What destroyed the civilisation of Easter Island Reading Answers

Jan 2, 2023

What destroyed the civilisation of Easter Island Reading Answers topic consists of 13 questions. The candidates can spend only 20 minutes on these sets of questions. It is an IELTS reading answers topic. This topic has been taken from the book: “Cambridge IELTS 11 Academic Student's Book with Answers”. The topic: What destroyed the civilisation of Easter Island Reading Answers is the second part of the reading section. The candidates need to analyse the IELTS reading passage to answer the question within the time limit. The IELTS Reading practice papers have multiple similar topics like this What destroyed the civilisation of Easter Island Reading Answers topic. The candidates can practice those topics from the practice papers so that they could score better in this section.

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Section 1

Read the passage to answer the following questions

What destroyed the civilisation of Easter Island Reading Answers

Easter Island, or Rapu Nui as it is known locally, is home to several hundred ancient human statues - the moai. After this remote Pacific island was settled by the Polynesians, it remained isolated for centuries. All the energy and resources that went into the moai - some of which are ten metres tall and weigh over 7,000 kilos - came from the island itself. Yet when Dutch explorers landed in 1722, they met a Stone Age culture. The moai were carved with stone tools, then transported for many kilometres, without the use of animals or wheels, to massive stone platforms. The identity of the moai builders was in doubt until well into the twentieth century. Thor Heyerdahl, the Norwegian ethnographer and adventurer, thought the statues had been created by pre-Inca peoples from Peru. Bestselling Swiss author Erich von Daniken believed they were built by stranded extraterrestrials. Modern science - linguistic, archaeological and genetic evidence - has definitively proved the moai builders were Polynesians, but not how they moved their creations. Local folklore maintains that the statues walked, while researchers have tended to assume the ancestors dragged the statues somehow, using ropes and logs.
When the Europeans arrived, Rapa Nui was grassland, with only a few scrawny trees. In the 1970s and 1980s, though, researchers found pollen preserved in lake sediments, which proved the island had been covered in lush palm forests for thousands of years. Only after the Polynesians arrived did those forests disappear. US scientist Jared Diamond believes that the Rapanui people - descendants of Polynesian settlers - wrecked their own environment. They had unfortunately settled on an extremely fragile island - dry, cool, and too remote to be properly fertilised by windblown volcanic ash. When the islanders cleared the forests for firewood and farming, the forests didn’t grow back. As trees became scarce and they could no longer construct wooden canoes for fishing, they ate birds. Soil erosion decreased their crop yields. Before Europeans arrived, the Rapanui had descended into civil war and cannibalism, he maintains. The collapse of their isolated civilisation, Diamond writes, is a ’worst-case scenario for what may lie ahead of us in our own future’.
The moai, he thinks, accelerated the self-destruction. Diamond interprets them as power displays by rival chieftains who, trapped on a remote little island, lacked other ways of asserting their dominance. They competed by building ever bigger figures. Diamond thinks they laid the moai on wooden sledges, hauled over log rails, but that required both a lot of wood and a lot of people. To feed the people, even more land had to be cleared. When the wood was gone and civil war began, the islanders began toppling the moai. By the nineteenth century none were standing.
Archaeologists Terry Hunt of the University of Hawaii and Carl Lipo of California State University agree that Easter Island lost its lush forests and that it was an ‘ecological catastrophe' - but they believe the islanders themselves weren’t to blame. And the moai certainly weren’t. Archaeological excavations indicate that the Rapanui went to heroic efforts to protect the resources of their wind-lashed, infertile fields. They built thousands of circular stone windbreaks and gardened inside them, and used broken volcanic rocks to keep the soil moist. In short, Hunt and Lipo argue, the prehistoric Rapanui were pioneers of sustainable farming.
Hunt and Lipo contend that moai-building was an activity that helped keep the peace between islanders. They also believe that moving the moai required few people and no wood, because they were walked upright. On that issue, Hunt and Lipo say, archaeological evidence backs up Rapanui folklore. Recent experiments indicate that as few as 18 people could, with three strong ropes and a bit of practice, easily manoeuvre a 1,000 kg moai replica a few hundred metres. The figures’ fat bellies tilted them forward, and a D-shaped base allowed handlers to roll and rock them side to side.
Moreover, Hunt and Lipo are convinced that the settlers were not wholly responsible for the loss of the island’s trees. Archaeological finds of nuts from the extinct Easter Island palm show tiny grooves, made by the teeth of Polynesian rats. The rats arrived along with the settlers, and in just a few years, Hunt and Lipo calculate, they would have overrun the island. They would have prevented the reseeding of the slow-growing palm trees and thereby doomed Rapa Nui’s forest, even without the settlers’ campaign of deforestation. No doubt the rats ate birds’ eggs too. Hunt and Lipo also see no evidence that Rapanui civilisation collapsed when the palm forest did. They think its population grew rapidly and then remained more or less stable until the arrival of the Europeans, who introduced deadly diseases to which islanders had no immunity. Then in the nineteenth century slave traders decimated the population, which shrivelled to 111 people by 1877.
Hunt and Lipo’s vision, therefore, is one of an island populated by peaceful and ingenious moai builders and careful stewards of the land, rather than by reckless destroyers ruining their own environment and society. ‘Rather than a case of abject failure, Rapu Nui is an unlikely story of success’, they claim. Whichever is the case, there are surely some valuable lessons which the world at large can learn from the story of Rapa Nui.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation

Questions 14-20:
The Reading Passage has seven paragraphs, A-G.
Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i-ix, in boxes 14-20 on your answer sheet.

