Technology of the Industrial Revolution

Technology of the Industrial Revolution — page 3 — 8 Introduction Technology is the process by which human beings fashion tools and machines to change manipulate and control their envi ronment In the modern world technology is all around Automobiles computers nuclear power spacecraft and X-ray cameras are all examples of technological advances The Industrial Revolution began when the ﬁrst factories were established in England in about 1740 to produce textiles Within 100 years poorly made woolen goods were largely replaced by cotton goods especially after the invention of the cotton gin by the American Eli Whitney in 1793 The steam engine introduced in the early 18th century became the principal power source for fac tories and later with the development of the steam locomotive for transportation Guns with interchangeable parts replaced handcrafted weapons Mass production of many products compared to those produced by individual craftsmen was made possible with the help of new machine tools The Industrial Revolution had a profound impact on society For instance the factory system changed people’s way of life It destroyed the guilds and the role of the artisan Labor became a commodity that often exploited the men women and children who worked tediously in the factories

Technology of the Industrial Revolution — page 4 — 9 A woman operates a cotton weaving bobbin and ﬂy frame During the Industrial Revolution great advances in transportation agriculture and manufacturing changed society in remarkable ways

Technology of the Industrial Revolution — page 5 — Technology of the Industrial Revolution The steam engine which at ﬁrst increased the power available beyond that of animals soon also powered many labor-saving devices such as the sewing machine and the mechani cal reaper Initially this led to large-scale unemployment Yet the pace of innovation and technology kept quickening In North America the early building of ship canals was supplanted by railroads and the erection of many bridges Everywhere sailing ships were replaced by larger faster and more reliable steamships The telegraph allowed for rapid communication Postal services were initiated There was growing pride in such 19th-century achievements as the Eiffel Tower in Paris the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City the smoking steelworks of Pittsburgh and the transcontinental railroad With the invention of electric generators and motors and Thomas Edison’s light bulb electric power entered home and factory Steel replaced iron for buildings and allowed the erection of skyscrapers The invention of the internal-combustion engine led to the arrival of the automobile This in turn fostered the search for petro leum Chemical research provided the impetus for new industries The telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1886 Farm machinery eased the hard life on the farm and 10

Technology of the Industrial Revolution — page 6 — INTRODUCTION reduced the number of people needed to feed the rest of the population Weapons also changed First the riﬂed gun barrel was introduced then the explosive shell that made old fortiﬁcations obsolete and ﬁnally the machine gun This changed large scale warfare from individual battles to a broad front with millions of soldiers opposing each other by World War I Formal education in technology prospered with the establishment of engineering colleges throughout the world By the end of the 19th century the world had changed In the devel oped nations agricultural societies had been replaced by industrial societies This volume examines technological devel opments during the era of the Industrial Revolution This period advanced society in ways not seen until the advent of the digital revolution A brief history of the Industrial Revolution ﬁrst provides contextual back ground technological achievements within individual classiﬁcations such as power tex tiles transport and communications and other industries follow and the volume con cludes with changes to labor and the workplace that were brought about by the Industrial Revolution 11

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