Neural Prosthesis Uses Brain Activity to Decode Speech
Researchers from HSE University and the Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry have developed a machine learning model that can predict the word about to be uttered by a subject based on their neural activity recorded with a small set of minimally invasive electrodes. The paper 'Speech decoding from a small set of spatially segregated minimally invasive intracranial EEG electrodes with a compact and interpretable neural network' has been published in the Journal of Neural Engineering. The research was financed by a grant from the Russian Government as part of the 'Science and Universities' National Project.
COVID-19 Mortality Highest in More Affluent Russian Regions
COVID-19 came as an unexpected challenge for humanity. Countries adopted different, sometimes diametrically opposed approaches to minimising the pandemic's impact: from hard lockdowns to no restrictions at all, as in Sweden. It was only last week that China began to relax its zero-tolerance policy. Researchers of the HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences have identified a few factors which tend to have the greatest impact on the spread of COVID-19—in Russia, such factors include ambient humidity and temperatures, population mobility, the share of internal migrants in the local population, and household incomes. The study findings are published in Population and Economics.
Electric Cars in Russia: Drivers of Development and Prospects for Implementation
The HSE Project and Academic Laboratory for Economic Journalism, the Digital Media and Promotion Office and the HSE Public Relations Office present the second issue of the information and analytical digest titled Russian Economy: Aspects of Global Transformation Shift (available in Russian). It focuses on the development of electric vehicles in Russia, including various aspects and key players of the industry.
Corpus Callosum Found to Switch Off Right Hemisphere During Speech
A study by the HSE Centre for Language and Brain has confirmed the role of the corpus callosum in language lateralisation, ie the distribution of language processing functions between the brain's hemispheres. The authors came up with an innovative language task for their study subjects and applied advanced neuroimaging methods to the data collected. A paper on their findings has been published in PLoS ONE. The research was financed by a grant from the Russian government as part of the 'Science and Universities' National Project.
HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences Co-Authors Intercontinental Monograph
The monograph Russian and Western Economic Thought has been published under the editorship of the HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences and the University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart (Germany). Written by a selection of respected experts, the monograph examines the interrelations and mutual influence of Russian and Western economic thinking. The book is edited by Prof. Vladimir Avtonomov, HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences, and Prof. Harald Hagemann, the University of Hohenheim.
Ketamine Found to Increase Brain Noise
An international team of researchers including Sofya Kulikova, Senior Research Fellow at the HSE University-Perm, found that ketamine, being an NMDA receptor inhibitor, increases the brain's background noise, causing higher entropy of incoming sensory signals and disrupting their transmission between the thalamus and the cortex. This finding may contribute to a better understanding of the causes of psychosis in schizophrenia. An article with the study’s findings has been published in the European Journal of Neuroscience.
Fluoride Additive to Boost Production of Sedatives
Russian researchers from HSE University and the Russian Academy of Sciences Nesmeyanov Institute of Organoelement Compounds have come up with a new method of enhancing the chemical reaction involved in producing gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) analogues used in sedative drugs. Adding fluoride to the catalyst more than doubled the yield of the pure product and increased the total reaction yield by 2.5 times. This approach is expected to make the production of certain drug components more efficient and less costly. The study has been published in the Journal of Organic Chemistry.
Machine Learning Algorithm to Reduce Tester Workload
Researchers from HSE University and the Russian Technological University (RTU MIREA) have developed an intelligent system to automate software testing on a variety of platforms. Its computer vision feature is capable of recognising elements in a graphical user interface even after a redesign. The details are published in the Journal of the Siberian Federal University.
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Job-Education Mismatch Reduces Earnings of Russians by up to 14%
About a third of Russians with higher education do not work in the field that they studied, with this indicator being highest in agriculture and service. Researchers from the HSE Laboratory for Labour Market Studies, together with their colleagues from Portugal, have found out that this job-education mismatch results in a salary reduction of between 7 and 14%. The study was published in the Journal of Education and Work.
Cliometrics: 20th-century Revolutions Came in Waves
Having studied the 20th century revolutionary processes, Andrey Korotayev (HSE), Leonid Grinin (HSE) and Anton Grinin (MSU) have put together an extensive evidence base, proposed a new typology of revolutions and revolutionary waves, and introduced the concept of 'analogues of revolutions'. Their study '20th Century Revolutions: Characteristics, Types, and Waves' is the follow-up to an earlier paper published in Russian. The new findings are presented in Humanities & Social Sciences Communications.