Talking points

Pakistani politician Imran Khan leads a "peace march" to the country's restive tribal areas in protest against US drone strikes. Khan, leader of the Pakistan Movement for Justice, will be joined by Western journalists and campaigners, including 30 American anti-drone campaigners. The former national cricket captain vowed to go ahead with the march despite security concerns and doubts about whether the government would allow it.

Mars rover Curiosity takes its first sip of the red planet's sand, but only after it plays bartender to make sure the dry dust is shaken, not stirred. The end of the rover's 99.8kg arm will shake "at a nice tooth-rattling vibration level" for eight hours, said mission sampling chief Daniel Limonadi. That will vibrate the dust through the chemical testing system to cleanse it of residual grease. Curiosity will scoop, shake and dump sand three times. The fourth time, Nasa's rover will slowly pour a tiny amount of material into a mobile lab for analysis.