It's now been one year since the first known case of COVID-19 was identified. / Futurism
Pfizer and BioNTech announce their COVID-19 vaccine has 95% efficacy. / STAT
See also: A million-dollar donation from Dolly Parton helped fund the Moderna vaccine. / The Guardian
Blood samples from those who've recovered from COVID-19 suggest a long-lasting immune response. / The New York Times
The FDA has approved emergency use of the first at-home rapid coronavirus test, which can provide results in 30 minutes. / CNN
"That’s actually a false sense of security." Some in Los Angeles are getting coronavirus tests to clear themselves for mask-less, un-distanced parties. / Los Angeles Times
The coronavirus finally reaches Loving County, Texas, whose full-time population is the smallest on the US mainland. / The New York Times
Elsewhere in Texas: "There is no 'safe' place—no sanctuary—anymore. Not even out here in the middle of nowhere." / Texas Monthly
Google Maps will now display COVID-19 stats and trends in an area, as well as local guidelines and information about testing centers. / The Next Web
A comic to help children work through their feelings about the pandemic. / NPR
"Hiding the scientific basis for pandemic policies makes it harder for the public to evaluate what’s being done." On US officials' dangerous lack of transparency regarding COVID-19 guidance. / WIRED
HHS has canceled plans for an ad campaign with celebrities talking about "defeating despair" over COVID-19. Democratic lawmakers said it was intended to boost public opinion of Trump ahead of the election. / POLITICO
After Republican members initially refused to certify election results for the majority-Black Detroit, the Wayne County, Mich., Board of Canvassers changed course and voted to certify. / The Detroit News
Pennsylvania's Supreme Court has rejected the Trump campaign's arguments that Republican observers were denied access to vote tallying. / CNBC
Trump fired Christopher Krebs, the DHS head of cybersecurity, following Krebs's assertion that claims of election manipulation are unfounded. / BuzzFeed News
The Senate has blocked Judy Shelton, Trump's controversial nominee to the Fed's board of governors. / Vox
"The real problem is, I have never seen the police ever arrest a Proud Boy." Photographer Zach D Roberts on covering five years of Trump rallies. / Slate
Oklahoma Republican Sen. Lankford walks back his statement that he would "step in" if the Biden transition hadn't begun by last Friday—now he's "not in a hurry." / The Wall Street Journal
"Dollar stores feed more Americans than Whole Foods Market, and what we’ve learned is that they’re not just a symptom of poverty, they are a cause of it." Georgia's runoff election will determine whether the state's minimum wage increases. / The Intercept
Saudi Arabia is raising citizens' minimum wage by 33%. / Bloomberg
US troop levels will be drastically reduced in Afghanistan and Iraq, following Trump's installation of loyalists at the Pentagon. / Reuters
"Presidents like Nixon and Obama have achieved foreign policy breakthroughs by outsmarting the national security establishment. Trump never lifted a finger to push for his goals." / The Nation
The US military has been buying location data from various apps, the most popular of which is a Muslim prayer app with more than 98 million downloads. / VICE
Expect a Trump memoir, though any publisher that takes on the project would face significant fact-checking hurdles. / The New York Times
"Like him or hate him, Trump has used and benefited from and promoted conspiracy theories in a way that no previous president has." / Vox
"Has a preoccupation with branding." List: NXIVM sex cult leader or outgoing President of the United States? / McSweeney's