145. Volatility – the CBOE Volatility Index, commonly known by its ticker symbol VIX, measures whether investors think the market will fluctuate a little or a lot in the next 30 days.
It does not matter that the direction is up or down, it is just a question of whether it will trade in a moderate range or whether it will greatly fluctuate.
There are exchange traded products (ETPs) that allow you to invest in volatility going up or down.