of Entrepreneurial Risks in the Department of Management, Technology, and Economics at ETH Zurich. In 2020, he and Peter Cauwels authored “Are ‘Flow of Ideas’ and ‘Research Productivity’ in secular decline?“ 

in the Belgian Financial Newspaper "De Tijd", external page We need a new bubble in green energy, Soap bubbles are far from always bad. The "social bubble" in green technology that burst in 2008 laid the groundwork for the renewable energy revolution today. So concludes Professor Didier Sornette in a new paper. Whether bitcoin is an equally useful bubble remains to be seen, Kris Van Hamme,  May 15, 2021

in CGTN China, external page China swiftly responding to global pharmaceutical demand, says risk analyst, China has swiftly responded to the global demand for masks and other medical gear during the COVID-19 pandemic. A Swiss risk analyst told CGTN that the world's success will be linked to China's success, as he called for enhanced international cooperation. January 26, 2021

CGTN's Sean Callebs spoke with Didier Sornette, chair of Entrepreneurial Risks at ETH Zurich about the current state of Germany' economy. external page Didier Sornette on Germany's economic crisis

in external page CGTN America
Published on Aug 27, 2019

external page Sharp Decline in US Stock Market: Crash or Opportunity? Didier Sornette Answered Like This... PHBS Peking University HSBC Business School, October 25, 2018

Markets were in a "lottery thinking" mode in the last six months, Didier Sornette in an interview with Amanda Kayne from CNN Money Switzerland, watch external page part 1 and external page part 2 of the interview and on external page youtube (after 35:00 and 2:10:39), February 6, 2018 

Download "Dem Börsenbeben auf der Spur" (PDF, 4.4 MB), Didier Sornette, Interview, Weitwinkel, Ed. Nr. 2, Dezember 2017

external page "Judo fürs Leben". Warum ständiges Lernen so wichtig für den Umgang mit Risiken ist, Didier Sornette, Schweizer Monat, Nr. 1049, Sept. 2017

"There's a Reason People Are Worried about Low Volatility", Bloomberg Markets, August 16, 2017

"external page Weshalb wir wirtschaftliche Blasen brauchen", Download Gastkommentar (PDF, 127 KB) von Tobias Huber und Didier Sornette, NZZ, August 9, 2017

Download "Investment funds would magnify a liquidity crisis - Bank of England (BoE)" (PDF, 355 KB), Didier Sornette, interview, Risk, July 14, 2017

external page Sornette's Supercomputer Is Betting On A Market Crash, Financial Sense Newshour, July 10, 2017

external page "Podcast: Using a Supercomputer to Trade the Market", Didier Sornette, FS Insider, May 23, 2017
Didier Sornette at ETH Zurich provides an update on their monthly Global Bubble Status report where they track and trade tens of thousands of assets (25,000 to be specific!) around the globe exhibiting bubble-like behavior using the Swiss-based Euler supercomputer. Read/hear what he had to say (especially what they see with major US tech stocks like Apple and Amazon) by clicking the external page link. Feel free to share, tweet, or publish as you wish!

Download "The Pound on Brexit Night: The Market's Failure to Predict the Predictable" (PDF, 902 KB), Didier Sornette, Swiss Finance Institute, May 2017,  media coverage in Le Temps, cash, finanzen.ch, Fondstrends, Swiss Fund Data, May 2017, Download link to the articles (PDF, 371 KB)

Download "Märkte sind grundsätzlich instabil" (PDF, 4.3 MB), Didier Sornette, interview, Basler Zeitung, April 7, 2017

Download "Battre monnaie rassure les régions et soutient le commerce local" (PDF, 576 KB), Didier Sornette, interview, Le Matin Dimanche, March 26, 2017

external page MoneyTalk with Melanie, interview with Melanie Collette and external page Didier Sornette, SHR Media, March 24, 2017

"Banken am Abgrund", interview with Didier Sornette, SRF (Swiss TV), 10vor10, July 28, 2016, external page link to the video

"When will the next financial crisis be?", interview with Didier Sornette, Global Derivatives Conference, Budapest, May 10, 2016, external page link to the video 

Download Practical Applications of Financial Disruption: (PDF, 567 KB) an interview with Didier Sornette, external page Institutional Investor Journals, May 2016

