Tag "neuroscience"

A team of scientists, including researchers from HSE University, has proposed a method for assessing stress resilience using physiological markers derived from wearable devices and saliva samples. The participants who adapted better to stress showed higher heart rate variability, higher zinc concentrations in saliva, and lower potassium levels.  The findings were published in the Journal of Molecular Neuroscience.

Researchers from the HSE Center for Language and Brain and the Mental Health Research Centre have proposed a new method of linguistic analysis that enables the distinction between normal and pathological ageing. Using this approach, they showed that patterns in patients’ word choices during verbal fluency tests allow clinicians to more accurately differentiate clinically significant impairments from subjective memory complaints. Incorporating this type of analysis into clinical practice could improve the accuracy of early dementia diagnosis. The results have been published in Applied Neuropsychology: Adult.

Valeria Vinogradova, a researcher at HSE University, together with British colleagues, studied how language proficiency affects cognitive processing in deaf adults. The study showed that higher language proficiency—regardless of whether the language is signed or spoken—is associated with higher activity and stronger functional connectivity within the brain network responsible for cognitive task performance. The findings have been published in Cerebral Cortex.

Researchers at the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience have investigated how 'sugar-free' labelling affects consumers’ willingness to pay for such products. It was found that the label has little impact on the products’ appeal due to a trade-off between sweetness and healthiness: on the one hand, the label can deter consumers by implying an inferior taste, while on the other, it signals potential health benefits. The study findings have been published in Frontiers in Nutrition.

Our perception of time depends on heart rate—this is the conclusion reached by neuroscientists at HSE University. In their experiment, volunteers watched short videos designed to evoke specific emotions and estimated each video's duration, while researchers recorded their heart activity using ECG. The study found that the slower a participant's heart rate, the shorter they perceived the video to be—especially when watching unpleasant content. The study has been published in Frontiers in Psychology.

At the dawn of the 21st century, humans are increasingly becoming not just observers, but active participants in the technological revolution. Among the breakthroughs with the potential to change the lives of millions, brain–computer interfaces (BCIs)—systems that connect the brain to external devices—hold a special place. These technologies were the focal point of the spring International School ‘A New Generation of Neurointerfaces,’ which took place at HSE University.