There are a few vectors to it: - Note-taking (only by hand, mind you!) helps with learning [1], and thus it's recommended by many specialists. Unfortunately, "

There are a few vectors to it: - Note-taking (only by hand, mind you!) helps with learning [1], and thus it's recommended by many specialists. Unfortunately, "note-taking" vs "keyboard typing" is quite often lost in context for those situations - It adheres to kinesthetic memory. Some people need to have physical activity to remember better - It might be a coping mechanism for ADHD - those can include doodles, colorful tags, etc. - It scratches the "collector" itch for some (data hoarding is a thing) - It allows for externalization mechanism (ever had this feeling that you won't be able to get back from somewhere after driving there with GPS? - similar thing but with notes) But in the end, it's relatable since almost every person with internet access had to take notes at some point in their life, and - as you mentioned - that's dopamine, so a fun thing to check out to something that relates to almost everyone. As for me, personally, I use the act of writing itself, as I never revisit the notes. A long time ago I caused quite a stir in my school when I went for concept maps instead of having full-text notes (which were required at the time). [1]: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00706/full https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.0070... (Sidenote: there are more studies about it as it's quite researched subject)