Драгой Ольга Викторовна (original) (raw)

Olga Dragoy

Education and Degrees

2020

Doctor of Sciences*
HSE University

2007

Candidate of Sciences* (PhD) in Language Theory
Lomonosov Moscow State University
Thesis Title: Relative clause syntactic ambiguity resolution in Russian

2007

Master's in Clinical Linguistics
Universität Potsdam, human sciences

2006

Doctoral programme in Theory of Language
Lomonosov Moscow State University, philology

2003

Degree in Theoretical and Applied Linguistics
Lomonosov Moscow State University

2003

Degree
Lomonosov Moscow State University

* Candidate of Sciences
According to the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) 2011, Candidate of Sciences belongs to ISCED level 8 - "doctoral or equivalent", together with PhD, DPhil, D.Lit, D.Sc, LL.D, Doctorate or similar. Candidate of Sciences allows its holders to reach the level of the Associate Professor.

* Doctor of Sciences
A post-doctoral degree called Doctor of Sciences is given to reflect second advanced research qualifications or higher doctorates in ISCED 2011.

Professional Interests

Responsibilities

Administration and scientific supervision of the Center

Language Mapping in the Operating Room: HSE Neurolinguists Assist Surgeons in Complex Brain Surgery

Researchers from the HSE Center for Language and Brain took part in brain surgery on a patient who had been seriously wounded in the SMO. A shell fragment approximately five centimetres long entered through the eye socket, penetrated the cranial cavity, and became lodged in the brain, piercing the temporal lobe responsible for language. Surgeons at the Burdenko Main Military Clinical Hospital removed the foreign object while the patient remained conscious. During the operation, neurolinguists conducted language tests to ensure that language function was preserved.

Mistakes That Explain Everything: Scientists Discuss the Future of Psycholinguistics

Today, global linguistics is undergoing a ‘multilingual revolution.’ The era of English-language dominance in the cognitive sciences is drawing to a close as researchers increasingly turn their attention to the diversity of world languages. Moreover, multilingualism is shifting from an exotic phenomenon to the norm—a change that is transforming our understanding of human cognitive abilities. The future of experimental linguistics was the focus of a recent discussion at HSE University.

First Caucasus School on Experimental Research and Cognitive Sciences Takes Places in Adygea

On September 17–20, 2025, the First Caucasus School on Experimental Research and Cognitive Sciences took place at the Gornaya Legenda venue of Adyghe State University (ASU). The event was organised by the ASU Experimental Linguistics Laboratory, the HSE Centre for Language and Brain, and the HSE Centre for Sociocultural and Ethnolinguistic Studies. The school brought together over 50 participants—students, doctoral candidates, and early-career researchers from across Russia, along with lecturers and speakers from France, Serbia, China, Turkey, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan.

Autism as a Global Challenge: HSE University Brings Together Experts from 15 Countries

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) pose challenges not only in medicine, but also in education, social policy, and technology. Scientists, doctors, educators, and government representatives have discussed how science and practice can help people with such disorders at the conference ‘Autism. Challenges and Solutions.’ For the first time, the event has been held at HSE University.

Centre for Language and Brain Conducts First Neurolinguistic Field Study of Reading in Yakut

In July, a team from the HSE Centre for Language and Brain, in collaboration with the Centre for the Study, Preservation, and Development of Native Languages of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), conducted the first-ever neurolinguistic expedition to the village of Churapcha to study reading in the Yakut language using electroencephalography (EEG). For the first time, EEG data from 43 adults and behavioural data from 40 children was collected during the two-week expedition.

Children with Autism Process Sounds Differently

For the first time, an international team of researchers—including scientists from the HSE Centre for Language and Brain—combined magnetoencephalography and morphometric analysis in a single experiment to study children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The study found that children with autism have more difficulty filtering and processing sounds, particularly in the brain region typically responsible for language comprehension. The study has been published in Cerebral Cortex.

First Digital Adult Reading Test Available on RuStore

HSE University's Centre for Language and Brain has developed the first standardised tool for assessing Russian reading skills in adults—the LexiMetr-A test. The test is now available digitally on the RuStore platform. This application allows for a quick and effective diagnosis of reading disorders, including dyslexia, in people aged 18 and older.

