Silvio interviews Cornelius

Silvio Bonaccio: Let’s start off with the big question: Cornelius, who are you?

Cornelius Senn: I’ve asked myself that question lots of times. At the end of the day we’re all interconnected and I’m just a small cog in a big wheel.

Silvio: In an institution as large as ETH Zurich, it’s the small cogs that are so important and make up the organisation as a whole. How did you end up at ETH Zurich?

Cornelius: I trained as a construction fitter. In 1985 I joined VAW – the Laboratory of Hydraulics, Hydrology and Glaciology at ETH Zurich. Four years later I had a serious motorbike accident that called everything into question. I survived, but my right arm was paralysed and I was thrown into crisis. I had to ask myself: “Who am I and what do I want?” My job wasn’t challenging me enough, and I came to the conclusion that I wanted to do something that had more to do with people.

Silvio: What was the next step?

Cornelius: I studied electrical engineering. In 1996 I moved from VAW to D-BAUG with the aim of bringing technology and people closer together. It shouldn’t be a case of people adapting to technology – technology should adapt to them.

Silvio: You’re still working in D-BAUG workshops today, producing custom made equipment for researchers. What do you love about your job?

Cornelius: I always get a thrill getting to understand where researchers are in terms of their work and helping them find a solution. When I was at VAW I developed a system that was used to measure glacier ice thickness. I was able to carry on with these projects at D-BAUG and I accompanied the glaciologists on three expeditions to Greenland, where our measuring systems were embedded up to 1,000 metres deep in the ice.

Silvio: We shared a stage in 2018 when one of your developments was nominated for the Spark Award. This award is presented each year to the most promising invention developed at ETH over the last 12 months. I was delighted that you were nominated despite not working in research.

Cornelius: I was surprised but very happy to be nominated. And it gave me the opportunity to keep developing the reflectors.

Silvio: What exactly was it that you developed?

Cornelius: It’s a simple mechanism that makes it possible to connect panels together quickly without the need for screws or other parts – which is useful in the case of reflectors, for example. The Federal Office for the Environment is considering using my reflectors for the early detection of natural hazards. I would be very pleased about that – otherwise our work can be so fleeting and short-lived.

Silvio: Do you have any tips for other ETH members who are developing something?

Cornelius: It’s like anything else in life: if you have a vision, never give up hope. Developing something is always a journey with lots of little steps. And often it’s the failures that really help you move forward.

Silvio: Speaking of wild ideas: more and more countries are talking about sending people to Mars. Would you be tempted?

Cornelius: No. Back when I was a child, people were talking about colonising the Moon. My feeling is that we should be taking better care of our Earth so we can keep living here rather than looking for new habitats.

Silvio: What do you do in your free time?

Cornelius: I enjoy reading and photography, spending time with my family and making sculptures out of steel. It allows me to visualise and process things. The first sculpture I made was a wedding gift for my daughter. And I cook too.

Silvio: For guests or for yourself?

Cornelius: I’m not so keen on cooking for myself. I would often invite people over, buy all the food and then ask “What are you good at making? Salad? OK, you do the salad.” Then it’s a joint effort. At the end of the day, it’s about spending time together.

Silvio: You will be retiring in just under a year. Have you started making plans for your retirement?

Cornelius: No. I’ll take it as it comes. I’m not in retirement mode yet; there’s still so much I want to get done. And I have a new project coming up too … maybe I could show it to you at some point?

Silvio: That would be great! And hopefully we’ll see you up on that stage again.

Cornelius Senn (64) is an Electrical engineer at D-BAUG and has been at ETH for 38 years. Silvio Bonaccio (58) is the Head of ETH transfer and has been at ETH for 22 years. He is currently on sabbatical in the USA.