3 December 2025

1:30 PM – 2:15 PM

Amphi Petit Kursaal

John Dudley

After holding academic posts in Scotland and New Zealand, John Dudley was appointed Professor of Physics at the Université de Franche-Comté in 2000. His research focuses on nonlinear physics and ultrafast optics, with both fundamental and applied fields of interest. Specific areas of research include the development of broadband supercontinuum sources, interdisciplinary studies of instabilities and extreme waves, and the application of artificial intelligence techniques to optics and nonlinear physics. He is also heavily involved in scientific communication worldwide. He has received numerous awards, including the CNRS Silver Medal and the “Science of Light Prize” from the European Physical Society. In 2024 he was appointed to a senior fundamental chair at the Institut Universitaire de France.

How can a simple flap of wings cause chaos?

The butterfly effect illustrates how a seemingly insignificant event can trigger far-reaching, even dramatic consequences. Although firmly rooted in the collective imagination, this metaphor deserves to be better understood. In this presentation, we will trace the history of the chaos theory that gave rise to this idea: from the pioneering work of Henri Poincaré in the 19th century, through Edward Lorenz’s innovative weather simulations in the 1960s, to the emergence of nonlinear dynamics—an interdisciplinary field that is now essential in many branches of science. This will allow us to grasp the heart of chaos: extreme sensitivity to initial conditions. Finally, we will discuss some current research projects on this topic at Marie and Louis Pasteur University.