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'I Dream That All Universities in Russia Provide the Same Conditions for Scientists as HSE University'

Anastasia Sherubneva

Holds a bachelor's in Business Informatics from Novosibirsk State University and a master's in Economics and Economic Policy from HSE University. Doctoral student and Research Assistant at the Laboratory for Spatial Econometric Modelling of Socio-Economic Processes in Russia, HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences.

Anastasia Sherubneva's research focuses on spatial economics, and she is currently writing a dissertation on the crises of 2020 and 2022. In this interview with the HSE Young Scientists project, she discusses the impact of agglomeration effects on enterprises, her home neighbourhood of Akademgorodok in Novosibirsk, and her experience meeting Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman in Portugal.

How I Started in Science

After finishing school, I enrolled at Novosibirsk State University (NSU) to pursue a degree in Business Informatics, which combines the study of economics with programming. My favourite course during my first year was Microeconomics. Elizaveta Gayvoronskaya conducted the seminars for this course. Her explanations were captivating and inspired me to pursue economic research. 

From my first year, I began considering how I could apply what I learned in lectures and seminars, as well as what I wanted to do after graduation. I began planning for a career in academia.

NSU is located in Akademgorodok that is home to several dozen scientific institutes. In my third year, I was invited to join the Territorial Systems Department at the Institute of Economics and Industrial Engineering of the Russian Academy of Sciences Siberian Branch. I began studying regional economics under the guidance of Professor Evgeniya Kolomak, while my programming skills allowed me to work with real data.

After working there for two years, I enrolled in the combined Master's-PhD track at HSE University. Professor Olga Demidova became my academic supervisor. Her field is spatial econometrics, and our research interests align. 

When I was in my second year of master’s studies, Professor Demidova established the Laboratory for Spatial Econometric Modelling of Socio-Economic Processes in Russia. I joined this laboratory, and I am currently a doctoral student, working on my PhD dissertation under Professor Demidova's academic supervision.

Photo: Mikhail Dmitriev / HSE University

The Subject of My Research

My area of research is spatial economics. Broadly speaking, this branch of economics examines how the economic conditions of a subject are influenced by its geographical location. 

In my dissertation, I analyse the impact of macroeconomic shocks on the operations of Russian firms, using the crises of 2020 and 2022 as examples. I am investigating whether the impact of these shocks varied between enterprises located in different areas, both across regions and within the same region, such as between the capital and the periphery.

My Findings

I examined how the financial performance of enterprises is influenced by similar indicators of neighbouring businesses. Let's say there is an enterprise, and its neighbouring business is struggling—either closing or incurring losses. What happens to the first enterprise? It is assumed that enterprises located in close proximity interact with each other. I found that prior to the 2020 crisis, the financial condition of a company had a positive impact on neighbouring businesses. During the crisis, this effect continued but became weaker. The explanation is obvious: offline interactions decreased during the pandemic; a trend that was confirmed by mathematical methods applied to microdata. 

Another interesting finding concerns the impact of agglomeration effects on business operations, depending on their location—whether in the city centre, where there are many other businesses and a high population density, or on the outskirts, where there is little to no activity. 

In general, agglomeration effects in Russia are beneficial to enterprises. However, in major agglomerations such as Moscow, St Petersburg, and Kazan, the impact of agglomeration effects becomes negative. This holds true both during a crisis and when there is no crisis. The effects of big cities, such as traffic congestion, overpriced goods, and other factors, hinder business operations. These results indicate that major Russian agglomerations are significantly overloaded.

Photo: Mikhail Dmitriev / HSE University

What I Take Pride In

In July, I published a paper in Regional Science Policy & Practice, an American journal. The paper, based on my PhD thesis, focuses on enterprises in the regions of Siberia. I examined the impact of various factors, such as location, neighbouring firms, age, specialisation, and others, on firm efficiency.

I recently attended a conference of the European Regional Science Association in Portugal, where I gave a presentation. I mentioned that I had used HSE University's supercomputer in my research.

