In 2006, an international committee of scientists gathered to discuss the fate of Pluto. Though Pluto had long been recognized as one of the nine planets in Earth's solar system, the committee decided to re-categorize Pluto as a "dwarf" or minor planet. In response to the historic decision, a group of students and teachers from the 826 Seattle Creative Writing Center staged a protest. The event was somewhat tongue-in-cheek: the students released a humorous statement in which they said they refused "to bow to this outrageous decree." Still, the protest served a very real purpose. It helped to raise awareness about the way in which our understanding of the solar system is always changing. 7 Still, the protest served a very real purpose. What does the author suggest by using the word real in the above sentence?