A ScienceDaily-style headline from mid-July asked why humans have collected crystals for on the order of 780,000 years — and pointed at chimpanzee behavior as a clue. The thread is less “mystical vibrations,” more “attention magnets and social objects.”
Shiny, rare, hand-sized things are excellent for: (1) noticing, (2) carrying, (3) showing off, (4) gifting. That is a prehistoric content strategy.
Click to drop a crystal into the pile. Your digital rock collection has no resale value. That is the point.
Break conclusion: the crystal aisle at the gift shop is not a modern failure of reason. It is an old habit wearing new packaging. The chimps were onto something; we just added price tags.