The article Who Invented the Steam Engine? by Elizabeth Palermo is a wonderful source showing why the steam engine was so important in the Industrial Revolution. Many strong points in the article show this importance. First, the steam engine solved the problem of "how to remove water from flooded mines." In the beginning of the Industrial Revolution many people "switched from wood to coal as their main source of fuel" making mines able to become much deeper, and dig into underground water sources. The steam engine saved the mines by pumping the the water out of them. Second, steam engines helped transport water from place to place, like being used "to drain wetlands, supply water to towns and even power factories and mills by pumping water from below a water wheel to above it for re-use." The steam engine was very efficient at moving water, which is very important for life everywhere. Third, the steam engine could use heat to power "mills, factories, breweries and a host of other manufacturing operations." The steam engine was the first machine that was able to automate manufacturing, which gave way for our society today. And fourth, the steam engine was used to power "trains, boats and railways." Before the steam engine, animal or manual labor was used for transportation, and it was very slow. The steam engine created a revolution in transportation as it took out the need for manual labor and was able to carry passengers and goods at a much faster rate.
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How did the Invention of the Steam Engine Change the way People Worked? by Joseph Cummins, is a strong article that conveys how the steam engine effected the world in the Industrial Revolution. It has many good points that show the impact of the steam engine. First, the steam engine "created new jobs for people and drew them to urban centers." The steam engine was able to automate new things that otherwise had to be done by hand, which created the need for factory working. With less work needed to be done in the fields or at workers' homes, and with more things being mass produced, many workers moved into factories. Second, the steam engine's creation of new technology made it so "a middle class sprang up" and more people became less poor. The creation of the steam engine gave way for regular citizens to get more than enough money than they needed. And third, although not very nice, the steam engine helped start the laboring class of children. As "children began working along with adults in textile mills" there was more labor, but the children did not get good treatment. Children working in mills and factories were not able to get a good education and they were paid much less than the adults. The steam engine was very impactful on the way people worked.
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