How Did Jane Goodall Challenged The Frontier Of Human Evolution

Jane Goodall made many amazing discoveries in the field that changed the relations between chimps and humans. The frontier Jane explored was the theories of human evolution and relations between different primates, especially relations between humans and chimpanzees. Jane discovered that chimpanzees possess the intelligence to have relationships and feelings, as well as create and use tools. Her research challenged the frontier of human evolution by highlighting the intelligence of primates as well as their similarities to humans.

Though she discovered amazing things, she was not always a renowned scientist. Jane was born on April 3, 1934, in London England. When she was young she would spend hours observing the behavior of the local wildlife,

Through mutual friends, she ended up meeting a famous anthropologist named Louis Leakey. He ended up offering her a job as his secretary, which she accepted with the bonuses of going on a dig with him and getting a chance to study vervet monkeys on an island in Lake Victoria. Leakey believed that the long-term studies of the behavior of higher primates, especially chimpanzees would yield amazing results. All the other studies had proven to be successful but weren’t as thorough as he would have liked. The scientists either bothered the chimps too much which caused unnatural behaviors or they simply didn’t have enough time in the field with them to notice anything interesting. Though Jane had no formal scientific education he offered her the chance to do a long-term isolated study of chimps in 1960 because he believed she had the perfect temperament for long-term isolation. She accepted and began her

She noted at least 20 different calls. She also discovered that chimpanzees were not herbivores like previously thought, they are actually omnivores meaning they eat plants as well as meat and even insects. Her final and most groundbreaking discovery happened in 1960. She observed a lead male in a clan of chimps using long blades of grass and twigs to fish termites out of a mound in the ground. This meant that they possessed the intelligence to create and use tools. This changed theories on human evolution and relations to primates. It also proved that Leakey made the correct decision when choosing her for the job. She had not only proved the scientists at Oxford wrong about her but also defied gender norms in the 1960s. She proved that a woman can do a man's job just as well if not better. One of her most well-known quotes, and for good reason is,” You cannot get through a single day without making an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” to say the very least she made an amazing impact on the