Ep. 405: Didier Sornette Interview with Michael Covel on external page Trend Following Summary and audio recording, December 11, 2015 

external page "Der Dax übertreibt es gerade", Didier Sornette, Interview in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, GELD UND MEHR, Seite 33,
March 29, 2015

external page "CENTRAL BANKS ARE DESTABILIZING EUROPE", Didier Sornette, Interview with DAF (Deutsches Anleger Fernsehen), February 4, 2015 

external page "COLUMN-Oil market is trapped in a negative bubble: Kemp", Reuters, November 14, 2014 

external page "Der Krisen-, Blasen und Katastrophendoktor", SonntagsZeitung, November 2, 2014

external page "Even online, you can't have more than 150 friends", Sciencemag news report on our paper: Benedikt Fuchs, Didier Sornette and Stefan Thurner, Fractal multi-level organisation of human groups in a virtual world, Scientific Reports  4, 6526, DOI: 10.1038/srep06526 (2014)
external page (http://arxiv.org/abs/1403.3228)

external page "Money Creation and the Illusion of the Perpetual Money Machine", The Huffington Post, November 3, 2014

external page "Wie die EZB die Wirtschaft gefährdet", The Huffington Post, October 22, 2014

Download "How to Spot a Market Bubble" (PDF, 1.4 MB), The Wall Street Journal, April 18, 2014

external page Best of 2013 of the"Schweizer Monat"
Didier Sornette: external page Viren, Inflation und Nuklearsprengköpfe (Juni 2013/Interview: Florian Rittmeyer und René Scheu) 

external page Interview to the Swiss National Radio and TV
Didier Sornette, December 16, 2013

external page "Are we in an Equity Bubble?"
Radio Interview at OPALESQUE RADIO in the program Radio Feature 87: Sona Blessing in conversation with Prof. Dr. Didier Sornette, November 8, 2013 

external page "Pourrait-on-prevoir-les-catastrophes"
Interview Didier Sornette, Slate, October 20, 2013

external page "Physicists and the financial markets"
Interview Didier Sornette, FT Magazine, October 18, 2013

"Spotting the next crash"
Interview Didier Sornette, Calcalst, Israeli newspaper, October 17, 2013

external page "Die Notenbank pumpen neue Blasen auf" 
Interview Didier Sornette mit Finanz und Wirtschaft, September 19, 2013

external page "Der Physiker und das Monster" - Hoch über dem Zürichsee plant ein französischer Forscher das scheinbar Unmögliche: Er will die Menschheit vor der nächsten Finanzkrise warnen, Interview Didier Sornette mit ZEIT ONLINE (Philip Faigle),  August 9, 2013

external page FX HORIZONS: Move Over Economists; Time to Give Physicists a Turn
by Michael J. Casey, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, July 10, 2013

external page Move over Economists, markets need physicists, 
Commentary: Seeking a new understanding of how economies work, by Michael J.  Casey, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, Market Watch, July 10, 2013

external page Geld drucken allein bringt kein Wachstum
Interview Peter Cauwels, IWF-Chefin Christine Lagarde, IWF-Chefökonom Olivier Blanchard mit Maren Peters, Radio SRF "Echo der Zeit",  "Steiniger Weg bis zur Erholung der Weltwirtschaft", April 16, 2013

external page Die Geldpolitik schafft keinen realen Wohlstand
Peter Cauwels, Didier Sornette, Studie: The Illusion of the Perpetual Money Machine, NZZ, February 6, 2013

external page Interview to the Swiss Radio RTS on FutureICT
Didier Sornette, October 7, 2012

Orakel für Erdbeben und Finanzkrisen
Didier Sornette, Luxemburger Wort, Wirtschaft & Finanzen, August 12, 2012

Van Farmville Naar Peak Oil
Peter Cauwels, De TIJD, August 22, 2012

Download Endowment Funds: Nachholbedarf an den Schweizer Hochschulen (PDF, 1.8 MB)
Didier Sornette, SWISSQUOTE, Mai 2012

Download Appel des dirigeants à la prise de risque (PDF, 68 KB)
Didier Sornette, Symposium de Saint-Gall, LE TEMPS, May 7, 2012