Photo: Mikhail Dmitriev / HSE University

What Is HSE Supercomputer

A supercomputer is a system of clusters that allows computing processes to be distributed across them. It has an enormous amount of RAM, measured in terabytes, and by parallelising calculations across cores, it is possible to perform complex computations.

Using the HSE supercomputer allowed me to work with enterprise data from across Russia, with a sample of 300,000 enterprises. I used a geographically weighted regression model, which requires calculating the pairwise distances between all enterprises—a process that demands significant computing power. 

My Dreams

I would like to conduct a study on how companies in different industries influence each other geographically. For example, if a cinema and a café are located nearby, they are likely to have a positive influence on each other. Conversely, if a chemical plant and an eco-farm are located near each other, it is clear that their mutual influence will be negative. However, such a study requires specific data that is not yet available.

For me, science is a way to discover something entirely new and share it with others, and to understand how this result correlates with the findings of other studies.

I dream that all universities and scientific institutes in Russia provide the same comfortable conditions for scientists as HSE University does. Speaking of early-career scientists, there is a combined Master's-PhD track available, along with a generous scholarship. HSE University offers academic merit bonuses for publications, with additional incentives for publishing in high-level journals. Scientists here earn decent salaries and are motivated to contribute to the advancement of science.

If I Hadn't Become a Scientist

I would have become a human rights advocate, because justice has always been the highest value for me.

Anastasia Sherubneva and Paul Krugman
Anastasia Sherubneva and Paul Krugman
Photo courtesy of Anastasia Sherubneva

Scientist I Would Like to Meet

If we're talking about living scientists, it would be Paul Krugman, the 2008 Nobel Laureate in Economics. He studies regional economics, so we are in the same field. I like his concept of new economic geography, which is a set of theoretical models which explain the emergence of agglomerations from an economic perspective. I met him at the congress in Portugal this year, and I even have a photo with Paul.

If we're talking about those who are no longer alive, it would be Marie Skłodowska-Curie. She was a great scientist, the first female Nobel laureate, the first person to win two Nobel Prizes, and the only one to win these prizes in different fields of science. 

Photo courtesy of Anastasia Sherubneva

My Interests Besides Science

I enjoy creating memes. It helps me cope with life's stress, as making jokes about things acts as a form of psychotherapy.

Today, I run a Telegram channel called 'Nastya Sherubneva in...,' but I have been posting memes less often recently. My channel is largely about attending conferences and traveling for them. Initially, the channel was intended only for friends, but I realised that others might be interested, so I made it publicly available. Every time I travel to a new place, I modify the name of the channel.

What I Have Been Reading and Watching Lately

The book is Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. As for films, I watched Don't Worry Darling, directed by Olivia Wilde. It tells the story of a married couple living in a small, isolated community. Their life seems perfect—they are wealthy and love each other. But at some point, the wife begins to notice that something is wrong—people keep disappearing, and she eventually discovers that their entire life is a simulation. She is trapped in the simulated world by her husband, who wanted to escape his own unbearable feelings and save her. The film raises the question of whether such a simulation is indeed an escape and whether it's acceptable to pretend everything is fine by living in an imaginary world. Even more so, to be a victim of someone else's decision. I believe that a person should make their own decisions, and I am against lies and restrictions, even for the sake of good.

Advice for Aspiring Scientists

Start writing your own articles as early as possible. Don’t focus exclusively on being a teaching assistant or doing technical work, as it will later become difficult to start writing articles, working with texts, and building literature reviews. Also, try to determine as early as possible which field of science you want to focus on and identify the unresolved problems within that field.

Photo courtesy of Anastasia Sherubneva

My Favourite Place in Moscow

Tsaritsyno Museum-Reserve. It’s a place with a rich history, and I also like it for its park and estate. Akademgorodok, where I used to live, is surrounded by forest, and I miss taking forest walks now that I live in Moscow. And Tsaritsyno is green and a great place for a walk.