Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east? • Hacker News Board

Re: Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

#21

Post by gweinberg » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 6:49 PM UTC

clickety_clack wrote: post #5

Why does anyone do anything? Some people obviously just got really into the idea of sailing to the islands. Right now there are people in the world that are super into the idea of going to Mars. There’s no reason why anyone has to do it, but they’re into the idea of it and they’ll find whatever rationale they need to explain the desire.

Okay, but you not only have the question of why they did it when they did it, but also why they didn't in the previous 1700 years. We haven't been to Mars yet because the technology isn't ready, not because nobody has the hankering.

Maybe there is no real reason, at some point the cool kids started doing it and the wanna-be's imitated the cool kids. Or maybe not.

Re: Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

#22

Post by AngryData » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 7:53 PM UTC

noworriesnate wrote: post #10

dostick wrote: post #7

Same reason as everything - looking for women

The Pilgrims weren't looking for women. They were looking for religious freedom.

They were looking for the ability to shun and persecute people who didn't step to their particular religious and cultural beat.

Re: Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

#23

Post by gumby » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 9:06 PM UTC

clickety_clack wrote: post #12

kelseyfrog wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We're going to Mars because of rainfall patterns. The anthropologists of the future will peice together clues and come to the same conclusion.

I have been running from rainfall patterns my entire life.

In fact I’ve never liked the whole Patterns movement and the obsession with the Go5 at all!

Re: Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

#24

Post by goalieca » Sun, Jul 12, 2026, 9:32 PM UTC

gweinberg wrote: post #21

clickety_clack wrote: post #5

Why does anyone do anything? Some people obviously just got really into the idea of sailing to the islands. Right now there are people in the world that are super into the idea of going to Mars. There’s no reason why anyone has to do it, but they’re into the idea of it and they’ll find whatever rationale they need to explain the desire.

Okay, but you not only have the question of why they did it when they did it, but also why they didn't in the previous 1700 years. We haven't been to Mars yet because the technology isn't ready, not because nobody has the hankering. Maybe there is no real reason, at some point the cool kids started doing it and the wanna-be's imitated the cool kids. Or maybe not.

Mars is more of a cost thing than a technology problem. We could definitely make it work if we dared.

Re: Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

#25

Post by alejohausner » Mon, Jul 13, 2026, 3:03 AM UTC

goalieca wrote: post #24

gweinberg wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Okay, but you not only have the question of why they did it when they did it, but also why they didn't in the previous 1700 years. We haven't been to Mars yet because the technology isn't ready, not because nobody has the hankering. Maybe there is no real reason, at some point the cool kids started doing it and the wanna-be's imitated the cool kids. Or maybe not.

Mars is more of a cost thing than a technology problem. We could definitely make it work if we dared.

Tom Murphy a "recovering astrophysicist" from UCSD, would beg to differ. His basic thesis is that, in order to build human settlements in other worlds, we would have to construct, from scratch, a large part of the ecosystem on which our life on Earth depends. That ecosystem is huge, interconnected, and largely unknown to us. We can't build it ourselves.

You can't just strap on oxygen tanks and take protein pills and expect to live very long, away from this planet.

I agree with him that the moon landings and the current batch of people living on the ISS are part of extremely expensive and unsustainable stunts. They're not steps towards living off-world.

See https://dothemath.ucsd.edu/2025/10/2025-a-space-absurdity/

Re: Mystery behind Moana: After 1,700 years, why did Polynesians suddenly sail east?

#26

Post by IAmBroom » Mon, Jul 13, 2026, 7:53 PM UTC

goalieca wrote: post #24

gweinberg wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Okay, but you not only have the question of why they did it when they did it, but also why they didn't in the previous 1700 years. We haven't been to Mars yet because the technology isn't ready, not because nobody has the hankering. Maybe there is no real reason, at some point the cool kids started doing it and the wanna-be's imitated the cool kids. Or maybe not.

Mars is more of a cost thing than a technology problem. We could definitely make it work if we dared.

You've been watching too many movies, and reading too few physics books.

The first generation is pretty much guaranteed to die young of cancer. Yay them!

There's ZERO way to limit radiation exposure on the trip. I'm not even sure the to-date astronauts have been outside it (the Moon is protected 25% of the time).