Research & Expertise

In their paper published in Science in 2021, a DeepMind team showed how neural networks can be used to describe electron interactions in chemical systems more accurately than existing methods. A team of researchers from Skoltech, the Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry, HSE University, Yandex, and Kyungpook National University show in their comment in Science that DeepMind AI’s ability to generalise the behaviour of such systems does not follow from the published results and requires revisiting, the Skoltech website says.

World Brain Day is observed on July 22 every year. The HSE News Service asked researchers of the HSE Centre for Cognition and Decision Making about the impact of neurological conditions on mental health, using cervical dystonia (CD) as an example. Ainur Ragimova, Research Fellow of the Centre, discusses current studies into cervical dystonia at HSE University and worldwide and explains how patients' quality of life can be improved by proper treatment.

The SNAD team, an international network of researchers including Matvey Kornilov, Associate Professor of the HSE University Faculty of Physics, has discovered 11 previously undetected space anomalies, seven of which are supernova candidates. The researchers analysed digital images of the Northern sky taken in 2018 using a k-D tree to detect anomalies through the ‘nearest neighbour’ method. Machine learning algorithms helped automate the search. The paper is published in New Astronomy.

Researchers of the HSE International Laboratory of Statistical and Computational Genomics together with their international colleagues have proposed a new statistical method for analysing population admixture that makes it possible to determine the time and number of migration waves more accurately. The history of Colombians and Mexicans (descendants of Native Americans, Spaniards and Africans) features two episodes of admixture that occurred about 350 and 200 years ago for Mexicans and 400 and 100 years ago for Colombians. The results were published in the Plos Genetics journal.

Researchers from HSE University and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology compared the performance of eSport gamers of different weight categories. Despite the fact that this study looks at computer games, it touches on the broader issue of including obese individuals in modern work activities that are often associated with computer technology.

Exploring the predictive properties of neuronal metabolism can contribute to our understanding of how humans learn and remember. This key finding from a consideration of molecular mechanisms of learning and memory conducted by scientists from Russia and the U.S. has been published in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews. 

A group of HSE University researchers (Sofya Nartova-Bochaver, Sofya Reznichenko, Milana Hachaturova and Victoria Erofeeva) and their international colleagues validated the Short Home Attachment Scale (SHAS), a useful tool in cross-cultural research. The SHAS makes it possible to study the level of home attachment in different countries and its influence on individuals’ well-being.

Russia’s relations with Ibero-America go back more than five centuries and include more than 200 years of permanent diplomatic relations. The need to build a multipolar world and expand cooperation between Russia and the countries of Latin America—including in the field of science and education—was discussed at the Third International Ibero-America and Russia: Diplomacy and Diplomats Conference held at HSE University.

The XXIII Yasin (April) International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development has come to a close at HSE University. In 2022, more than 3,000 participants took part in the event, including 250 registered foreign representatives—almost 10% more than last year.

The Arctic is not only a strategic outpost in geopolitical affairs, but also a region with difficult living conditions. At the same time, global warming causes melting of glaciers and permafrost, changes in terrain, environmental pollution and negatively affects the living conditions of indigenous peoples. These and other topics were discussed at the session ‘Problems of Arctic Development’ at the XXIII Yasin (April) International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development.