Centre for Language and Brain Begins Cooperation with Academy of Sciences of Sakha Republic

HSE University's Centre for Language and Brain and the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) have signed a partnership agreement, opening up new opportunities for research on the region's understudied languages and bilingualism. Thanks to modern methods, such as eye tracking and neuroimaging, scientists will be able to answer questions about how bilingualism works at the brain level.

'We Are Creating the Medicine of the Future'

Dr Gerwin Schalk is a professor at Fudan University in Shanghai and a partner of the HSE Centre for Language and Brain within the framework of the strategic project 'Human Brain Resilience.' Dr Schalk is known as the creator of BCI2000, a non-commercial general-purpose brain-computer interface system. In this interview, he discusses modern neural interfaces, methods for post-stroke rehabilitation, a novel approach to neurosurgery, and shares his vision for the future of neurotechnology.

Humans, Bots, and Digital Twins: Year-End Results of the Strategic Project 'Human Brain Resilience'

HSE University hosted a joint research seminar to review the 2024 results of the Strategic Project 'Human Brain Resilience: Neurocognitive Technologies for Adaptation, Learning, Development and Rehabilitation in a Changing Environment.' The event showcased the progress and outcomes of fundamental and applied projects focused on developing technologies for neurodiagnostics, neuroadaptation, and neurorehabilitation—collectively known as 3N technologies. The objective is to develop tools that can help prevent neurogenic and psychiatric disorders or alleviate their consequences.

'Neurotechnologies Are Already Helping Individuals with Language Disorders'

On November 4-6, as part of Inventing the Future International Symposium hosted by the National Centre RUSSIA, the HSE Centre for Language and Brain facilitated a discussion titled 'Evolution of the Brain: How Does the World Change Us?' Researchers from the country's leading universities, along with health professionals and neuroscience popularisers, discussed specific aspects of human brain function.

Children with Autism Process Auditory Information Differently

A team of scientists, including researchers from the HSE Centre for Language and Brain, examined specific aspects of auditory perception in children with autism. The scientists observed atypical alpha rhythm activity both during sound perception and at rest. This suggests that these children experience abnormalities in the early stages of sound processing in the brain's auditory cortex. Over time, these abnormalities can result in language difficulties. The study findings have been published in Brain Structure and Function.

The Centre for Language and Brain at the exhibition of scientific projects dedicated to the visit of the delegation from Malaysia

The Minister of Higher Education of Malaysia, Zambri Abdul Kadir, and members of the Malaysian delegation met with researchers from HSE University — St. Petersburg on October 10, 2024, at the exhibition of scientific projects.

Russian-Italian Projects in Biomedicine Discussed at HSE University

HSE University hosted an international mini-conference titled 'Search for new ways to develop Russian-Italian cooperation in the field of Biomedicine,' attended by scientists from both countries and HSE Rector Nikita Anisimov.

‘You Need to Know a Lot of Ideas and Algorithms, Come Up with Something Unconventional’

A student of the HSE Faculty of Computer Science, Andrey Kuznetsov, has become the winner of the 2024 Data Fusion Contest. He took first place in solving geoanalytics tasks, and also won the special ‘Companion’ category. The competition took place as part of the 2024 Data Fusion conference on big data and AI technologies. Researchers from HSE University presented the results of their work and demonstrated applied developments at the conference.

HSE University and Adyghe State University Launch Digital Ethnolook International Contest

The HSE Centre for Language and Brain and the Laboratory of Experimental Linguistics at Adyghe State University (ASU) have launched the first Digital Ethnolook International Contest in the Brain Art / ScienceArt / EtnoArt format. Submissions are accepted until May 25, 2024.

Software for Rapid Detection of Dyslexia Developed in Russia

HSE scientists have developed a software tool for assessing the presence and degree of dyslexia in school students based on their gender, age, school grade, and eye-tracking data. The application is expected to be introduced into clinical practice in 2024. The underlying studies were conducted by specialists in machine learning and neurolinguistics at the HSE AI Research Centre.

