Grades 7 and up. 55 minutes each. 9-12 Directed by Thor Heyerdahl. In 1947, Thor Heyerdahl and his crew set out from Peru on a 4300-mile expedition across the Pacific to Polynesia aboard a balsa wood raft built according to ancient traditions of the Incas, determined to prove a link between the peoples of the islands and of South America. This engrossing film recording their adventures won the 1951 Academy Award for Best Documentary.
Every culture contains groups, but their makeup and functions differ from culture to culture.
To examine why that is, this program takes students to view diverse cultures around the globe. Governmental institutions are explained, as are the religious and philosophical underpinnings of cultures. Technologies and their importance in a society's economic and material development are also examined. Throughout the presentation, reasons for cultural differences are illuminated. Illustrative examples include peoples of the Himalayas and the Australian outback.