A single chemical is key to controlling when hair follicle cells divide, and when they die. This discovery could not only treat baldness, but ultimately speed wound healing because follicles are a source of stem cells.

Most cells in the human body have a specific form and function determined during embryonic development that does not change. For example, a blood cell cannot turn into a nerve cell, or vice versa. Stem cells, however, are like the blank tiles in a game of Scrabble; they can turn into other types of cells.

Their adaptability makes them useful ...

A new study shows that nickel oxide superconductors, which conduct electricity with no loss at higher temperatures than conventional superconductors do, contain a type of quantum matter called charge density waves, or CDWs, that can accompany superconductivity.

The presence of CDWs shows that these recently discovered materials, also known as nickelates, are capable of forming correlated states — “electron soups” that can host a variety of quantum phases, including superconductivity, researchers from the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University reported in Nature Physics today.

“Unlike in any other superconductor we know about, CDWs appear even before we dope the material by replacing some atoms with others to change the number of elect...

A team of researchers at MIT has found via theoretical modeling that the saltiness of the oceans on Saturn’s moon, Enceladus, may be the right level to sustain life. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, the group describes the factors that went into building their model and the features of Enceladus that were used to measure the saltiness of its oceans.

The combined data from the Cassini and Galileo missions showed that Saturn’s moon Enceladus and Jupiter’s moon Europa both hold potential for satisfying three of the main features believed to be necessary for supporting life on other celestial bodies: they have a source of energy, they have liquid water and they have a mi...

An analysis of more than 100,000 participants over a 30-year follow-up period found that adults who perform two to four times the currently recommended amount of moderate or vigorous physical activity per week have a significantly reduced risk of mortality, according to new research published today in the American Heart Association’s flagship, peer-reviewed journal Circulation. The reduction was 21-23% for people who engaged in two to four times the recommended amount of vigorous physical activity, and 26-31% for people who engaged in two to four times the recommended amount of moderate physical activity each week.

It is well documented that regular physical activity is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death...