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VR Yachting, Lectures about Brains, and Souvenirs from Recycled Plastic

Five reasons to visit HSE University’s space at VK Fest

© Daniil Prokofyev/ HSE University

On July 23–24, HSE University will take part in VK Fest, a major open-air festival. Read on to find out why this event can’t be missed and what surprises the university is preparing for visitors.

This year will be the first time that the festival is held simultaneously in three cities in a ‘digital bridge’ format: Moscow (Gorky Park), St Petersburg (Park of the 300th Anniversary of St Petersburg), and Sochi (Sirius).

VK Fest will feature several music stages (mainstream, rap and alternative, indie, and the Radio Record electronic stage), as well as 15 zones devoted to entertainment, education, video games, technology, and more. The event will also feature the participation of popular speakers, bloggers and content makers.

The HSE University ‘Intellectual Space’ tent will be located next to the skate park. Visitors will learn about the technological developments of teachers and students, take part in scientific experiments and IQ battles, listen to lectures from experts and, of course, find out about the educational opportunities offered by the university.

Must-see activities at the VK Fest HSE University Tent

1. Try a VR yachting simulator and chat with Kesha the robot

Have you ever stood at a ship’s wheel and felt the rocking of the sea waves? Improve your keelboat port maneuvering skills with an HSE MIEM game that simulates the real physical processes of water and weather conditions. All the equipment will be provided, including an imitation steering wheel.

Don’t be afraid if Kesha the robot approaches you and asks to play. This intelligent assistant can tell you a lot of interesting things, predict the weather, or just offer a heart-to-heart chat.

Another interesting development worth testing at the festival is MIEM Television. With it, you can try your hand, for example, at reporting directly from Niagara Falls.

We also recommend playing a musical game in VR and learning from representatives of the Faculty of Computer Science about how scientific experiments are carried out with the help of VR.

2. Attend lectures on artificial intelligence and modern neurosciences

At the Lecture Centre, you can learn about an HSE University start-up that uses AI to diagnose diseases, learn about the pitfalls of video game development, and attend lectures about what neurolinguists do and what brain traps our consciousness throws at us.

3. Test your cognitive functions

The HSE Center for Language and Brain invites everyone to evaluate their short-term auditory memory, learning speed, information search and processing, as well as intellectual flexibility and visual-motor skills using special tests. Following the experiment, it will be possible to get advice from a specialist.

4. Make souvenirs out of recycled plastic

The Shukhov Lab invites VK Fest visitors to bring plastic caps to a gamified booth and play the ‘Sustainability Machine’. The collected plastic will become raw material for a mobile recycling center: it will produce hand-injected souvenirs right at the festival that you can take home with you.

5. Win HSE University 30th anniversary merch

And, of course, the university’s participation in the festival wouldn’t be complete without celebrating its 30th anniversary in the 2022/23 academic year. In honor of this event, quizzes will be held at the HSE University tent and festive merch will be given away. Try to survive at VK Fest without modern medicine, prove that you know Russian better than anyone else, and win prizes!

July 20, 2022