List of Headings

Evidence of innovative environment management practices
An undisputed answer to a question about the moai
The future of the moai statues
A theory which supports a local belief
The future of Easter Island
Two opposing views about the Rapanui people
Destruction outside the inhabitants’ control
How the statues made a situation worse
Diminishing food resources

Paragraph A

Answer: ii) An undisputed answer to a question about the moai
Supporting Sentence: Modern science - linguistic, archaeological and genetic evidence - has definitively proved the moai builders were Polynesians
Keyword: linguistic, archaeological and genetic evidence, builders were Polynesians.
Keyword Location: 1st paragraph, 6th sentence.
Explanation: The paragraph has stated some important facts related to moai. The author describes that based on linguistic, archaeological and genetic evidence, it is proven that the moai builders were Polynesians. Hence, “An undisputed answer to a question about the moai” is a correct heading for the same.

Paragraph B

Answer: ix) Diminishing food resources
Supporting Sentence: When the islanders cleared the forests for firewood and farming, the forests didn’t grow back.
Keyword: cleared the forests, forests didn’t grow, no longer construct wooden canoes.
Keyword Location: 2nd paragraph, 6th and 7th sentence.
Explanation: Paragraph B states that the islanders have cleared the forests for the purpose of farming and firewood. As a result, the trees are diminishing and can not construct wooden canoes for fishing. Hence the food resources are gradually decreasing. Thus the heading “Diminishing food resources” perfectly suits the content of the paragraph.

Paragraph C

Answer: viii) How the statues made a situation worse
Supporting Sentence: The moai, he thinks, accelerated the self-destruction.
Keyword: accelerated, self-destruction
Keyword Location: 3rd paragraph, First sentence.
Explanation: The author justifies the idea that moai has accelerated self-destruction. He presented a list of things that occurred during that period. They were competing by building bigger figures or laying the moai on wooden sledges and clearing lands. Hence, it depicts how the situation has got worse by those statues.

Paragraph D

Answer: i) Evidence of innovative environment management practices
Supporting Sentence: Archaeological excavations indicate that the Rapanui went to heroic efforts to protect the resources of their wind-lashed, infertile fields.
Keyword: heroic efforts, protect the resources, built thousands of circular stone windbreaks, gardened inside them,keep the soil moist.
Keyword Location: 4th paragraph, 2nd- last sentence.
Explanation: The paragraph says about the innovative practices of Rapanui to protect the resources of their infertile and wind-lashed field. They construct numerous circular stone windbreaks and create a garden inside and utilize broken volcanic rocks to retain the moisture of the soil. Therefore, the heading “Evidence of innovative environment management practices” is considered the most suitable heading for the paragraph.

Paragraph E

Answer: iv) A theory which supports a local belief
Supporting Sentence: On that issue, Hunt and Lipo say, archaeological evidence backs up Rapanui folklore.
Keyword: archaeological evidence, backs up, Rapanui folklore.
Keyword Location: 5th paragraph, 3rd sentence.
Explanation: In paragraph E, it is mentioned that Hunt and Lipo have shown archaeological evidence to back up the local belief. As per their narrative, only a few people could easily manoeuvre a 1,000 kg moai replica a few hundred metres. The figures’ fat bellies tilted them forward, and a D-shaped base allowed handlers to roll and rock them side to side. Hence, it supports the local faith.

Paragraph F

Answer: vii) Destruction outside the inhabitants’ control
Supporting Sentence: The rats arrived along with the settlers, and in just a few years, Hunt and Lipo calculate, they would have overrun the island.
Keyword: the loss of the island’s trees, overrun the island, introduced deadly diseases and no immunity.
Keyword Location: 6th paragraph, 1st - last sentence.
Explanation: The paragraph depicts the loss faced by the trees on the island. Hunt and Lipo have analysed that the rats arrived on the island with the settlers and invaded the trees of the islands. As a result, the islanders had no immunity and suffered from deadly diseases due to the lack of hygiene crops. Therefore, the heading “Destruction outside the inhabitants’ control” satisfies the context of the paragraph.

Paragraph G

Answer: vi) Two opposing views about the Rapanui people
Supporting Sentence: ‘Rather than a case of abject failure, Rapu Nui is an unlikely story of success’, they claim.
Keyword: peaceful, ingenious, reckless destroyer
Keyword Location: 7th paragraph, 1st and 2nd sentence.
Explanation: In paragraph G, the writer has expressed two opposing views of the Rapanui. On one hand, Hunt and Lipo have furnished the vision that the moai builders were peaceful and innovative. While on the other side another view was described that the Rapanui were heedless destroyers ruining their own society and environment. Hence, the heading “Two opposing views about the Rapanui people” seems to be correct for this paragraph.