How to Predict Risks
ZURICH MINDS INTERVIEW, December 2011
external page link to the video
external page link on youtube

external page Beware the Long Tail
Economic models of risk don't add up, cadre of researchers caution,
by Rachel Ehrenberg, Science News, Vol.180 #10, p.22, November 5, 2011

Projekt Wisdom
TV & Online program on NHKJ, Japan Broadcasting Corporation, organized by Ms. Ai Kuroyanagi, Director
Question: Trust in the US economy is wavering, as US government bonds were downgraded for the first time in history. The US economy led the world. Will it be able to recover?
Answer: external page http://www.nhk.or.jp/wisdom/110924/timeline_en/q1/

Financial Bubbles, Interview with Didier Sornette, "Corriere della Sera", May 3, 2011

Download The Granddaddy of All Bubbles? (PDF, 64 KB) Worlds markets are frothing like shaken, and doomsayers argue that today's bubbles need to be deflated now before they get dangerously large. Bloomberg Businessweek, April 14, 2011

Download Wir sehen zurzeit viele Blasen (PDF, 3.3 MB). Lassen sich Finanzblasen voraussagen? 
Interview "schweizer monat", April 2011

Comparing the Christchurch Earthquake and the Tohoku Earthquake: lessons learned and future earthquake risks. Contribution to the Tohoku Earthquake Webcast on April 1, 2011 at 11:00 AM (EDT) for a TigerEyeQ webcast as a discussion is hosted with renowned industry experts to provide an informed perspective from scientific, economic, modeling company, and rating agency viewpoints. Discussion topics include: What is the economic impact to the world and insurance industry? Are we dealing with increased seismicity? Was this a Black Swan Event?
external page http://www.tigerrisk.com/tigereyeq

Zürcher Studierendenzeitung: Ferraries mit alten Motoren - Wer die Welt erklären möchte, braucht interdisziplinäre Modelle, findet Didier Sornette Download "Die Lösungen kennen wir bereits" (PDF, 2.7 MB), March 25, 2011

Forschung Aktuell - Deutschlandfunk: external page "Börsencrash mit Ansage"  mit Prof. Didier Sornette, March 22, 2011

The blogs external page Climate Progress and external page Watts Up With That discuss our paperEvidence for super-exponentially accelerating atmospheric carbon dioxide growth (external page http://arxiv.org/abs/1101.2832), March 17, 2011

Radio Interview at external page RSR in the program IMPATIENCE, December 27, 2010

external page "Didier Sornette, Théoricien des catastrophes et des transitions"
Pendant les fêtes, Impatience rencontre des passionautes de la galaxie des sciences. Auhours'hui, Adrien Zerbini rencontre Didier Sornette, professeur à l'Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Zürich. D'abord physicien, il se passionne ensuite pour les sciences de la terre et la risque entrepreneurial. Le point commun entre ces disciplines - au demeurant tout à fait différentes - est un phénomène qui le passionne: la théorie des catastrophes et des transitions. Il existe en effet des points communs entre une crise d'épilepsie, un tremgblement de terre et un crash financer. C'est finalement ce qui le rend particulièrement pertinent lorsqu'il explique que nous vivons actuellement un "pli" de l'aventure humaine: entre aujourd'hui et 2050, le monde va changer.
Un portrait préparé par Adrien Zerbini.

external page Le chasseur de bulles, by Stephane Wuille, L'Echo, November 4, 2010

Download Le Richter Scale for Markets (PDF, 368 KB), by Eric Dash, Week in Review, The New York Times, July 31, 2010

Download Im Wunderland - Wir haben eine kognitive Grenze überschritten (PDF, 214 KB), von Rolf Dobelli, NZZ Neue Zürcher Zeitung, June 23, 2010

Media coverage of the Financial Bubble Experiment.  Download The unpopular prophet of financial markets (PDF, 354 KB), Handelsblatt interview with Didier Sornette (in German),  April 24, 2010.

