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LESSON 2 Noun Clauses with Wh- Words and If/Whether

EXPLORE

1 READ part of a lecture about early exploration around the world. Notice the words in bold.
CD4-26

The Voyage of the Kon-Tiki

Professor: Today we’re going to discuss
where the people of the
Polynesian Islands came from.
Chen: Excuse me, Professor, I’m not
sure where the Polynesian
Islands are.
Professor: They are way out in the Pacific
Ocean. Anyhow, in the mid-20th
century, most scientists believed
they knew where the islanders
came from. They thought the
first islanders arrived from Asia
over 5000 years ago. However,
one man wasn’t convinced. He Thor Heyerdahl’s craft, the Kon-Tiki, at sea
was an explorer named
Thor Heyerdahl.
Indira: I’ve heard of him, Professor, but I don’t remember whether he was
Norwegian or Danish . . .
Professor: Norwegian, Indira. Heyerdahl had a theory that the Polynesian Islanders
actually came from South America. He wanted to see if his theory was
possible. So, in 1947, he sailed his balsa wood boat, the Kon-Tiki, west from
1
Peru to Polynesia.
Chen: Why balsa wood?
Professor: Well, it was a light-weight material that was probably used by early South
American boat makers. He wanted to demonstrate how early South
Americans traveled. After 101 days, Heyerdahl successfully reached the
Tuamotu Islands in Polynesia. However, many scientists still didn’t believe
that his theory was correct. But now, decades later, new scientific research
shows that some early Polynesians had South American DNA. 2

Indira: So he was right?
Professor: Well, actually, we still can’t be sure whether or not early South Americans
sailed west to Polynesia. It’s possible the Polynesians sailed to South
America, too.

1 balsa wood: a very light wood from South America that floats well
2 DNA: an acid that carries genetic information in the cells of each living thing

434 NouN Clauses aNd RepoRted speeCh
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