‘The Human Brain Has Always Fascinated Me’
Alexios Kouzalis, from Cyprus, is a first-year PhD student at the HSE University School of Psychology. We talked with Alexis about his reasons for coming to HSE Moscow, his achievements and his observations on life in the Russian capital.
Alexis Kouzalis
My ties with Russian culture begin way back in time. During the 1970s my father and two of his brothers were granted scholarships to study in Moscow in what was back then the Soviet Union. Tradition is a very important value in Cyprus, so in a way I am following the tradition of my family. I am a member of the Cypriot-Russian Association of Friendship and Cultural Relations and I have a decent knowledge of the Russian language and its culture. All these factors contributed to my choice of Russia as the place for my studies.
I was looking for a Neuroscience programme in Russia and at the time only HSE University was offering such an option
After looking it up, I was delighted to find out that HSE happens to be one of the most reputable universities in Russia. I applied for a scholarship to the Russian Cultural Centre in Nicosia and after my application was accepted, I applied for the Neuroscience programme at HSE. Being accepted was not difficult. What I found more difficult, however, was the bureaucracy involved in both attaining a scholarship and entering Russian Federation as a student.
I have a decent knowledge of the Russian language (speaking, reading, writing) but definitely not at the level necessary to study some difficult scientific terms and write a thesis. This is why I preferred to choose an English course instead of a Russian one.
The Mixture of Subjects
The human brain and the way it functions has been fascinating for me since my early adulthood. I always wanted to know about the inner mechanisms governing our thoughts, feelings and drives. Neuroscience is a mixture of subjects including psychology, biology, computer programming, and many others.
In combination the purpose is to decipher the workings of the mind on a molecular level in order to explain our everyday behavior
Personally, I like teachers who are dealing with their occupation in a relaxed manner because for me knowledge can only be transmitted in a positive way. But again, this is just my personal preference and in the end, it is nothing more than a matter of taste.
Research Projects
I have been working on the issue of functional magnetic resonance imaging signal associated with brain areas. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is all about using a microscope to be able to unravel all the secrets behind what each one of us perceives as his own personal everyday experience.
Our results can be used by researchers who are dedicated to finding effective treatments for a wide range of disturbances of the mind and psyche.
The research is organized perfectly at HSE University. At the moment, I am a collaborator of the NeuropsyLab and my role was to collect, process and analyze data from participants in the study. The head of the lab, Associate Professor Marie Arsalidou, is an individual with exceptional managing skills and I am very fortunate and at the same time grateful to collaborate with her.
Moscow
I am currently living in the HSE dormitory 7. What I like about Moscow is that it is a highly populated city where you can find people from all sorts of ethnicities, cultures, statuses, mindsets, and backgrounds.
I see this as an open door for many opportunities. I have managed to visit most of the popular places in the center of Moscow and some places in the suburbs as well. For the people close to me, who might come to Moscow, I would make sure they would get an experience of the side of Moscow which the big majority have rejected. I believe this is the only place left nowadays where they will be able to find the pearls of the Russian soul.
Admissions to HSE’s Bachelor's and Master’s programmes are now open. International students can apply online. To learn more about HSE University, its admission process, or life in Moscow, please visit International Admissions website, or contact the Education & Training Advisory Centre at: inter@hse.ru, or via WhatsApp at: +7 (916) 311 8521.
Undergraduate applicants can take mock exams online to evaluate their chances of being accepted. Graduate applicants can register for preliminary portfolio assessment.
See also:
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Researchers at the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience have studied how the brain responds to audio deepfakes—realistic fake speech recordings created using AI. The study shows that people tend to trust the current opinion of an authoritative speaker even when new statements contradict the speaker’s previous position. This effect also occurs when the statement conflicts with the listener’s internal attitudes. The research has been published in the journal NeuroImage.
Language Mapping in the Operating Room: HSE Neurolinguists Assist Surgeons in Complex Brain Surgery
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HSE Scientists Use MEG for Precise Language Mapping in the Brain
Scientists at the HSE Centre for Language and Brain have demonstrated a more accurate way to identify the boundaries of language regions in the brain. They used magnetoencephalography (MEG) together with a sentence-completion task, which activates language areas and reveals their functioning in real time. This approach can help clinicians plan surgeries more effectively and improve diagnostic accuracy in cases where fMRI is not the optimal method. The study has been published in the European Journal of Neuroscience.
'As a Child, I Dreamed of Becoming a Detective'
Yadviga Sinyavskaya studies communication technologies, particularly social media. In this interview for the HSE Young Scientists project, she discusses testing the social brain theory on real-world data, the merits of Gogol’s Dead Souls, and ways to prevent burnout.
Researchers Identify Link between Bilingualism and Cognitive Efficiency
An international team of researchers, including scholars from HSE University, has discovered that knowledge of a foreign language can improve memory performance and increase automaticity when solving complex tasks. The higher a person’s language proficiency, the stronger the effect. The results have been published in the journal Brain and Cognition.
‘Engagement in the Scientific Process’: HSE Launches Master’s Programme in Neurobiology
The HSE University Academic Council has elected to launch a new Master's programme in Neurobiology for students majoring in Biology. Students of the programme will have access to unique equipment and research groups, providing them with the knowledge and experience to pursue careers in science, medicine and pharmacy, IT and neurotechnology, and education and HR services.
Scientists Discover That the Brain Responds to Others’ Actions as if They Were Its Own
When we watch someone move their finger, our brain doesn’t remain passive. Research conducted by scientists from HSE University and Lausanne University Hospital shows that observing movement activates the motor cortex as if we were performing the action ourselves—while simultaneously ‘silencing’ unnecessary muscles. The findings were published in Scientific Reports.
Russian Scientists Investigate Age-Related Differences in Brain Damage Volume Following Childhood Stroke
A team of Russian scientists and clinicians, including Sofya Kulikova from HSE University in Perm, compared the extent and characteristics of brain damage in children who experienced a stroke either within the first four weeks of life or before the age of two. The researchers found that the younger the child, the more extensive the brain damage—particularly in the frontal and parietal lobes, which are responsible for movement, language, and thinking. The study, published in Neuroscience and Behavioral Physiology, provides insights into how age can influence the nature and extent of brain lesions and lays the groundwork for developing personalised rehabilitation programmes for children who experience a stroke early in life.
Scientists Uncover Why Consumers Are Reluctant to Pay for Sugar-Free Products
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.
Internal Clock: How Heart Rate and Emotions Shape Our Perception of Time
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.