Pet subject: Jane Goodall at Calcutta Zoo

Evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould said her work “represents one of the Western world’s great scientific achievements”. Dr David Hamburg of the Stanford University School of Medicine described her research as the kind that “occurs once in a generation and changes man’s views of himself”. And millions of others across the globe, glued to National Geographic, have admired her patience and fortitude whilst conducting field studies in Gombe, Africa, on chimpanzees.

Jane Goodall as a field researcher and primatologist has single-handedly done more than anyone else in the 20th century to make us aware of what ethology (the study of animal behaviour) is all about. In Calcutta recently to promote the Wildscreen Film Festival organised by British Council, Goodall spoke extensively on how she has conducted science and challenged conventional perceptions. “When I started studying chimpanzees in 1960 at the Gombe National Park in Tanzania, no one would ascribe emotions or feelings to animals,” she says. “Well, now they do,” she smiles. Her work has been lauded as groundbreaking since she discovered that these apes make tools and use them, a trait once considered uniquely human.

Goodall’s approach to ethology is unique and special. For example, she names the individual subjects of her research rather than assigning them numbers. She is also convinced that non-human species can emote just like we do. This may seem romantic and naïve to some, but scientific evidence is emerging to support her assertions.

Dr Marc Bekoff, professor of biology at the University of Colorado, for example, says, “Asking questions about science is not to be anti science.” He points out that humans are not the only animals that experience a wide range of feelings. “The real question is why emotions have evolved, not if they have evolved in some animals… Claims that anthropomorphism has no place in science or that anthropomorphic predictions and explanations are less accurate than behaviourist, more mechanistic or reductionistic explanations are not supported by any data.”

Goodall explains from an evolutionary perspective how feelings of awe might have originated in organisms. “Spoken language would have enabled our ancestors to articulate feelings of awe, feelings that would lead to religious belief, then to organised worship,” she says. But we are not the only beings to experience awe. “In the Kakombe valley is a magnificent waterfall,” she narrates. “Often the chimpanzees aggregate near the fall and exhibit a slow, rhythmic motion, performing a magnificent dance for more than 10 minutes.” Goodall believes the chimps may be responding to a feeling of awe and that in a similar fashion our prehistoric ancestors may have discussed such feelings which may have in turn led to the development of organised religion.

For Goodall, there is no conflict between science and religion. She is opposed to evolutionary biologist and atheist Richard Dawkins’s view that religion is the root of all evil. “The sheer diversity of life on earth is the source of spirituality,” Goodall believes. She, however, does acknowledge that “religion” is a difficult word to use since it implies bigotry and fanaticism but emphasises that like science, it goes way beyond materialism.

Goodall argues that the science of biology has to be carried out at both the molecular and organismic levels. “I am against reductionism,” she states. According to her, conventional science has led to immoral behaviour since it wants to be too objective. And immoral science has led to unpleasant experiments being carried out on animals, for example, subjecting them to electric shocks for research purposes and blindness tests on baby monkeys. “We need a new approach in science towards animals in laboratories,” says Goodall. “But where are the Nobel Prizes for scientific development of non-animal alternatives to replace invasive animal research,” she asks. “Unfortunately, science is dictated by money and very often scientists cheat by ignoring facts that do not fit their passionate theories.” She points out that journalists have a significant role to play in presenting science in a way that would put forward facts for better evaluation by the public.

Aggression is one aspect of human behaviour that has always interested behavioural scientists. The causes of aggression are common in humans and chimpanzees — dominance, food, territory and so on. Yet, when Goodall first discovered aggression among chimpanzees in the early 1970s, she was asked to downplay the phenomenon whenever possible since it was thought that publishing the data would prove that the “human” tendency to engage in conflict is innate, and that war is therefore inevitable. “Back then, I concluded it is pointless to deny that we humans harbour innate aggressiveness and violent tendencies,” remarks Goodall. But does that mean human beings are forever enslaved in “evil” genes? “Surely not,” she replies.

Goodall’s painstaking work has opened up hitherto unknown fields of study, for example, animal communication. She has done the narration in a film called When Animals Talk which shows how humans and animals are able to communicate with one another in distinctive ways.

As a United Nations Messenger of Peace, Jane Goodall is deeply concerned about the use of nuclear energy. The development of weapons and the irresponsible dumping of nuclear waste might cause environmental damage, she says. However, it would be hypocritical for the five permanent members of the Security Council to dictate terms on nuclear policy to other countries whilst piling up nuclear weapons in their own backyards. “The UN can be of great help in spreading the benefits of science around the world but unfortunately its role has been less than satisfactory,” she says.

India’s fabulous biodiversity provides huge potential for scientific study, says Goodall, who is currently compiling a book entitled Hope for Nature on endangered species that have made a comeback, and the researcher is looking for Indian examples.

Goodall’s colleague, Marc Bekoff, emphasises that it is essential to blend “science sense” with “common sense” when studying living creatures. The two have teamed up to form an organisation called Ethologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to promote this idea.

So what would be her word of advice for prospective ethology students? “Try to be non judgmental and treat animals as individuals,” says Goodall. “It is perfectly possible to be objective and have empathy at the same time.”

Coming from an individual who has created a scientific record by studying a single species for 47 long years, the words might provide new insight for science students whose only idea of biology is a rat or a toad on the dissecting table.