Tag "research projects"

Mathematicians from Russia, including two HSE graduates, have disproven a well-known mathematical conjecture that, despite lacking solid proof, had been considered valid for 40 years. The ‘Bunkbed Conjecture’ belongs to percolation theory—a branch of mathematics that studies the formation of connected structures in independent environments.

Life satisfaction is higher among those who engage in diverse leisure activities, researchers from HSE University have found. However, the specific types of activities people engage in are less important. The contribution of individual leisure activities to a sense of well-being accounts for no more than 2% of the variance. Only the diversity of leisure activities is significantly linked to overall life satisfaction and a sense of meaningful time usage. 

Ekaterina Alexandrova, Academic Supervisor of the Egyptology programme at HSE University, has studied the funerary practices of ancient Egyptians based on religious texts and the works of Egyptologists from the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. Traditionally, it was believed that Egyptian religion was built solely on the fear of death. However, an analysis of texts reveals that ancient Egyptian beliefs were not merely reflections of a fear of death, but a complex system aimed at preserving order and stability both in life and the afterlife. The study has been published in the journal Shagi/Steps.

In competitions, esports players, like other athletes, face stress and show worse results due to pressure. A substantial decrease takes place in the performance of esports players during overtime. This effect, however, is significantly mitigated in online competitions compared to live events—the difference can reach 30%. A study by a team of authors from HSE University’s Moscow and Perm campuses and European University Viadrina (Germany) explores the phenomenon of choking under pressure within the context of esports. The study was published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization.

A team of scientists at HSE University, in collaboration with the Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, studied how people respond to deception when under stress and cognitive load. The study revealed that smoking habits interfere with performance on cognitive tasks involving memory and attention and impairs a person’s ability to detect deception. The study findings have been published in Frontiers in Neuroscience.

Following the meeting with participants of the 3rd Young Scientists Congress, Russian President Vladimir Putin assigned the government to include the creation and launch of small spacecraft in a new national project. Universities will also be involved in the project. Dmitrii Abrameshin, Head of the Mission Control Centre at the Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics at HSE University, spoke about the mechanism of small satellites and which satellites have already been launched by HSE University.

HSE University experts have found that 75.3% of male students play competitive online games at least several times a month. Among women, this hobby is much less common: only 20.2% of female students are interested in online games. The HSE News Service covers the results of an expert and analytical report, released by HSE specialists, on the development of student esports in Russian universities.

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.