Chapter 17/ 3 questions

1. This economic transformation came to be because of a substantial increase in human numbers from about 375 million people in 1400 to about 1 billion in the early nineteenth century. Due to this large growth in population there was an emerging energy crisis, as wood and charcoal, the major industrial fuels, became scarcer, leading to the rise of their prices. In short, “global energy demands began to push against the existing local and regional ecological limits.” The Industrial Revolution marks a human response to that dilemma as nonrenewable fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas replaced the endlessly renewable energy sources of wind, water, wood, and the muscle power of people and animals. It was also a time for breakthrough in the agricultural department. Guano or seabird excrement became popular, and was used to make fertilizers, enriching the soils and allowing highly productive farming. 

 4. Britain was the most highly commercialized of Europe’s larger countries. They were much more concerned with observation, experiment, precise measurements, mechanical devices, and practical commercial applications. The Industrial Revolution destroyed old and created new ways in the social aspect of Britain. “In its initial stages it destroyed their old ways of living and left them free to discover or make for themselves new ones, if they could and knew how. But it rarely told them how to set about it.” Although there were many new opportunities presented it also created a lot of trauma and insecurity. Eventually the revolution led to a higher standard of living and more public participation. It was a bumpy road, but ultimately it was beneficial. 

7. By the end of the 19th century the industrial revolution was well under way in the United States and Russia. The United States large size, availability of natural resources, expanding market and political stability led the US to become the world’s leading industrial power by 1914. “The United States also pioneered techniques of mass production, using interchangeable parts, the assembly line, and “scientific management” to produce for a mass market.” Socialism in the US came to be viewed as “un-American” because the US valued individualism so much, this was a distinctive response to industrialization. Russia was very opposite, a monarchy exercised great control over individuals. “To many thoughtful Russians, serfdom seemed incompatible with modern civilization and held back the country’s overall development, as did its economic and industrial backwardness.” In the 1860’s Russia began a program of industrial development but it was a lot more heavily directed by the state. By 1900 Russia ranked number four in the world in steel production, focusing heavily on railroads and heavy industry. Russia was the only place where industrialization was linked with violent social revolution, the greatest distinctive feature of Russia’s development.