Seemingly Useless things

Some beauty is hidden, quite out of sight of the ordinary observer, and some is hidden in plain sight, and just takes the right lens to view it through. The intricate patterns, with included ventilation shafts, of the ants’ underground network of tunnels and shafts is inspiring, and makes one consider where the conductor to orchestra of their mega-engineering symphony really is. The ant itself, however, is normally a small target for very large rubber arrow – the underside of a shoe. And yet the symmetry of the critter itself is magnificent. The function of the ant’s pincers is quite apparent, especially when attached to your epidermis. But the beauty of their symmetry is not immediately apparent, and takes a more delicate approach to even notice, let alone appreciate. Yet there are some things to which both the beauty and function are not apparent at all, at least not immediately, and for this reason seem rather dull. Such was the case with Pierre de Fermat’s little theorem. Though the math worked, no functional use was known and it was really just seen as an unusual, somewhat neat anomaly. That is, until computers were developed hundreds of years later and the world’s entire online security relied on this previously oh so ‘little theorem.’ Some quirks, instances, even drudgeries in life may seem to have little use and no purpose. The reality is, even the ‘little’ stuff matters, sometimes, more than we may know.