Courthouse News
Trump signs massive measure funding government, COVID-19 relief
President Donald Trump appeared no closer to signing an end-of-year Covid relief and spending bill Sunday as unemployment aid expired and the government barrels toward a mid-pandemic shutdown.
![Congress strikes deal for COVID relief with unemployment, stimulus checks](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2020/03/McConnell.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Congress strikes deal for COVID relief with unemployment, stimulus checks
The coronavirus pandemic has rocked the United States for 11 months, leaving millions unemployed and hundreds of thousands dead, but a deal for emergency relief has finally been struck in Congress Sunday afternoon.
![Shell denies climate change liability as extraordinary proceedings come to a close](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2019/09/Climate-7.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Shell denies climate change liability as extraordinary proceedings come to a close
For the first time in the nation’s history, a Native American has been chosen to lead the department that oversees and manages America’s most cherished parks, waterways and tribal lands.
![Mass extinctions occur every 27 million years, study finds](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2020/12/dinosaurs-nc.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Mass extinctions occur every 27 million years, study finds
Scientists from New York University have found that mass extinctions of land-based animals are more predictable than previously thought, and occur roughly every 27 million years in a cycle likely due to our planetary orbit.
![Monday Morning Read: Expedition says climate change, plastics threaten world’s tallest peak](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2020/11/everest-2.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Monday Morning Read: Expedition says climate change, plastics threaten world’s tallest peak
The long journey from the airport in Lukla, Nepal, to Everest Base Camp — an ascent of more than 7,900 feet on its own — was slow-going, as the scientists climbed only about 980 feet daily to avoid hypoxia and other complications of poor acclimatization.
Biden advisors to meet vaccine firms as Trump delays handoff
Joe Biden’s scientific advisers will meet with vaccine makers in coming days as the presidential transition remains stalled because of President Donald Trump’s refusal to acknowledge that he lost the election.
![Study: Medieval plague outbreak exploded over 300 years](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2020/10/Saxon-warlord.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Study: Medieval plague outbreak exploded over 300 years
A study released Monday has found that over the course of 300 years, plague outbreaks in London dramatically picked up speed and spread up to four times faster in the 17th century than at their emergence in the 14th century.
![Costlier than war: Researchers put pandemic’s price tag in US at $16 trillion](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2020/06/virus-2.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Costlier than war: Researchers put pandemic’s price tag in US at $16 trillion
The coronavirus pandemic could wind up costing the U.S. more than $16 trillion, a toll that would be costlier than all the wars the nation has fought since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and on par with expected long-term losses from global climate change.
Fauci: ‘Safe and effective’ vaccine likely by year’s end
Conceding early missteps in the government response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday that he expects a “safe and effective” vaccine to be ready by the end of 2020 that the public should trust “will have no political influence.”
![Trump tax revelation could tarnish image that fueled rise](http://townsquare.media/site/1098/files/2020/09/trump-2.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Trump tax revelation could tarnish image that fueled rise
The bombshell revelations that President Donald Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes the year he ran for office and paid no income taxes at all in many others threaten to undercut a pillar of his appeal among blue-collar voters.