Tag "neuroscience"

Cognitive dissonance is a complex and multifaceted psychological phenomenon that arises in challenging decision-making scenarios. Multiple regions of the brain participate in its occurrence, yet the neurodynamics of underlying cognitive mechanisms remain a subject of debate. Researchers from the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience have proposed the use of online transcranial magnetic stimulation applied to participants as they were actively engaged in tasks, to pinpoint the moment of cognitive dissonance resolution. Their findings have been published in a review paper in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.

New methods of brain mapping will make it easier to identify the cortex areas responsible for speech functions and to perform operations on the brain, as well as reduce the likelihood of damage to important areas. In addition, this will allow for more frequent use of non-invasive methods for restoring speech and other functions lost due to injuries and illnesses.

Researchers at HSE University and the Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of Molecular Biology have proposed investigating the response of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), the brain's natural filter that becomes disrupted by the disease, to transcranial brain stimulation. Understanding how the BBB changes during stimulation can, in theory, enhance treatment by facilitating more effective delivery of medications to the brain in the early stages of the disease, and by providing therapeutic support for brain function in the latter stages. The study has been published in Communications Biology.

Neuroscientists from HSE University have criticized the famous studies that question the free will of our decisions. You can’t shift responsibility for your actions to the brain. The results of the new work were published in the Neuropsychologia journal.

HSE News Service spoke to Director of the Institute of Cognitive Neurosciences, Head of the Centre for Cognition and Decision Making at HSE University, Anna Shestakova about the achievements and goals of the new HSE University’s strategic project ‘Human Brain Resilience: Neurocognitive Technologies for Adaptation, Learning, Development, and Rehabilitation in a Changing Environment’.

HSE researchers have examined the brain's reaction to violations of social norms and calculated a behavioural index to assess an individual's sensitivity to unfairness. This index can potentially be used to develop individualised rehabilitation programmes for patients with various types of behavioural disorders. The study has been published in Neuroscience Letters.

The Ideas Centre for Advanced Interdisciplinary Research has announced the results of its 2023 competition. Five leading neuroscientists will receive grants to open graduate positions for early-career researchers who want to work on solutions to fundamental problems in this area. Three of the competition winners are scientists from HSE University: Matteo Feurra (HSE University in Moscow), Anastasia Kolmogorova (HSE University in St Petersburg), and Sofia Kulikova (HSE University in Perm).

A positive correlation has been discovered between the neural activity in the nucleus accumbens of study participants as they were presented with photographs of dishes from the menu of the Chaihona No. 1 restaurant chain and the sales performance of said dishes in the chain's establishments. This finding was made by a team of researchers of the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, Lomonosov Moscow State University, and ETH Zurich (Switzerland). The study findings have been published in PLoS One.

HSE scientists have discovered an association between individuals’ brain activity and the sales performance of a restaurant chain. A new neuroimaging study revealed a correlation between dopaminergic activity in the nucleus accumbens of participants as they were exposed to photos of dishes and the sales performance of said dishes. According to the researchers, examining the neural activity of a small group of individuals can aid restaurants in crafting more impactful menus and boosting their revenues. The paper has been published in Plos One.

People who are fluent in two or more languages are less susceptible to age-related mental disorders. They more quickly process information and make decisions, have better memories, and can even better identify emotions. Scientists from various countries discussed the influence of a second language on the processes of cognitive aging at the international symposium ‘Bilingualism: Proper Learning, Effective Communication, and Pleasant Old Age’ hosted by HSE University.