Industrial
Revolution-Change Agent of the
World.
How
It Began:
Johannes Gutenberg blazed
the trail,
fired the printing
revolution
salvo,
fusillade that ignited
socio-political adventure
in Europe.
Adventure that birthed
renaissance,
nurtured reformation,
hand-reared enlightenment,
finally stopped at the
great-
terminus,
Europe’s Industrial Revolution
Bus Stop.
Industrial Revolution-vehicle-
that transported Europe
from
agrarian society to industrial
world,
trajectory that launched
Europe from a feudal state
to
a representative
democracy.
Revolution that rescued
Europe from shackles of
questionable religious
dogmas
to research-based-
scientific-proven matters,
previously left to the
Church to decide.
What the Few Did to
Change the World-
From hand-woven cloth,
mankind moved to spinning
machines,
thanks to James Hargreaves’
spool thread machine that
simplified
loom-for-weaving;
just as Abraham Darby’s
coke fuel method of iron
casting,
made iron purification by
charcoal system obsolete.
Iron! Iron!! Iron!!!
From time long past
iron was breastwork of
economic development,
from simple household
wares
to the fortified city
walls, and
from military equipment
to
wagon production owed
existence to iron.
Just like old world
depended on
iron for development,
same iron through
“a decarbonization
process” of
mass production pioneered
by
Henry Bessemer
created
a new industrial world.
A world every sector
stands upon iron;
a world iron becomes
indispensable with a
commanding lead,
a world iron leads,
others follow.
Transportation sectors-
waterways, land, and
railroads-
became immediate
beneficiaries of
iron production;
steam engines from
the likes of
Thomas NewComen,
James Watts,
and Robert Fulton
transformed
transportation beyond
human imagination;
revolution that soon
changed trans-Atlantic
crossing,
invention that later
changed
sea voyages.
Coach-drawn-locomotive-engine-
on-rail-track debuted,
handiworks of
George Stephenson and
Richard Trevithick;
macadam or
road construction and
bridge building by John McAdam
followed as foot and
pathways
gave way to highways,
flyovers,
and overpasses.
Bridges over rivers to
span
physical obstacles
eventuated,
canal dredging by Thomas Telford
created man-made-waterway
that link rivers and seas
for easy
transportation of goods
and
services.
Yesterday’s Inventions:
The Joy of Today
New communication system
of
message encoding to message
transfer, and decoding
radically transformed human
society;
telephone-electrical
speech
transmitting device-
enchantment from Alexander
Graham Bell,
heralded modern man that
could
communicate with an out-of-sight
fellow receiver.
Like its twin sister,
telegraph took man several
steps forward,
just as “harmonic
telegraphy”
another wonder from
Alexander Graham Bell,
a multi-message-transmitting
device,
written-message-by-wire-system
became most outstanding
change
agents of the 20th
century.
With voice-turned-
electrical-signal-medium,
the telephone and
coded-message-medium,
the telegraph,
foundation for information
technology was laid,
mankind was just only few
decades away to conquer
the world by means of
information superhighway.
Electricity-light in
homes-
light on streets and
neighborhood,
light in factories,
light in everywhere;
thanks to Thomas Alva Edison,
thank to your lamp.
Mankind little moon at night
and
the little sun during the
day;
Edison-your filament-designed
bulb,
the “carbonized sewing
thread”
lit the world,
displaced the wick-inserted-wax-
produced-candle.
Yes, your bulb overthrown-
still and moveable lanterns-
more so, your lamp or
globe
inspired many;
not until incandescent
light bulb
invented,
not until wide range bulb
sizes, volts, and output
accomplished;
tasks of several years.
Wilbur and Orville Wright-
two great brothers from
Dayton, Ohio,
the world of mankind
will ever be grateful
to your tenacity of
purpose,
as you conquered airspace
by flying a suspended
metal bird.
Neither will humankind
forget
George Eastman
in a hurry,
the man that perfected
camera obscura,
object that created images
on
room walls by means of
pinhole when light
reflected.
Fewer they were,
but very great were their
accomplishments,
industrial revolution
created several templates,
patterns others soon followed
to replicate and to
improve
on what makes man a unique
creation.
The world of humankind may
spin in mire of greed,
gyrates in all form of
corrupt practices,
swings in hate, cause
bloodshed
created partially, or wholly
through the effects of industrial
revolution.
Still world cannot dismiss
the
benefits of this
revolution,
neither will the world
say:
it needs no more
scientific
revolutions.
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