That's the purpose. To dissapate heat away from the master cylinder, and keep the fluid a little cooler. It won't lower the temps much, but might help with the fluid breaking down some. Especially if you are an aggressive rider, and use the brakes alot. You're right though, they ain't big, and are a little far apart, but that's the purpose they serve. I'm sure Yamaha did some testing, and that's what they came up with.