1)    The reason that they fixed the blessing of Attah Chonen as the first of the intermediate blessings is since the advantage of people over animals is in the brain, and if there is no understanding there can be no prayer. (Shulchan Aruch and Mishne Berurah 115)

2)    Furthermore, wisdom and knowledge are very important things and one must therefore concentrate properly in this blessing as the main request that a person must make from the Creator of the world is that He should give him sense and correct knowledge in order to be disgusted by bad and choose good. (ibid)