Today on New Scientist


Australian skies lit up by 80,000 lightning strikes

A spectacular electrical storm struck southern Australia last night, causing power outages and setting a house ablaze


Arctic melt means more severe winters likely - for now

The vanishing Arctic ice is making extremely cold Eurasian winters more likely, but the trend won't last and warming will eventually take over


Fresh hints of dark matter at Milky Way's core

The discovery of a third type of light associated with dark matter could strengthen the case that we are seeing a signal of the mysterious stuff


Can chocolate boost memory? Only in insane amounts

Drinking beverages enriched with compounds found in cocoa beans improved older adults' performances on a memory test – but there's a catch


Legalise online protests to safeguard democracy

Internet law needs reform, because criminalising online activism undermines democracy and freedom of speech, says media researcher Molly Sauter


African baby turtles start life with a 24-hour swimathon

Loggerhead turtles from Cape Verde complete an epic sprint before they turn into chilled-out turtle surfers, like the ones in Finding Nemo


Biological litmus paper detects Ebola strains

Litmus paper embedded with DNA from jellyfish and other organisms has the potential to identify any biological molecule – changing how infections are diagnosed


Asteroid miners to launch first private space telescope

Private company Planetary Resources, which one day hopes to mine asteroids, is preparing to launch a prototype of a telescope designed to find them


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