Research & Expertise News at HSE University

Eduard Tunkevichus enjoys working with data and learning new things, particularly innovative research and analysis methods. In this interview with the HSE Young Scientists project, he discusses the insights he gained while writing his dissertation, the difference between applied and academic research in marketing, and how AI helped him salvage his mandarin houseplant.

On July 10–11, 2025, Moscow hosted the 10th Hope for Technology National Forum of the Rehabilitation Industry and Universal Design. The event was aimed at discussing innovative achievements in the rehabilitation industry. The MIEM Student Design Bureau and the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience presented a smart orthosis, which was developed at the request of orthopedists.

Researchers from the AI and Digital Science Institute, HSE Faculty of Computer Science, have proposed a new approach based on advanced machine learning techniques to determine a person’s genetic origin with high accuracy. This method uses graph neural networks, which make it possible to distinguish even very closely related populations.

Researchers from the HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences have examined the key factors behind lasting marriages. The findings show that having children is the primary factor contributing to marital stability, while for couples without children, a greater income gap between spouses is associated with a stronger union. This is the conclusion reported in Applied Econometrics.

The BRICS Expert Council–Russia, based at HSE University and operating in collaboration with the HSE Institute of Education, has released an analytical report titled ‘The Transformation of General Education in BRICS Countries.’ The study explores how BRICS nations are addressing shared challenges, including equitable access to schooling, digital integration, support for inclusion, linguistic diversity, and intercultural dialogue.

Researchers from HSE University and the Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences analysed three major Russian cities to assess their alignment with the '15-minute city' concept—an urban design that ensures residents can easily access essential services and facilities within walking distance. Naberezhnye Chelny, where most residents live in Soviet-era microdistricts, demonstrated the highest levels of accessibility. In Krasnodar, fewer than half of residents can easily reach essential facilities on foot, and in Saratov, just over a third can. The article has been published in Regional Research of Russia.

Virtual knives, custom-painted machine guns, and gloves are common collectible items in videogames. A new study by scientists from HSE University suggests that digital skins from the popular video game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) rank among the most profitable types of alternative investments, with average annual returns exceeding 40%. The study has been published in the Social Science Research Network (SSRN), a free-access online repository.

In July, a team from the HSE Centre for Language and Brain, in collaboration with the Centre for the Study, Preservation, and Development of Native Languages of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), conducted the first-ever neurolinguistic expedition to the village of Churapcha to study reading in the Yakut language using electroencephalography (EEG). For the first time, EEG data from 43 adults and behavioural data from 40 children was collected during the two-week expedition.