Our class assignment for this blog was to research and uncover ways that the industrial revolution changed the world. There were four "ingredients" that contributed to the revolution, those ingredients being:
- People
- Technology
- Resources
- Transportation
We broke up into groups and took detailed notes on each of these ingredients. Today, I'll be breaking down two of the four ingredients into why they were important contributors to the industrial revolution.
I'll start with the ingredient that our group worked on, which was Technology. The main reason that technology was important to the revolution was due to the creation of the Steam Engine by James Watt. The steam engine was powered by coal, a mined mineral, and was used to pump water out of mines. Also, it helped power boats, trains, and other locomotives. Prior to the steam engine, people relied on raw man power with the addition of a few windmills and watermills for extra power. Darby was the first to come up with the idea to smelt iron with coal. Smelting is the process of melting iron away from it's ore. Using this iron, workers had cheaper, stronger, and more efficient railroad manufacturing. Some downsides to using this new technology would be having an increased risk of an accident or malfunctioning of the machines.
Transportation nicely complemented the use of technology with the addition of the steam locomotive to the world. The steam locomotive, powered by the steam engine, would help pull carriages along tracks and assist in moving goods across long stretches of land. The major benefit of the steam locomotive was the idea that the locomotive could quickly reach places on land that boats simply could not get to. Other benefits include faster shipping, allowance of people to have access to other goods unattainable from inside their region, and the providing of more jobs. However, some downsides include pollution from coal, and ruined habitats due to the increase of railroad production.
This is a sample picture of James Watt's steam engine
http://270c81.medialib.glogster.com/media/a1/a1ff681343dccc27561004957199e469d408f443435dadef951e97909645a3b9/v310052-steam-engine-designed-by-james-watt-spl-jpg.jpg
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