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I really like the idea that we do not need to have a point or purpose in intellectual pursuits. What is the point of knowing what the truth is other than to satisfy curiosity or utilize it for practical purposes. Perhaps evolution selected those who were curious since such traits often times lead to fruitful discoveries. As a result fields of studies that are considered impractical are by-products of curiosity being selected by evolution. I think for me this explains my reasons for wanting to reading the newspaper, knowing what happens at the end of the movie, or discovering an interesting but totally useless fact. That "oOoooOOhHh wow" feeling that I get is simply a byproduct of curiosity for useful knowledge being selected by evolution. So maybe there is not point to some types of intellectual persuits other than its just the way it is. We have traits that came along with other benefitial traits. Such traits didnt go away even though they may  be useless because they didnt hinder our ability to survive. Of course, this is based on the idea that evoluntion is not a purposeful process. It is not that endeavors to work most efficiently but rather simply to work.

In response to Hayley's skepticism about the brain not changing, I think that it is indeed difficult to believe but not entirely implausible. I also agree there is nothing immutable except for change itself, and for the brain to not change while the tangible results and evidences of its activities have changed so significantly...this is hard to swallow. But perhaps our mental faculties and mechanisms in processing information have not and need not change too significantly for our present accumulation of human accomplishments to have resulted. Perhaps we can an ancient brain travel back to the future and still be able to teach everything we know. It's our knowledge that might have accumulated rather than the capabilities to attain that knowledge. I mean, why would it need to change so much? we as a species already is a pretty successful player at this evolutionary game.....well except when we don't conspire to blow each other up and ourselves along with it. aside from the itty bitty hindrance in evolutionary progress, we are a very viable species. no need to fix what isn't broken.

-Trinh Truong