Applications for the fourth HSE University Competition of the Best Russian-language Scientific and Popular Science Papers will be accepted from February 1 to March 15. The authors that receive the highest scores from the expert jury will be awarded on June 6—Russian Language Day. The main goal of the competition is to support and promote Russian language as a language of science, as well as to popularise works affiliated with HSE University among the global Russian-speaking audience.

HSE Creates ‘Transfer of Neurocognitive Technologies’ Consortium

HSE, the Pirogov National Medical and Surgical Centre, and the Centre for Speech Pathology and Neurorehabilitation of the Moscow Healthcare Department have signed an agreement on cooperation and the creation of a ‘neuro-consortium’ under the name ‘Transfer of Neurocognitive Technologies’. The new body will boost the development and implementation of advanced solutions in neurotechnology aimed at maintaining and improving people's health. The agreement was signed for five years, and the consortium is open to new participants.

'While it May Sound Futuristic, It Holds Great Promise': Olga Dragoy Shares Her Thoughts on Language Function Restoration and the Future of Neurotechnology

In the spring of 2023, the fifth strategic project of the Priority 2030 programme, 'Human Brain Resilience: Neurocognitive Technologies for Adaptation, Learning, Development and Rehabilitation in a Changing Environment,' was launched at HSE University. The strategic project brings together researchers from all campuses of HSE University. In her interview with the HSE News Service, Olga Dragoy, head of the strategic project and Director of the HSE Centre for Language and Brain, shares an overview of the advanced technologies neuroscientists are creating today, the underlying inspiration driving these efforts, and the operational dynamics of interdisciplinary applied projects.

HSE University Holds 10th Summer School ‘Eye-tracking in the Lab and Beyond’

This year, more than 100 students from Russia and abroad took part in the 10th summer neurolinguistic school, ‘Eye-tracking in the Lab and Beyond’. The school is held annually by the HSE Center for Language and Brain. Leading experts spoke about advanced developments and research in the field of video-oculography.

New Technologies for Preserving Brain Functions: ‘Not Magic, but Normal Engineering’

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.

‘We Are Developing Technologies to Support People and Strengthen the Intellect’

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’.

Members of the Center for Language and Brain took part in a linguistic expedition in the Republic of Adygea

Members of the Language Center for Language and Brain together with colleagues from the Laboratory of Experimental Linguistics at the Adyghe State University conducted a field expedition in the aul Dzhambechiy, the Republic of Adygea.

Expedition Uses New Methods in Minority Language Studies

Researchers from HSE University’s Centre for Language and Brain, together with employees of Adyghe State University’s Laboratory of Experimental Linguistics, are conducting an expedition that is unprecedented in Russia: psycholinguistic field research into the Adyghe language and Russian-Adyghe bilingualism in a village in the Republic of Adygea.

Members of the Center for Language and Brain took part at the conference "Cognitive Science in Moscow: New Research"

Employees of the Center for Language and Brain presented their studies at the conference "Cognitive Science in Moscow: New Research". Director of the Center Olga Dragoy spoke at the round table "Undoubted Achievements of Cognitive Science in the 21st Century", where she talked about the successes of neuroscience.

Scientists from HSE and Adyghe State University Enhance Research at the Intersection of Linguistics and Medicine

Adyghe State University has opened a laboratory of experimental linguistics. Olga Dragoy, Chief Research Fellow at the Center for Language and Brain, will be the laboratory’s academic supervisor and consultant. The laboratory will study the psycho- and neuro-linguistic mechanisms of functioning of the national languages of Russia, both on-site and during scientific expeditions.

Neuroeconomical Research, Speech Tests for Neurosurgical Operations and New Discoveries in Mathematics

At the end of 2022, the results of the Project Competition in Basic Science Research for Intercampus Departments were announced. This was the inaugural competition, and focused on encouraging new research teams at HSE University and developing intercampus cooperation in the field of fundamental research. Here, HSE News Services looks at four winning projects.

'We Wanted to Create an Opportunity for Intercampus Teams to Engage in Promising Studies'

HSE University has announced the winners of the Project Competition in Basic Science Research for Intercampus Departments. The competition, which the university is organising for the first time, will provide funding to 10 research teams working on five topics. Four of the winning projects will be implemented by new research departments formed as a result of the competition.

