Three, Two, One

Three Things That I Have Learned:
1. The inventions created during the Industrial Revolution were among the most important inventions ever created.

2. Things sometimes work better when written on paper rather than when they are actually in use. Example: Communism.

3. When people come together and fight for something there is a very high chance that they will get what they want. Example: Women's rights and unions.

Two Things That I Found Interesting:
1. Even though the living conditions were poor, people worked long hours, wages were low, and young children worked, somehow the standard of living increased.

2. When working in a factory, women only made a third of what men made.

One Question I Still Have:
1. Why did people wait so long before forming unions? If they would have reformed sooner would they have gotten the same result?

Connection Across Time

Communism

 Karl Marx created and idea called communism which is a from of complete socialism where the people control the production side of things. This includes all land, mines, factories, railroads, and businesses. There is no such thing as private property and all goods and services would be shared equally. The government, however, is controlled by one central power which controls everything else. Communism still exits in few countries today. North Korea is still practicing communism at this very moment along with Cuba, Vietnam, and China.

Unionization

Union members took part in negotiations between workers and their employers. This was called collective bargaining. The workers bargained for better working conditions and higher wages. If the employers did not give them what they wanted, the workers would refuse to work and go on strike.By 1886, several unions joined together and formed the American Federation of Labor. They were successful after a series of strikes, receiving higher wages and shorter hours.

I believe that this was a great idea that the people made. If you do not go against something that is wrong, in this case the long hours and small pay, it will never change. People worked together and stuck together and got what they wanted, what was right. 

Connection Across Time

The Deep Green Underwater Kite
A Swedish company named Minesto has created a "kite" that swoops and dives in ocean currents to produce energy. Seawater is 800 times denser than air so the turbines on the kites can make 800 times more energy. Even in calm water the kites can produce 500 kilowatts of power. This new way to create power could increase the market for tidal power by 80%. The invention will change the way we generate power forever.

The Steamboat

Robert Fulton, who was an American inventor, ordered a steam engine from James Watt and Matthew Boulton who were building them at the time. With this, Fulton built a steamboat. He named it the Clermont and it carried passengers up and down the Hudson River. Water transportation began improving with the creation of a network of canals in England. By the mid 1800s, 4,250 miles of inland channels drastically cut the cost of transporting raw materials.

The Flying Shuttle

John Kay, a machinist, created a shuttle that moved quickly back and forth on wheels. The flying shuttle was a boat-shaped piece of wood that yarn was attached to. This little invention enabled weavers to weave faster and doubled the amount of work that a person could do in a day.

The Cotton Gin

Eli Whitney, an American inventor, invented a machine to speed up the process of making cotton, the cotton gin. Removing seeds from the raw cotton by hand was hard work and not a quick process. By creating this machine, he multiplied the amount of cotton that could be cleaned. From 1790 to 1810, cotton production increased an astounding 83.5 million pounds in America.