There was a time when curiosity was reviled as the desire for forbidden fruit: knowledge tainted by original sin. Today, as we strive to penetrate the origin of mass in the Large Hadron Collider and send rovers to explore Mars, our curiosity knows no bounds. This week Alok Jha meets science writer Philip Ball to delve into his book Curiosity: How Science Became Interested in Everything.
We also hear from author Frank Partnoy about his book Wait: The Useful Art of Procrastination, in which he argues that the ability to wait is crucial to achieving goals and making the right decisions – and that our gut instincts are often wrong.
Alok is joined by science correspondent Ian Sample, Observer science editor Robin McKie and Dr Geraint Jones from University College London's Department of Space and Climate Physics to discuss some of this week's news, including an update on the Curiosity Mars rover and new research confirming that daily doses of aspirin reduce the risk of cancer and prevent its spread.
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