News

Researchers from HSE University, Skoltech and the University of Toronto analyzed data from 190 fMRI studies and found out that food, sex and money implicate similar brain regions whereas different types of reward favor the left and right hemispheres differently. The paper is to be published in Brain Imaging and Behavior. 

More than 500 large families in three Russian federal districts were surveyed to explore reasons why couples choose to have many children. Five main patterns were identified, driven by values (partner trust and religious beliefs), socioeconomic circumstances (income and education), and availability of support from extended family and friends.

Neurolinguists from HSE University have confirmed experimentally that for people with aphasia, it is easier to retrieve verbs describing situations with several participants (such as ‘someone is doing something’), although such verbs give rise to more grammar difficulties. The results of the study have been published in Aphasiology.

This prize is annually awarded to doctoral students, researchers and professionals from Moscow-based institutions, as well as people with Candidate or Doctor of Sciences degrees. Researchers from HSE University won competition for the third year in a row and will be recognized at ceremony slated to take place on February 7 at the Kremlin Palace.

Only a few Russian companies regularly introduce innovation in products and services. The reason why many others fail to do so may have something to do with how they treat their employees’ innovative ideas, according to HSE sociologists.

In 2017, 30% of Russian families with children under three and almost 20% of families with children under 18 were living below the poverty line. Incidentally, financial hardships experienced during childhood do not leave one unaffected. A study by an HSE psychologist shows that poverty experienced in childhood reduces self-esteem and self-assurance even in adults who later achieve financial success.

Michele Minardi, from Italy, holds a PhD in Archaeology from Sydney University and has spent a number of years in investigating Karakalpakstan in Uzbekistan. He has recently joined the team of Centre of Classical and Oriental Archaeology of the Institute for Oriental and Classical Studies as a Research Fellow. We spoke with Michele about his projects, teaching methods and expedition plans.

Psychology researchers from HSE University have trialed the reliability of a student engagement scale on 537 Russian primary school students. The findings indicated that the emotional component contributes the most to school engagement. The paper has been published in PLOS ONE journal.

At the close of 2019, HSE University once again ranked first among Russian organizations in the RePEc/IDEAS (Research Papers in Economics) world ranking and advanced to a record-breaking 129^th place. The ranking evaluates economic, academic, and research institutions based on their publication activity in economics.

The Shemyakin and Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry  (IBCH RAS) is one of the institutes of the Russian Academy of Science involved in the development of new faculties at the HSE University. It is also where first-year biology students come for hands-on training in research laboratories, and, in some cases, internships. HSE News Service visited the Institute to speak with first-year students at a zoology workshop.