 Curiosity, part of our DNA, is no different from our pursuit of food, water, or sex. Our bodies are programmed to be curious and reward us when we exercise that curiosity. It is our body's way of encouraging us to find new sources of food, new means of protecting ourselves, and new ways to aid us in times of crisis. This deep, intrinsic force guides a curiosity that has caused scientists to refer to us as informavores, constantly seeking and digesting information. Even when our curiosity guides us on pursuits that appear to be a waste of time, our body finds a way to remind us that what we might not find useful today could be extremely useful tomorrow. Like other animals, humans are learning machines. Psychologist Jean Piaget says we come into this world as tiny amateur scientists. From the first time we discover our own hands, we embark on a non-stop experiment to discover everything. This natural phenomenon aids in our survival in searching for food and fending off threats. This perpetual search not only helps us survive, but also serves as the beginnings of our emotional intelligence. By teaching us to form bonds with others and develop empathy, we learn to incorporate others in our survival efforts. The founder of modern psychology, William James, explained that curiosity is an impulse toward better cognition, one that leads us to how we acquire knowledge through experience. When we are curious, our brain anticipates a reward, dopamine is released, and we gain a sense of well-being. Just as we gain a sense of reward from eating, sex, or winning the lottery, we get a rush from learning something new. Endless subsequent studies have linked curiosity to our survival as a species. Scientists Ethan Bromberg-Martin and Okihide Hikosaka were the first to discover this curiosity dopamine reaction in their extensive research with monkeys. Professor Evan Pullman from the University of Wisconsin demonstrated that our curiosity levels change as we encounter different situations. Additionally, in a series of studies, Dr. Zolliver Robbins, James Dimitri, and Jordan Litman demonstrated that when confronted with a crisis, people are apt to be more curious. In fact, curiosity aids them in their efforts to cope with crises. In stress and at other times, our curiosity can drive us to the extreme. In For the Time Being, Annie Dillard tells the story of British officer James Taylor, who in the 1930s was stationed in what is now Papua New Guinea. With the aid of his military aircraft, Taylor made contact with people in a mountain village perched 3,000-plus feet above sea level. The villagers had never seen a trace of the outside world, much less an airplane in which the officer had traveled. Upon spending time with the local tribe and completing his studies, Taylor made plans to depart. As he prepared to leave, one of the villagers, using vines cut from the jungle, tied himself to the fuselage of Taylor's airplane shortly before it took off. The villager explained calmly to his loved ones that, no matter what happened to him, he had to see where this strange craft came from. According to Rabbi David Wolpe of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, that astonishing act of courage arises from a deep human need within all of us to understand, discover, explore, and follow the thread back to the beginning. Living in the world is not enough, he proclaimed. We share a hunger to decipher its mysteries. That deep-seated curiosity can lead both to survival and self-sacrifice. Rhys Samuel, writer, historian, and chronicler of Judaism, stated that curiosity is the secret of the basic survival of the Jewish people. Early on, he explained, the Jews decided they were not going to disappear until they figured out how things worked. Strapped to the metaphorical fuselage, we are still here, Samuel said, seeking to understand forward. From my earliest childhood, I can remember both of my parents encouraging my sisters and me to explore, whether it was my mom, whose motto was, the most important things in life aren't written in a book, or my dad, who had equipped himself with an entire machine shop to tinker and experiment and work in. All of us were always asking, why, and why not, and how. I was especially intrigued by my dad, whose amazing leadership skills were as great or greater than his manufacturing abilities. I was just as curious to learn how he worked with people as I was to learn how he worked with metal. That curiosity stuck with me, through my education at Purdue University in Harvard, and into my career from GM to Rosna to Ariba and DocuSign. Sample complete, ready to continue?