A group of physicists at Case Western Reserve University believe that there may be an intermediary stage in the life of a massive star before it collapses into a black hole. According to Glenn Starkman, a professor of physics at Case Western Reserve University, stars could burn for millions of years as electroweak stars. The energy created by the conversion of quarks into much lighter particles called leptons could halt the implosion of the dying star, essentially granting it somewhat of a reprieve before total collapse into a black hole. In fact, if the electroweak burning is efficient, it could consume enough mass to prevent what's left from the massive star from ever becoming a black hole.