“It is probably this naive surprise at things that keeps us going. If we took it for granted that the ancient Egyptians could draw a goose accurately, or that Eskimos could sing bass, or that Grandpa should be interested in everything at eighty-two, there wouldn’t be anything for us to hang our own superiority on.” — Robert Benchley, “Isn’t It Remarkable?,” My Ten Years in a Quandary, and How They Grew