This really is fascinating and makes me think of neuroplasticity. If it really is just a matter of how neurons can be linked together then there is a lot of room for the brain to shift functions to other regions of the brain when there is brain damage.

I could see how it would also create a lot of room for the brain to create whole new functions if we became exposed to new sets of stimuli. . .

Which would seem to suggest the brain could adapt much quicker than if we thought it had to develop an entire structure around a new sense or means of computing information.