HSE University Studies Human Capital as Part of Consortium

The Human Capital Interdisciplinary Research Centre (HCIRC) is a world-class research centre comprising a consortium of HSE University, RANEPA, MGIMO University, and the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS). Its work was highly rated by the RAS in 2021. Lilia Ovcharova, HSE University Vice Rector and initiator of the centre’s creation, talked to the HSE News Service about integration in international studies on active ageing, creating a database on development trends in human potential, studying the effects of digitalisation, and the centre’s priority activities for the future.

HSE Academic Council Meets for the Last Time This Academic Year

The meeting was held in person for the first time in over two years. It was attended by Sergey Kravtsov, Russian Minister of Education, and Dmitry Smyslov, Vice President of VK. The Council discussed HSE University’s breakthrough projects in engineering and artificial intelligence and elected new distinguished and tenured professors.

A new paper of the Center for Language and Brain in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

A new paper of the Center for Language and Brain, in collaboration with the National Medical and Surgical Center Named After N. I. Pirogov, is now published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.

Researchers from the HSE University Centre for Language and Brain have created and standardized a new test battery for diagnosing language disorders in people with brain damage. The test is the first standardized assessment tool in Russia in the field. The paper entitled ‘The Russian Aphasia Test: The first comprehensive, quantitative, standardized, and computerized aphasia language battery in Russian’ has just beenpublished in the PLOS ONE journal.

Linguists from the Center for Language and Brain in a field trip to the Republic of Adygea

In September-October 2021, a research group from the Center for Language and Brain (Olga Parshina, Olga Dragoy, Nina Zdorova and Anastasia Kromina) collected reading data in children in the capital of the Republic of Adygea, Maykop.

Towards Finding Practical Solutions to Socially Significant Healthcare Problems

The Centre for Language and Brain in Nizhny Novgorod started operations in September 2020. Today, it is comprised of a team of linguists - teachers and students - who are researching the relations between speech and parts of the brain. The Director of the Centre, Natalya E. Gronskaya, spoke to the HSE Look about how the neuro-linguistic laboratory appeared in Nizhny Novgorod, as well as current tasks and prospects the Centre can offer the students and the region.

HSE University Center for Language and Brain Becomes World Leader in Just 10 Years

How can a small Russian research group become a world-famous scientific centre in less than a decade? A special edition of the Frontiers in Psychologyjournal devoted to increasing public awareness of neuroscience features an article about the HSE University Center for Language and Brain, including the successes and challenges of its early years.

Olga Dragoy gave an interview to the HSE YouTube channel

Olga Dragoy, Chief Researcher and Director of the HSE Center for Language and Brain, spoke in a popular way about how linguists can help in clinical practice.

The HSE Center for Language and Brain Team at the Twelfth Meeting of the Society for the Neurobiology of Language

Researchers from the HSE Center for Language and Brain presented reports at the Twelfth Meeting of the Society for the Neurobiology of Language, a community of leading researchers in the study of the neurobiological basis of language.

Members of the HSE Center for Language and Brain made the reports at the IX International Conference on Cognitive Sciences

In 2020, the International Conference on Cognitive Sciences was held for the first time within the framework of the 1st National Congress on Cognitive Research, Artificial Intelligence and Neuroinformatics. The members of the HSE Center for Language and Brain presented reports at this conference.

HSE University Researchers Receive Fifteen Grants from the Russian Science Foundation

The Russian Science Foundation has announced the winners of four 2020 competitions. Some of the winners are from HSE University. They have received grants of 12 to 24 million roubles, for a term of two to four years.

Olga Dragoy spoke about the distribution of functions in the right and left hemispheres of the brain

The portal “My Planet” published a popular science article by the director of the HSE Center for Language and Brain Olga Dragoy.

Director of the HSE Center for Language and Brain Olga Dragoy visited the clinic of the Technical University of Munich

Director of the HSE Center for Language and Brain Olga Dragoy visited the Rechts der Isar Clinic of the Technical University of Munich

HSE Center for Language and Brain at Science of Aphasia 2019

Nine members of the Center for Language and Brain attended the annual Science of Aphasia conference that took place in Rome on 23-26 September 2019.

