iPhone X pre-orders, Australia’s shakeup, genius daydreamers

[Quartz - qz.com]() Quartz Daily Brief sponsored by Good morning, Quartz readers! What to watch for today and over the weekend The Catalan crisis comes to a head. Spanish lawmakers are expected to pass legislation allowing prime minister Mariano Rajoy [to seize control of]( the insurgent region’s budget, police force, and state-run media. Last night, Catalan president Carles Puigdemont said he would let the regional parliament vote on independence, which it [could do today]( (paywall). Venezuela might default on its debt. The state-run oil company PDVSA owes a $985 million payment on its 2020 bond today and investors fear the cash-strapped government [doesn’t have enough money]( to cover it. Voting resumes in Kenya’s repeat presidential election. In various areas yesterday polling was prevented by protesters and [postponed until Saturday](. Police used tear gas, three deaths were reported in the city of Kisumu, and opposition supporters—who contend the vote isn’t credible—barricaded polling stations in parts of Nairobi. Apple starts taking iPhone X pre-orders. Brace for [a mad retail rush]( as everyone [basically ignores the iPhone 8]( (paywall) in favor of its more expensive face-scanning successor. Sponsor content by Harvard Business School In corporate strategy, success depends on alignment. That’s why Harvard Business School Executive Education offers [Corporate Level Strategy]( a program that prepares leaders of multi-business firms to coordinate diverse units, lead the development of new enterprises, and create value across the organization. While you were sleeping Australia’s deputy prime minister was disqualified. Barnaby Joyce’s status, along with six other lawmakers, was [cast into doubt]( when it emerged they were dual citizens, making them ineligible for national parliament. Joyce’s departure means prime minister Malcolm Turnbull’s government will [lose its one-seat majority](. Volkswagen put “dieselgate” behind it. The [world’s biggest carmaker]( (paywall) had a strong third quarter, with operating profit coming in at €1.7 billion ($2 billion). VW said it spent €14.5 billion this year on diesel-scandal problems, but it still has €25 billion in cash. Some of the JFK files were blocked. More than 2,800 uncensored documents relating to the [former president’s assassination]( were released Thursday evening, but the White House ordered the release of some to be staggered over the next three months, after the FBI and CIA said they needed more time to review them. Big oil is back. France’s Total reported its [best earnings in two years]( as crude prices rose and the OPEC effort to reduce global oil output started to show results. Look out for Exxon Mobil and Chevron results later today. James Mattis visited the Korean DMZ. The US defense secretary [stopped at the heavily fortified border]( on the Korean Peninsula ahead of talks today in Seoul. South Korea is [pushing for operational control]( (paywall) of its own forces in the event of a conflict with the North; under existing arrangements the US would command both forces. Quartz obsession interlude Aamna Mohdin and Jenny Anderson on the lessons from a multi-ethnic school in London. “Barking Abbey is a microcosm of Barking itself, which has transformed since the 1990s from a predominately white community to a far more racially diverse one. Over the same period, this one-time bastion of working class Britain has become poorer, and life has become harder for its residents.” [Read more here](. Matters of debate Remote meetings are still the worst. Ill-designed tools and short attention spans create [an environment ripe for failure](. Facebook owes a debt to the cities it gentrified. The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is [handing out grants to cities]( where it helped to drive up real estate prices. It’s OK for your kid to dress up as Moana. A knee-jerk response [does a disservice]( to the cause of cultural acceptance. Surprising discoveries Front-facing cameras were never intended for selfies. Sony, which introduced the feature, thought it would [enhance business meetings](. Neanderthals with disabilities got social services to survive. Scientists’ [reanalysis of a 50,000-year-old skull]( showed that a visually impaired and deaf male lived well into his 40s. Abandoned land in Japan will be the size of Austria by 2040. Unclaimed land and “ghost homes” [can be found all over Japan]( thanks to the country’s dwindling population. Daydreaming may be a sign of greater intelligence. People who reported more mental walkabouts also [scored higher]( on creativity tests. Scientists made robotic aquabees to study the ocean. The tiny devices have [wings that both flap and paddle]( allowing them to transition from air to water. Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, Japanese real estate listings, and intelligent daydreams to hi@qz.com. You can follow us[on Twitter]( for updates throughout the day or download[our apps for iPhone]( and[Android](. Enjoying the Daily Brief? Forward it to a friend! They can [click here to sign up.]( Want to receive the Daily Brief at a different time? [Click here]( to change your edition. To unsubscribe entirely, [click here](. Quartz | 675 Avenue of the Americas, 4th Fl | New York, NY 10011 | United States