SEA TRANSPORT

Historical perspective: The first boats

Nobody knows exactly when people first started sin! craft to travel on water" bt it #st
have been tens of thosands of years a!o$ The first craft were probably extre#ely si#ple %st
a lo!" an inflated ani#al skin" or a bndle of reeds tied to!ether$ People discovered that craft
like these cold help the# to cross a stretch of water #ore easily$ These craft probably
developed into early si#ple boats" sch as d!&ot canoes and skin&covered boats" in which a
person cold sit while fishin! or travellin! alon! a river$ The basic desi!ns are still in se in
#any areas of the world today and have #any advanta!es over #odern boats$
' (acts: A d!&ot canoe is #ade by hollowin! ot a thick tree trnk to leave a thin
wooden hll$ The hll is s#oothed and shaped so that it #oves easily thro!h the water$
' )n *+,-" Norwe!ian Thor Heyerdahl bilt a lar!e E!yptian&style reed boat called Ra
))$ He sailed it fro# Africa to the .aribbean$ This proved the E!yptians wold have been able
to reach A#erica #ore than /"--- years a!o$
The a!e of sail
Sails captre the wind and se it to psh ships and boats alon!$ Sails first appeared on ships
on the river Nile in abot 01--2.$ These ships had one si#ple s3are sail on a sin!le #ast$
They were only sefl when the wind was blowin! in the sa#e direction that the crew of the
ship wanted to !o$ 4ikin! boats in the A56--s sed s3are sails to sail the coasts of
Scandinavia$ )n the 7iddle A!es" the lateen 8trian!lar9 sail allowed ships to be sailed with
the wind fro# the side$ This type of sail was invented by the .hinese and Arabs$ (ro# the
**--s" Eropean sailors be!an bildin! flly ri!!ed ships with a co#bination of s3are and
lateen sails$ This allowed the# to #ake the #axi## se of the wind$
Stea# power
The first stea# en!ines were developed in the early *,--s for p#pin! water ot of the
#ines$ 2y the end of the centry they had beco#e s#all and en!ineers be!an to se the# in
trains and ships$ Stea# power #eant that a ship cold keep !oin! even if the wind was in the
wron! direction$ Early stea#ships sed paddles" bt propellers !radally proved to be #ore
efficient$ After the *:1-s" shipbilders be!an to se iron instead of wood$ The sperior
stren!th of iron #eant that #ch lar!er ships cold be bilt" which cold also be fitted with
#ore powerfl stea# en!ines$
' (acts: The first craft to se stea# power was a s#all river boat called the .harlotte
5ndas" lanched in *:-;$
Ship Power
There are #any different ways of propellin! boats and ships thro!h the water$ The #ost
basic" sch as rowin! and paddlin!" are h#an&powered$ Today they are only sed in s#all
vessels$ Sails harness the natral power of the wind to propel a boat or a ship$ En!ines convert
the ener!y stored in fel into the #ove#ent of a propeller$ As the propeller spins" its blades
force water to rsh backwards" which thrsts the boat or ship forwards$ 7ost en!ines sed in
boats and ships are diesel en!ines$ Other types of #arine en!ine are petrol en!ines" !as
trbine en!ines and stea# trbine en!ines$ Other craft" sch as hovercraft" have aircraft&like
propellers$
' (acts: )n *:/1" two ships" one with a propeller and one with paddlewheels" fo!ht a
war$ The battle was to find the #ost efficient$ The propeller easily won$
4O.A2<=AR>
.raft ? a#barcatine
2ndle of reeds ? snop de stf
Stretch of water ? intindere de apa
Hollow ot 8to9 ? a scobi
Hll ? corpl" coca navei
5!&ot canoe ? piro!a" lntre din trnchi scobit
Sail ? pan@a de corabie" vela
7ast ? catar!
Ri!!ed ships ? nava c velatra
Stea# ? abr
Stea#ship ? vapor c abr
Paddle ? @bat" padela
Propeller ? elice
Harness 8to9 ? a intensifica
Spin 8to9 ? a se roti
2lade ? pala de elice"paleta de trbina
Thrst 8to9 ? a i#pin!e
Hovercraft ? a#barcatine pe perna de aer