Your Friday Briefing

View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Friday, October 6, 2017 [NYTimes.com »]( Europe Edition [Your Friday Briefing]( By PATRICK BOEHLER Good morning. Here’s what you need to know: Lluis Gene/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Spain’s constitutional court has [blocked a session of the Catalan Parliament]( in a bid to stop the region’s lawmakers from declaring independence on Monday. In Madrid, Spanish flags are suddenly appearing on homes. Our correspondents in Madrid and Barcelona look at how the referendum has revived [a long-dormant Spanish nationalism](. Above, some opponents of Catalan independence called for the implementation of Article 155 of Spain’s Constitution, under which Madrid could seize administrative control of the region. ([Aquí puedes leer el artículo]( en español y [la opinión de un periodista]( sobre cómo salir de este estancamiento político.) _____ George Frey/Getty Images • In the United States, the National Rifle Association, a lobby group, took the rare step of [endorsing a gun-control measure]( backing tighter regulations on rapid-fire “bump stock” devices like the ones used in the Las Vegas attack. We compiled [the best writing from the right and the left]( on the gun-control debate. Today [on our podcast “The Daily,”]( we discuss bump stocks with C.J. Chivers, an investigative reporter who is a former Marine and our weapons expert. Whatever drove Stephen Paddock, the gunman, to kill [has remained a vexing mystery](. Agents are now interviewing his family and friends. [Here’s the latest]( on one of the worst mass shootings in American history. _____ Siarhei Hudzilin for The New York Times • For Aleksandr Lukashenko, the authoritarian president of Belarus, the tech industry holds the promise of lessening his government’s dependency on Russia. He has tolerated and even spurred its development in Minsk, [where developers are creating mobile apps used across the world](. But not everyone is convinced. One former official dismissed Belarus as “a dying country with bitcoins.” _____ Andrew Testa for The New York Times • Kazuo Ishiguro, the British author known for his spare prose style and his subversion of literary genres, was [awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature](. Mr. Ishiguro, 62, is best known for his novels “[The Remains of the Day]( about a butler serving an English lord in the years leading up to World War II, and “[Never Let Me Go]( a dystopian love story. Our critic called him “[a uniter, a conferrer of calm]( In other literary news, the French novelist and New Wave actress Anne Wiazemsky [died at 70](. (She was a granddaughter of the 1958 Nobel literature laureate François Mauriac.) The Norwegian Nobel Committee will announce [this year’s peace prize at 11 a.m. local time](. _____ Justin Sullivan/Getty Images • Finally, it’s time to rethink the value of freshness. A growing number of chefs are falling in love with the flavor of aged ingredients. Age and processes like pickling bring depth and push flavors past the obvious, [our magazine writer]( argues. “What is more human than refusing to accept things as they are, than believing we can make them better?” Above, aging cheese wheels in California. Business Prakash Singh/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Automakers are addressing the two main reasons customers don’t buy electric cars: [concerns about the cars’ range and charging time](. • EN+, the Russian energy and aluminum company, [plans to raise $1.5 billion]( in an initial public offering in London and Moscow. • European regulators are [taking a growing interest]( in initial coin offerings. (They see trouble where [others see a financing revolution]( • Here’s a snapshot of [global markets](. In the News Mike Blake/Reuters • A Times investigation found decades of sexual harassment accusations against Harvey Weinstein, the Hollywood megaproducer whose films have helped define American culture. [[The New York Times]( • Russian hackers obtained classified American documents that a National Security Agency employee had taken and stored on his home computer, raising concerns over the security of Kaspersky Lab antivirus software he had used. [[The New York Times]( • The Iraqi government said its forces had gained control of the city of Hawija, the Islamic State’s last urban stronghold in the country. [[The New York Times]( • President Trump has suggested he will “decertify” Iran’s compliance with the 2015 nuclear agreement. But that does not necessarily kill the deal, our correspondent explains. [[The New York Times]( • In a video interview in Pyongyang, our Op-Ed columnist Nicholas Kristof confronts a North Korean official over the death of Otto Warmbier, an American who had been detained in the country. [[The New York Times]( • In France, President Emmanuel Macron [was said to regret]( saying that some workers at a car-parts manufacturer “caused a ruckus” when they protested layoffs. [[Politico]( • In Britain, the police said that Edward Heath, the former prime minister, would have faced a sex abuse inquiry if he were still alive. [[The New York Times]( • For the first time, doctors have used gene therapy to stave off a fatal degenerative brain disease. [[The New York Times]( Smarter Living Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life. Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press • No wired headphone jack on your new phone? [Here’s how to figure out whether wireless is best for you]( and which headphones to buy. • How to plan for [a major career change]( and other tips for the office. • Recipe of the day: Round out the week with a dinner of [salmon in parsley sauce](. Noteworthy Elizabeth Weinberg for The New York Times • The career of Pink, the pop star, has [provided a blueprint for the female pop-outsider archetype](. “I’ve never won the popularity contest,” she told our reporter. • We asked six writers to [reflect on their favorite cultural experiences of 2017](. Among them is the American novelist Nathan Englander, who considers [a British baking show]( “kind of a holistic cure for the overwhelming stress of American life.” • At the soccer World Cup qualifiers, Poland had Robert Lewandowski [to thank for a hat-trick](. Here’s the [schedule of coming matches](. • A bronze statue’s orphaned arm is among the findings marine archaeologists announced from their [excavation of a roughly 2,000-year-old ship wreck]( off the coast of a tiny island in Greece. • Our latest 36 Hours guide takes you to Ljubljana, the Slovenian capital. Come for the historic architecture in the car-free center and green spaces; [stay for the food and craft beer](. Back Story An Rong Xu for The New York Times International competitors will gather in the Scottish village of Carrbridge on Saturday to spoon up their best recipes for porridge. The top prize at the event, [now in its 24th year]( is the Golden Spurtle, named after the dowel-shaped kitchen tool Scots traditionally used to stir porridge without making it gluey. The competition includes two categories: classic porridge made with oatmeal (pinhead, coarse, medium or fine), salt and water, and a specialty class that allows for experimentation. Countries around the world have their own version of porridge — congee in China, upma in India and genfo in Ethiopia — but for the Scots, hot oatmeal is considered the national breakfast. It’s been a part of their diets since the Roman Empire. [This year’s competitors]( include a farmer and the head of Sweden’s national antidoping agency. Porridge will be judged on consistency, taste and color. Last year’s winner was Bob Moore, founder of Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods in Oregon. He returns this year to try to retain the Golden Spurtle. “It’s so meaningful for me; I’ve devoted my whole life to good eating of good oats,” Mr. Moore said after his win last year. What are you doing for breakfast this weekend? [Here’s some hearty inspiration](. Remy Tumin contributed reporting. _____ Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings and updated online. This briefing was prepared for the European morning. [Browse past briefings here](. We also have briefings timed for the [Australian]( [Asian]( and [American]( mornings. You can sign up for these and other Times newsletters [here](. If photographs appear out of order, please download the updated New York Times app [from iTunes]( or [Google Play](. What would you like to see here? Contact us at [europebriefing@nytimes.com](mailto:europebriefing@nytimes.com?subject=Briefing%20Feedback%20(Europe)). ADVERTISEMENT FOLLOW NYT [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@nytimes]( Prefer a different send time? Sign up for the [Americas]( or [A]( and Australia]( editions. | Get unlimited access to NYTimes.com and our NYTimes apps for just $0.99. [Subscribe »]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Morning Briefing: Europe Edition newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2017 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018