Olga Dragoy and Andrey Zyryanov at the European Low Grade Glioma Network

Director of the HSE Center for Language and Brain Olga Dragoy, and Andrey Zyryanov took part in the international conference European Low Grade Glioma Network, held in London.

Olga Dragoy and Vardan Arutiunian at the 28th ANT Neuromeeting 2019 in France

Members of the Center for Language and Brain Olga Dragoy and Vardan Arutiunian participated at the 28th ANT Neuromeeting 2019 which was organised by ANT Neuro company.

Speech Mapping during Awake-surgery

Scientists from the Center for language and brain, HSE carried out a speech mapping during the awake-surgery

Centre for Language and Brain Opens at HSE

The Centre stems from the International Neurolinguistics Laboratory and brings together researchers in clinical linguistics, special needs education, psycholinguistics, bilingualism, child speech, and gerontolinguistics. The Centre’s academic supervisor is Roelien Bastiaanse, Professor from the University of Groningen (the Netherlands), a researcher into clinical linguistics and founder of EMCL and IDEALAB, unique international educational programmes.

The Center of language and brain at the Higher school of experiments

Family day at the Higher school of Economics in 2018 was held in the great hall of Russian Academy of Sciences, which at the time turned into a Higher school of experiments.

Svetlana Dorofeeva at the XIX international April conference in National Research University Higher School of Economics

Svetlana Dorofeeva, a member of the HSE Center for language and brain, spoke at the 19th annual April HSE international conference in the section "The Russian language in the multilingual world".

Center for Language and Brain Wins 3-Year Grant to Study Prevention, Diagnostics and Therapy of Language Disorders

New article about Center for Language and Brain was published recently on the website of our University: "Neurolinguistics Laboratory Wins 3-Year Grant to Study Prevention, Diagnostics and Therapy of Language Disorders".

Anastasiya Lopukhina at Linguistic Evidence 2018 in Germany

The lab member of Center for Language and Brain Anastasiya Lopukhina at Linguistic Evidence 2018 in Germany

Center for Language and Brain Wins 3-Year Grant to Study Prevention, Diagnostics and Therapy of Language Disorders

The HSE Center for Language and Brain studies a broad range of topics related to the connection between the brain and language. For Svetlana Malyutina, Deputy Head, and Mariya Khudyakova, Junior Research Fellow, particularly interesting areas of focus include the breakdown of language processing after brain damage (e.g., stroke, neurosurgery, epilepsy) and language acquisition in children.

Olga Dragoy and Yulia Akinina on the traditional European Workshop on Cognitive Neuropsychology in Italy

The lab member of Center for Language and Brain Yulia Akinina, with her co-author the head of the lab Olga Dragoy presented their study on the traditional European Workshop on Cognitive Neuropsychology in Bressanone

Unique Brain Surgeries and Electricity from Moss: HSE Scholars Present Their Discoveries at ONF Action Forum

At an exhibition held during the Russian Popular Front (ONF) Action Forum in Moscow, December 18-19, HSE neuro-linguists presented a method to preserve human speech after brain surgeries, and urbanists showcased sources of energy made of ceramics and moss.

The head of the Center for Language and Brain (neurolinguistics Laboratory), HSE was awarded the prize "Golden HSE" for achievements in research

Olga Dragoy, the head of the Center for Language and Brain (neurolinguistics Laboratory), HSE was awarded the prize "Golden HSE" for achievements in research

Neurolinguistics Lab team in Geneva

A numerous delegation of Lab members led by the head of the Lab attended the annual Science of Aphasia Conference 2017 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Three HSE Educational Projects Receive Support of the European Commission

Funding through the European programme Erasmus+ will be allocated to the development of a Master’s programme in clinical linguistics, the organization of a summer school on institutional analysis, and the creation of Russia's first courses on education law.

‘Seeing’ Language through Neurolinguistics

What happens in a person’s head when they hear speech or say something themselves? How does trauma and disease impact a person’s speech capabilities, and can we really help people who have certain medical conditions? Questions like these concern the life of language in the human brain, and this is exactly what researchers in the HSE Neurolinguistics Laboratory are currently studying.