Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Hurricane Irma makes landfall. The storm was already a category four hurricane on Monday, with wind speeds reaching 115 miles (185 kilometers) per hour. It’s expected to reach Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, and may continue up to the southern part of the United States.
US president Donald Trump announces his decision on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Over the weekend, there were reports from White House insiders that Trump had decided to repeal the Obama-era policy, known widely as DACA, that allowed temporary protection from deportation for undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children.
The BRICS summit concludes. The annual meeting of the world’s growing economies wraps up Tuesday in Xiamen, China. The conference came at a tense time, especially as North Korea tested more nuclear weapons over the weekend. The leaders of India and China are expected to have one final private meeting to discuss their respective armies’ standoff on their Himalayan border.
Pope Francis visits Columbia to talk peace. The day before the Pope’s five-day visit, the Colombian government signed a temporary cease-fire with the National Liberation Army. Vatican officials say the Argentine Catholic leader will attempt to catalyze further peace talks between the government and rebel groups.
While you were sleeping
The US ambassador to the United Nations said North Korea is “begging for war” with its latest nuclear test. Nikki Haley told an emergency session of the UN security council, “our country’s patience is not unlimited.” Meanwhile, Switzerland has offered to mediate in the crisis, a role it has often taken in the past, with mixed success.
The North Korea crisis sent Bitcoin into a tailspin. The drop in the biggest and best-known cryptocurrency is being seen as evidence that non-state-controlled digital currencies can’t be counted on as the havens of the future. Of course it didn’t help that China just cracked down on initial coin offerings, with the central bank calling crypto token sales an “illegal fundraising practice.”
Muslims around the world, including Malala Yousafzai, called out Myanmar for the persecution of its Rohingya minority. As protesters gathered in Indonesia, Chechnya, and elsewhere, Yousafzai called upon her fellow Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to put a stop to escalating violence that has sent 87,000 refugees from the country’s western Rakhine state fleeing to Bangladesh.
Princesses in Japan and England had big news. Japan’s Princess Mako is giving up her royal status because she’s in love with a commoner with a “smile like the sun.” And the UK’s prince William and Kate Middleton announced Monday that they are expecting their third child.
Quartz obsession interlude
Elijah Wolfson on how David Lynch’s Twin Peaks‘ reboot has broken the formula of Peak TV. “The Return was so disturbing, and difficult, that it really cannot be binge-watched. The plotting is so disorienting (Lynch has referred in interviews to the Mobius strip as a metaphor) that it defies spoiler-laden water-cooler conversation. The visual style of The Return is so sui generis that it simply looks like nothing else on TV.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Keep your dog out of national parks and other wild habitats. Their predatory presence stresses out wild animals, and their poop is a toxic contaminant.
Jobs aren’t the solution to America’s problems—they’re the cause. There’s not enough high-value work to go around, and bad jobs for everyone won’t solve our social problems.
The reign of pumpkin spice is in its last throes. Maple-flavored beverages will be our new fall obsession.
Surprising discoveries
Mario is no longer a plumber. Nintendo announced that the star of the most popular video game ever has moved on to a life of leisure, sports, and being cool.
Everyone is sick of your perfectly posed images of avocado toast and well-lit selfies. Instagram’s fashion gurus advised posting more realistic photos that offer a genuine glimpse of your life.
The Beyhive is taking over academia. A university in Denmark is offering a course called “Beyonce, Gender and Race,” joining a growing school of academic scholarship.
You’re using Rotten Tomatoes wrong. The film review site’s most prominently featured metric, the Tomatometer, isn’t as useful as this often-overlooked score you should be using instead.
Brain-like blobs living in lakes are actually giant colonies of animals called Bryozoan. The invertebrates help filter the water as they feed on microbes.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, maple-flavored lattes, and unflattering selfies to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android.