[Schlagbohrer]

Really? You don't think astronauts and engineers get not only inspired by their work to make art, but inspired by art when they are working?

I'm like that. I see art exhibits which energize me and inspire me and give me ideas for technical things I want to build.

[jungturk]

I read it as less about individuals and more about cultural norms (and definitely less about choice and more about necessity). Cultures that invest their resources inward may find themselves subsumed by those that invest their resources on conquest given how power accumulates.