Soru

Passage A

For decades, the dominant explanation for how the ancient inhabitants of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) transported their massive stone statues, or moai, was the "roller hypothesis." Popularized by researcher Jared Diamond and others, this theory suggests that hundreds of islanders worked together to place the multi-ton statues on wooden sledges, which were then pulled over a series of parallel log rollers. According to this view, moving the statues required an enormous amount of timber, leading to the complete deforestation of the island. The collapse of Rapa Nui's forests, in turn, triggered ecological disaster and societal collapse. Proponents of the roller hypothesis point to archaeological evidence, such as ancient dirt tracks that could have served as roads, and the sheer weight of the moai, some of which exceed eighty tons. They argue that horizontal transport on wooden tracks was the only mechanically feasible method for a prehistoric society lacking draft animals or metal tools. Furthermore, this narrative of self-inflicted environmental degradation has served as a cautionary tale for modern global resource consumption, framing the islanders as victims of their own engineering ambitions. The roller hypothesis relies heavily on the assumption that the statues were transported horizontally on their backs or stomachs. In this position, the moai would have been relatively stable during transit but would have required incredibly intensive physical labor and hundreds of trees to move even a single mile.

Passage B

In contrast, a newer theory proposed by archaeologists Carl Lipo and Terry Hunt offers a different explanation for the transport of the moai: the "walking hypothesis." Based on Rapa Nui oral tradition, which states that the statues "walked" to their destinations, this theory suggests the moai were moved upright. By using ropes tied around the head of a standing statue, teams of islanders could rock it side to side and forward, creating a walking motion. Lipo and Hunt demonstrated the viability of this method in 2011, using a replica moai and just eighteen people to successfully move it. Crucially, the walking hypothesis does not require any wood or log rollers, challenging the narrative of deforestation driven by statue transport. Lipo and Hunt point to physical evidence on the statues themselves to support their claim. Moai found abandoned along ancient roads have wider bases and are tilted forward, features that would help them "walk" but would be unnecessary if they were moved horizontally on sledges. Once the statues reached their ceremonial platforms (ahu), their bases were carved down to make them stand upright. The walking hypothesis suggests that the Rapa Nui people were highly efficient engineers who worked in harmony with their limited resources, rather than causing their own ecological downfall. By showing that a small group could move a statue without timber, this theory shifts our understanding of Rapa Nui history from a tragedy of self-destruction to a story of remarkable adaptation and cooperative engineering.

Based on Passage A and Passage B, which of the following represents the main difference in how the two transport hypotheses view the Rapa Nui people's use of island resources?