Questions 1-10 Complete the table below. Write one word and / or a number

LISTENING PART 4
You will hear an anthropology student given a talk about traditional 
Polynesian navigation.
Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40.
Student: Hi everyone. Today I’m going to be talking about traditional 
Polynesian navigation and voyaging. Now, in case you don’t know, the 
islands of Polynesia are in the Pacific Ocean and include Hawaii, Tahiti 
and Samoa. 
All of these islands were originally uninhabited by humans. And for 
many years there was a debate about where the Polynesian people 
had migrated from. It was once suggested that they came from the 
Americas. However, that debate has been settled. Today, anthropologists 
recognise that the Polynesians began their journeys in Asia and from 
there migrated eastwards to the Pacific islands. It’s believed all the 
Polynesian islands had been settled by the 13
th
century. When European 
explorers arrived in the Pacific in the 17
th
and 18
th
centuries, they were 
impressed by the local canoes. European ships were much stronger, but 
the indigenous vessels were considerably faster when under sail. 
What we now know is that Polynesians sailed across open ocean – out 
of sight of land – long before this occurred elsewhere. And to make 
these voyages possible, they built remarkable ocean-going canoes. The 
canoes had two hulls – so are sometimes called ‘catamarans’. They were 
equipped with large paddles, but these were not a form of propulsion. 
Instead the paddles were positioned at the back of the canoe to make 
steering the vessel possible. 
All these ocean-going canoes had sails. Polynesian sails were triangular 
in shape and made from the ‘pandanus’ plant, which grows on nearly 
all Pacific islands. It was also necessary to make warm clothing, as even 
in tropical waters people could get cold on long voyages. Materials like 
wool and cotton were unknown to Polynesians. However, the paper 
mulberry tree grows on most Pacific islands and its bark was remarkably 
flexible and was used in the manufacture of clothing.
Next we come to the issue of navigation at sea. How did Polynesians find 
their way, once they were out of sight of land? We know that they did not 
have the magnetic compass, which told other navigators which direction 
was north. But the Polynesian navigators understood where numerous 
stars rose and set on the horizon. And using this, they could identify 
32 different directions. However, this information about the stars was 
extremely complex and therefore remembering it all was a challenge. 
So the navigators had created long and complicated songs to help them 
recall all the information they needed. 
Using the stars to navigate was effective – so long as the sky was clear. 
But when it was cloudy, the navigators couldn’t see the stars. How did 
they find direction then? Well, they still knew which way to sail the canoe 
by studying the waves, which usually came from predictable directions in 
the Pacific at different times of the year. 
Sometimes they were sailing between islands they had visited before. 
But very often they were trying to find new islands. How did they know 
that land was nearby, just over the horizon? Well, there were various 
techniques. The navigators were experts at recognising those particular 
birds whose habitat was the open ocean, and those that lived close to 
islands. So this was one way they knew that land wasn’t far away. They 
were also skilled at noticing changes to the sea itself. The temperature of 
the water is constant in that part of the Pacific but its colour could vary 
in the proximity of land, and that was something else that they were able 
to detect. 
Well, as technology developed, traditional voyaging all but died out. 
The Polynesian peoples travelled by steam ship and later aeroplane, 
like everyone else. However, in recent history, there has been renewed 
interest in traditional voyaging. It began in 1976 when a new canoe 
named Hokule’a was built as a replica of traditional Polynesian vessels. 
This canoe was sailed from Hawai’i to Tahiti, a distance of more than 
4000 kilometres across open ocean. And all the navigation was done 
using the techniques I’ve outlined today – the crew did not use modern 
instruments on the voyage. Since then there has been a remarkable 
renaissance of traditional voyaging. Numerous canoes have been 
built in different Polynesian countries, which have sailed to almost 
every part of the Pacific. And the Hokule’a has now completed a 
3-year circumnavigation of the world. As well as sailing, these voyages 
have sparked renewed interest among Polynesians in learning about 
their traditional cultures. The canoes themselves operate as floating 
classrooms teaching young people about, for example, the music their 
ancestors once enjoyed. Another aspect of this has been the teaching of 
Polynesian languages, some of which were in danger of dying out. 
Now one thing I’d like to add is… 
Q25 
Q26 
Q27 
Q28 
Q29 
Q30 
Q31 
Q32 
Q33 
Q34 
Q35 
Q36 
Q37 
Q38 
Q39 
Q40 
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IELTS Trainer 2
Tests 1–6 audioscripts © Cambridge University Press and UCLES 2019
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