I first visited Ashland back in the late 1990s as an inexpensive road trip for myself and a few other college-student friends during spring break. I did not expect to be drawn to this little town again and again over the next twenty years and counting. My first impression of Ashland was that it was low key, very green, quiet, and a great place for a mind-clearing reconnection to nature....

Most people will experience ashy skin at some point in their lives. In general, this is due to factors such as the environment, weather, and dry or cool air indoors. Consistently going from heat to highly air-conditioned indoor spaces will also reduce the natural water or moisture from the skin. Other factors include lifestyle habits, illnesses, medications, and more. Symptoms There are general symptoms of ashy or dry skin and there are symptoms that will need attention from a healthcare professional....

Fiorentina captain Astori, 31, was found dead in his hotel room prior to Sunday’s match against Udinese, though the reason for his passing remains unclear. All seven of the day’s Serie A fixtures were postponed following the news , with an autopsy scheduled as the Viola squad flew back to Florence. Speaking to reporters outside Fiorentina’s training ground, Della Valle explained how a meeting for Astori to sign a new contract was moved from last Thursday due to dreadful weather conditions....

Astrocytes contribute to the production and maintenance of the blood-brain barrier. The blood-brain barrier is a semi-permeable membrane that prevents certain components of the blood from passing out of circulation into the extracellular fluid of the central nervous system. Astrocytes, also known as astroglia or astroglial cells, were discovered by scientist Karl Bergmann and were originally called Bergmann glia due to their classification as a protective and insulating cell. These cells were later named astrocytes for their star-like shape....

The light was produced by a so-called gamma ray burst (GRB)—the most powerful explosions in the cosmos which occur as a result of cataclysmic events. These can include the collapse of massive stars as supernovae or the merging of neutron stars or black holes. GRBs produce an initial rapid flash of gamma rays—the most high-energy form of light with the shortest wavelength—which usually lasts for a few seconds or minutes....

The bubble-shaped void in the Milky Way is around 500 light-years wide and is located between the star-forming clusters of gas, or molecular clouds, in the Perseus and Taurus constellations. The research team that discovered the void believes that it may have been created when a star went supernova in the vicinity around 10 million years ago. The tremendous stellar explosion pushed gas out from the region, forming the void and the “Perseus-Taurus Supershell” of stars that surround it....

The exoplanet, located 31 light-years from the sun and designated GJ 367b, is an example of an ultra-short-period planet. These are small, compact worlds that orbit their stars at close range, with years that last less than 24 hours. This exoplanet is so so close to its star, the red dwarf GJ 376, that it receives 500 times more radiation than Earth does from its own star, the Sun. GJ 367 b is also tidally locked, meaning that one side of the planet, its “dayside,” permanently faces its star....

Greinke, 35, gave the Astros a glowing review Friday at his introductory news conference and revealed what he’s looking forward to with his new team. “Probably just being able to watch them play every day,” Greinke said, “and just being able to be around some really good players and some talented athletes with a lot of baseball knowledge. “And I think anytime you’re on a new team, but especially a team like this, there’s a lot of learning you can do....

Now that the prediction (or at least the cover) has a real shot at being “right,” the question is whether this year’s success has flowed directly from the ideas that were laid out in the story. MORE: Why analytics matter so much in baseball We can’t fully know because, unlike the Cardinals, we’re not inside the Astros’ database, but from the outside it looks as though Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and his aides just created a mashup of Earl Weaver and Billy Beane:...

Because the team advanced into an AL Division Series, the Astros couldn’t be sure that the planned removal of the much-maligned center-field slope beyond the warning track at Minute Maid Park could be completed before the 2016 season. MORE: Best photos from the ALDS | Astros’ worst postseason heartbreakers The team will sell season tickets for 2016 based on the current configuration of the ballpark. Considering how young and talented the Astros are, it’s no sure thing that the work will get done without a rearranged timeline that doesn’t require the team to exit the playoffs quickly....

According to The Athletic, Houston will call up minor league home-run leader Yordan Alvarez in the coming days. Alvarez, 21, has 23 home runs in 56 games this season, that is two more than any other player in MILB and three more than he has ever hit in a season. The former Cuban National Series player was acquired in a trade from the Dodgers for reliever Josh Fielder before he ever had an at-bat on U....

The Phillies also exercised Neshek’s $6.5 million club option for next season. MORE: Top 10 free agents available this offseason Neshek, 36, had two successful seasons with the Astros after an All-Star year with the Cardinals in 2014. The right-hander complied a 3.36 ERA in Houston with a 1.03 WHIP. This past season, Neshek pitched mostly as the Astros’ seventh-inning man (18 holds) but in Philadelphia he is likely to slide behind closer Jeanmar Gomez for an eighth-inning role....

So began the four years of observation that led to Tell Them Who I Am: The Lives of Homeless Women (339 pages. Free Press. $24.95), a book every bit as clearsighted and compassionate as “Tally’s Corner.” Naturally, it’s a heartbreaker–not least because most of these women hope for so little. Housing for them, says Liebow, “means ‘an efficiency apartment,’ ‘a cubby hole’.” As one woman put it, “If I had my own little room and my own TV…I could spend the rest of my life like that....

Iraqi military and security officials told The Associated Press the attacks happened early Friday morning at an army barracks located in the mountainous region of Al-Azim district more than 75 miles north of the capital, Baghdad. The Associated Press reported that two Iraqi officials said the IS gunmen stormed the barracks around 3 a.m. local time and fatally shot the soldiers as they slept before escaping the area. According to an Iraqi military statement, 10 soldiers and one lieutenant were killed in the attack....

The government said that jihadis began shooting people and burning down homes and the village market this past Friday night. Many of the wounded civilians were transported to hospitals in the town of Dori and Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou. An aid worker reported seeing more than 40 people with bullet and burn wounds fleeing the attack, while an anonymous local journalist told the AP he saw wounded victims lying all over the Dori hospital floor....

Pratasevich’s arrest occurred on Sunday after Belarusian flight controllers told the crew of the Ryanair jetliner he was aboard that there was a bomb threat and ordered the flight to land, the Associated Press reported. EU leaders responded quickly to the diversion and Pratasevich’s arrest in a response summit on Monday. Belarusian airlines were banned from using the airspace and airports of the 27-nation bloc. Sanctions were also imposed on the officials connected to the diversion of Pratasevich’s plane on Sunday, and the EU urged International Civil Aviation Organization to start an investigation into the incident....

According to the Associated Press, more than three inches of snow fell in some regions of North Georgia. We hope Coach Herman and others are doing their best to stay warm. We'll update this story as it develops throughout Wednesday morning. UPDATE: Tom Herman’s wife, Michelle, posts the news that the Buckeyes coordinator is now walking four miles to the airport.

After initially signing on loan, the 23-year-old designated player inked a multi-year deal with Atlanta. Terms of the transfer were not disclosed. Martinez is the leading scorer in MLS with five goals after three weeks of the season. Following a scoreless debut, the Venezuelan striker scored a hat trick at Minnesota United and added a brace against Chicago on Saturday. Schweinsteiger signing an odd fit with plenty of uncertainty​...

Things certainly get off to a sordid start when a dead man is discovered in a Santa Fe park with his pants around his knees. It’s April 1945; the victim was an intelligence officer at Los Alamos, where the first atomic bombs were built. The project’s bosses bring in their own investigator, Michael Connolly, to find out if the murder was sex-related or politically motivated or if it somehow compromised the Manhattan Project....