HSE University Develops Tool for Assessing Text Complexity in Low-Resource Languages
,_interior_77.jpg "An installation at the National Library of the Republic of Tatarstan celebrating the history of Tatar writing, featuring symbols from various alphabets")
Researchers at the HSE Centre for Language and Brain have developed a tool for assessing text complexity in low-resource languages. The first version supports several of Russia’s minority languages, including Adyghe, Bashkir, Buryat, Tatar, Ossetian, and Udmurt. This is the first tool of its kind designed specifically for these languages, taking into account their unique morphological and lexical features.
According to the Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 155 languages are spoken in Russia. Some of them are used by relatively small communities—for example, around 80,000 people speak Adyghe, while 250,000 to 350,000 people speak Buryat, Ossetian, and Udmurt. Other languages, such as Bashkir and Tatar, have more than one million native speakers. All of these languages hold official status in various republics of Russia, making it essential not only to preserve them but also to create conditions for their development, including opportunities for learning and use in education and science.
In 2025, a Presidential Decree approving the Fundamentals of the State Language Policy of the Russian Federation was adopted. It affirms linguistic diversity and outlines a strategy for the development and practical use of the languages spoken by the peoples of Russia. One way to advance these goals is to create digital tools that make working with low-resource languages easier and more accessible.
A team of scientists at the HSE Centre for Language and Brain has developed an online text complexity calculator for quick and easy assessment of text difficulty in several minority languages, taking into account their linguistic features. The calculator is based on Textometr, a tool created by Antonina Laposhina and Maria Lebedeva for evaluating the complexity of Russian-language texts.
The calculator developed by psycholinguists at HSE University evaluates texts across several parameters: word length and frequency based on data from language corpora; the percentage of vocabulary covered by the frequency list (ie the share of words in the text that appear among the 5,000 most frequent words in the respective language); and the distribution of parts of speech within the text. In addition, the calculator considers factors such as lexical density and diversity, as well as the text's narrativity and descriptiveness.
The key innovation is the use of the Flesch Reading Ease formula, adapted separately for each language, making it possible to assess text complexity and readability more accurately.
The Flesch score is based on the number of words, sentences, and syllables, but the original coefficients were developed for English and do not work well for structurally different languages—such as the polysynthetic Adyghe language, in which the average word is much longer. In a 2025 study, Uliana Petrunina and Nina Zdorova recalculated the formula’s coefficients specifically for Adyghe, which significantly improved the accuracy of the readability assessment.
Uliana Petrunina
'The parameters of our calculator are adapted to the structural features of each of the six low-resource languages of Russia, using text corpora as well as frequency and morphological analyses. We also adapted the classic Flesch Reading Ease score. As a result, the algorithm can be easily reconfigured for other low-resource languages, regardless of their typological characteristics,' explains Uliana Petrunina, Research Fellow at the HSE Centre for Language and Brain and one of the developers of the tool.
The tool will help create comparable stimulus materials for linguistic experiments and provide teachers with a resource for selecting high-quality educational materials by difficulty level. This solution represents an important contribution to the preservation and development of Russia’s minority languages and to supporting the country’s linguistic diversity.
Nina Zdorova
'Our tool allows researchers and teachers to select materials based on their linguistic complexity, which is particularly important for research and education in languages with limited resources,' says Nina Zdorova, one of the creators of the tool.
Future versions are expected to include additional low-resource languages that are underrepresented in linguistics, both in Russia and beyond.
Nina Zdorova
See also:
HSE and Yandex Propose Method to Speed Up Neural Networks for Image Generation
A team of scientists at HSE FCS and Yandex Research has proposed a method that reduces computational costs and accelerates text-to-image generation in diffusion models without compromising quality. These models currently set the standard for text-to-image generation, but their use is limited by high computational loads, the company said in a statement.
Mathematical Physics at HSE University Goes International
The HSE University International Laboratory for Mirror Symmetry and Automorphic Forms and the Beijing Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Applications (BIMSA) held a joint online conference on mathematical physics. The results of the laboratory research presented at the event will be published in leading academic journals.
HSE Scientists Identify Effective Models for Training Research Personnel for Industry
Experts from the HSE Institute for Statistical Studies and Economics of Knowledge have examined industrial PhD programmes across 19 countries worldwide. The analysis shows that the key components of an effective model include co-funding by universities, industry, and government; dual academic supervision; and flexible intellectual property arrangements. The findings have been published in Foresight and STI Governance.
HSE Biologists Identify Factors That Accelerate Breast Cancer Recurrence
Scientists at HSE University have identified a molecular mechanism underlying aggressive breast cancer. They found that the signals supporting tumour growth originate not from the tumour itself but from its microenvironment. The researchers also demonstrated that reduced levels of the IGFBP6 protein in the tumour microenvironment lead to the accumulation of macrophages—immune cells associated with a higher risk of cancer recurrence. These findings already make it possible to assess patient risk more accurately and may, in the future, enable the development of drugs that target cells of the tumour microenvironment. The study has been published in Current Drug Therapy.
HSE University and Moscow DIT Partner to Advance 5G and 6G Networks
The Moscow Department of Information Technology and HSE University have signed a cooperation agreement in the field of innovative development of the capital’s IT infrastructure. The parties agreed on joint research into modern and promising communication technologies, including 5G and 6G, as well as AI, the Internet of Things, and other smart city technologies.
HSE University Presents Research Results at AI Conference in Oman
In April 2026, the International Conference on Intelligent Systems and Artificial Intelligence Applications (ISAA 2026) was held at the University of Nizwa in the Sultanate of Oman. The event was co-organised by HSE University, the University of Nizwa, and the University of Technology and Applied Sciences–Ibri. Researchers from HSE University were among the key speakers at the conference.
'What Impressed Me Most Was the Highly Active and Energetic Group of Students'
Sankha Basu, Assistant Professor at the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT-Delhi), taught a course at the Spring School 'Logic, Linguistics and Formal Philosophy' hosted by the International Laboratory for Logic, Linguistics and Formal Philosophy. This was his first visit to a Russian university, and he shared his impressions with the HSE News Service.
Russian Scientists Propose Method to Speed Up Microwave Filter Design
Researchers at HSE MIEM, in collaboration with colleagues from the Moscow Technical University of Communications and Informatics (MTUCI), have implemented a novel approach to designing microwave filters—generative synthesis using machine learning tools. The proposed method reduces the filter development cycle from several days to just a few minutes and in the future could be applied to the design of other microwave electronic devices. The results were presented at the IEEE International Conference '2026 Systems of Signals Generating and Processing in the Field of on Board Communications.'
Scientists Find That Only Technological Innovations Consistently Advance Environmental Sustainability
Renewable energy and labour productivity do not always contribute to environmental sustainability. Technological innovation is the only factor that consistently has a positive effect. This is the conclusion reached by an international team of researchers, including Natalia Veselitskaya, Leading Research Fellow at the HSE ISSEK Foresight Centre. The study has been published in Sustainable Development.
HSE’s CardioLife Test Among Winners of Data Fusion Awards 2026
The CardioLife genetic test—a development by the Centre for Biomedical Research and Technologies of the AI and Digital Science Institute at HSE University’s Faculty of Computer Science—has won the All-Russian cross-industry Data Fusion Awards, which recognise achievements in data and AI technologies. The project took first place in the Science–Business Partnership category, demonstrating a successful model for transferring technology from university research into the real healthcare sector.