Questions 21-24:
Complete the summary below.
Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 21-24 on your answer sheet.

Jared Diamond’s View

Diamond believes that the Polynesian settlers on Rapa Nui destroyed its forests, cutting down its trees for fuel and clearing land for 21 .................... Twentieth-century discoveries of pollen prove that Rapu Nui had once been covered in palm forests, which had turned into grassland by the time the Europeans arrived on the island. When the islanders were no longer able to build the 22 .................... they needed to go fishing, they began using the island’s 23 .................... as a food source, according to Diamond. Diamond also claims that the moai were built to show the power of the island’s chieftains, and that the methods of transporting the statues needed not only a great number of people, but also a great deal of 24 .................... .

Question 21:

Answer: farming
Supporting Sentence: When the islanders cleared the forests for firewood and farming, the forests didn’t grow back.
Keyword: cleared the forests, firewood and farming,
Keyword Location: 2nd paragraph, 6th sentence.
Explanation: The paragraph has clearly stated the viewpoint of Jared Diamond that Polysenian settlers are ruining the forests. They are cutting the trees for firewood and clearing the land of the forests for farming. Therefore, “farming” is the correct answer to fill in the blank.

Question 22:

Answer: canoes
Supporting Sentence: As trees became scarce and they could no longer construct wooden canoes for fishing, they ate birds.
Keyword: trees became scarce, construct wooden canoes, fishing
Keyword Location: 2nd paragraph, 6th sentence.
Explanation: Jared Diamond describes that the islanders cleared the forest for firewood and farming. Once the forests are cleared and it does not grow back, they experience a scarcity of the wood. They failed to construct the wooden canoes required for fishing. Hence, “canoes” is the correct answer.

Question 23:

Answer: birds
Supporting Sentence: As trees became scarce and they could no longer construct wooden canoes for fishing, they ate birds.
Keyword: trees became scarce, construct wooden canoes for fishing, ate birds
Keyword Location: 2nd paragraph, 6th sentence.
Explanation: Jared Diamond depicts that the islanders cleared the forest for firewood and farming. Once the forests are cleared and it does not grow back, they experience a scarcity of the wood. They failed to construct the wooden canoes required for fishing. This has led to the scarcity of food as crop yields also decreased due to soil erosion. They started to eat birds. Hence, “birds” is the correct answer.

Question 24:

Answer: wood
Supporting Sentence: Diamond thinks they laid the moai on wooden sledges, hauled over log rails, but that required both a lot of wood and a lot of people.
Keyword: wooden sledges, log rails, lot of wood.
Keyword Location: 3rd paragraph, 3rd sentence.
Explanation: As per Diamond’s view, to transport the moai from one location to other, the islanders laid the moai on wooden sledges, and hauled it over log rails. He explained that this required a lot of wood along with a lot of people. Hence, “wood” is the correct answer to fill in the blank.

Questions 25 and 26:
Choose TWO letters, A-E.
Write the correct letters in boxes 25 and 26 on your answer sheet.
On what points do Hunt and Lipo disagree with Diamond?

the period when the moai were created
how the moai were transported
the impact of the moai on Rapanui society
how the moai were carved
the origins of the people who made the moai

Question 25:

Answer: B
Supporting Sentence: Diamond thinks they laid the moai on wooden sledges, hauled over log rails, but that required both a lot of wood and a lot of people. Hunt and Lipo contend that moai-building was an activity that helped keep the peace between islanders. They also believe that moving the moai required few people and no wood
Keyword: few people, no wood, topple of moai.
Keyword Location: 5th paragraph, First sentence.
Explanation: In paragraph E, it is mentioned that Diamond thinks that the shifting of the moai requires a lot of wood. It is also mentioned that at the time of the civil war, the islanders began to topple the moai. However, Hunt and Lipo have shown archaeological evidence to describe the transportation process of moai. It needs very few people and no wood. As per their narrative, only a few people could easily manoeuvre a 1,000 kg moai replica a few hundred metres. The figures’ fat bellies tilted them forward, and a D-shaped base allowed handlers to roll and rock them side to side.

Question 26:

Answer: C
Supporting Sentence: The moai, he thinks, accelerated the self-destruction. Moreover, Hunt and Lipo are convinced that the settlers were not wholly responsible for the loss of the island’s trees.
Keyword: accelerated the destruction, not wholly responsible.
Keyword Location: 3rd paragraph, First sentence.
Explanation: In paragraph C, diamonds believe that the moai accelerated the destruction of the island. However, Hunt and Lipo were convinced enough that the inhabitants were not wholly responsible for the demolition of the island. It is very much clear that these two groups disagree on the impact of moai on Rapa Nui society.

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