how Jane Goodall took notes

 

Jane Goodall spent more than six decades studying wild chimpanzees in Tanzania's national parks. She had a PhD in ethology, the science of animal behavior. from Cambridge University and was a well-known contributor to National Geographic. She wrote 32 books that were translated into dozens of languages. Her observation that chimpanzees made and used tools redefined the way scientists differentiated humans from other animals. Previously, it was believed that humans were the only animals that used tools. 

So, how did Jane Goodall take notes in a way that informed her famous observations?

She handwrote her original notes and carefully noted the date and day of the week before each of her journal entries. She was meticulous with the amount of detail she gave, even going as far as writing down the weather and environmental conditions. She recorded observations ever 15 minutes when observing a single chimp and every minute when there was a mother and baby present. Over 500,000 of her handwritten pages have been archived. 

One excerpt from a journal entry about a particular chimp observation reads, "He reached up and appeared to 'test' 3 or 4 pieces of straw before finally breaking off a piece about 2 1/2 feet long..."

After taking handwritten notes, she would go back through to summarize everything in chronological order with a typewriter, being careful to write down the names she had given each chimp. Then, she would place all key information in well-organized charts. Goodall also made sure to draw observations, take photos, record audio. 

What can we learn from Goodall's methods of documenting? 

When the outcome is important, so are the details. Jane would later use her notes to identify chimpanzees later in life and build family trees. She could not have done this if she took short cuts in the original note-taking process. Jane Goodall prioritized details and, in doing so, she created an amazing foundation for her research.