The Professor Who Chases Financial Bubbles, PROFILE of Prof. Didier Sornette in Wall Street Journal, March 13, 2010

Download Es gibt zwangsläufig neue Blasen (PDF, 129 KB), Coverstory in €URO am Sonntag, February 6, 2010

external page Es gibt zwangsläufig neue Blasen, Interview mit Didier Sornette, wallstreet online, February 4, 2010

Download Auf der Suche nach der Blase (PDF, 231 KB), FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG, January 18, 2010   

Crise : Acte 2 : Dubaï ?  Radiointerview, December 5, 2009
On a eu chaud !
Quoi qu’il ne faille pas crier victoire. Parce que les similitudes sont grandes entre la chute de Lehman Brothers en septembre 2008 et la défaillance de Dubaï en novembre 2009. Heureusement que les bourses étaient fermées aux Etats-Unis et à Dubaï ce qui a permis la réflexion et quelques mesures conservatoires. Mais tout de même. … dans les deux cas on observe que les endettements sont énormes, que l’argent était emprunté à court terme et qu’il avait servi à financer de l’immobilier à long terme et peu liquide. 
Et dans les deux cas, personne n’imaginait que la solidarité pourrait faire défaut, qu’il s’agisse des banques ou du puissant voisin. … Et les bulles ont éclaté.
Et l’on nous dit qu’il y en aura d’autres, prochainement.
Avec quelles conséquences ? Même si elles étaient lointaines et purement financières, ces opérateurs ont pour la plupart investi dans nos entreprises qui se sentent fragilisées… Le principe est connu depuis la crise de 29… sauf que de plus en plus, la planète est un mouchoir de poche. 
Alors…  (l'entrevue entière)

Die nächste Finanzblase kommt bestimmt. Noch ist die aktuelle Wirtschaftskrise nicht ausgestanden, doch etwas steht bereits fest: Die nächste Finanzblase kommt bestimmt. Die dringenden Fragen: Wo, wie, wann könnte Sie entstehen? Forscher beschäftigen sich intensiv mit diesen Fragen. Einer der innovativsten ist ETH-Professor Didier Sornette. external page Radio Interview, December 21, 2009
Download Ich will spielen (PDF, 487 KB), DIE ZEIT - Schweizer Split, November 5, 2009

external page Physicists successfully predict stock exchange plunge, New Scientist, August 28, 2009

external page Linux Evolution Reveals Origins of Curious Mathematical Phenomenon, Physorg.com, December 1, 2008

The system is at the Tipping Point, TELEPOLIS, October 16, 2008
Seeoriginal articlein German

Interview with Le Temps, Dossier Special, September 23, 2008

external page Forecasting the future, Interview with CommentVision, a section of Euronews, September 2008.

Why economic theory is out of whack, New Scientist, 19 July 2008

external page Are We in the Peak of an Oil Bubble?, by Lysa Zyga, July 7, 2008

Download Comment: Are economic bubbles so bad? (PDF, 287 KB)
Sumit Paul-Choudhury, from New Scientist Print Edition, June 21, 2008
Download Maybe Economic Bubbles Aren't So Bad After All (PDF, 152 KB)
Posted by Eric Ames, June 25, 2008

Download Rising cost of oil due to Speculation (PDF, 113 KB)
Jon Cartwright, Physicsworld, June 24, 2008

external page Epilepsy and Earthquakes, knackeredhack, June 16, 2008

Download Swiss Banks rethink their ways after massive subprime losses (PDF, 10 KB), by Hui Min Neo (Agence France Press), Geneva, April 25, 2008

Download Brain quakes (PDF, 93 KB), by Mike Martin, The Scientist, Vol 22, Issue 5, page 23, July 5, 2008

Download Brain 'seismology' helps predict epileptic attacks (PDF, 103 KB), NewScientist, January 12, 2008

Download Epileptic fits, earthquakes are found to share patterns (PDF, 72 KB), The Wall Street Journal, January 10, 2008

Download Uncovering the dynamics of bubbles, (PDF, 99 KB) The Financial Times, FTfm-FUND MANAGEMENT, November 19, 2007

Download Didier Sornette modélise l'irrationalité des bulles (PDF, 1.3 MB) , page 14, MARCHES & FINANCE, La Tribune, August 27, 2008

Download Discover Dialogue: Geophysicist Dider Sornette, The Dauphin of Disasters, 'Is the United States economy sustainable? I don't believe it is. (PDF, 315 KB)' By Jocelyn Selim, DISCOVER Vol. 26 No. 12, December 2005, Technology

Download Learning from the master of complexity (PDF, 212 KB), Interview Didier Sornette, Physics World, pp.8-9, July Issue, 2003