“Ohhh… C’mon Uncle how much more do I have to wait, already 5 minutes have passed we are getting late for the for the walk Please, do it fast!” I saw my grand-daughter who has just turned 17, how impatient she was, though shopkeeper was struggling hard to get rid away from us.
I really sometimes wonder what it would be like if this “impatient child” would have been born with same impatience in the 17th-18Th century. Ohhh… almighty!! It’s even so hard to imagine, I have been seeing this change in the period when there was no technology, no factories to the flooding the markets everyday with something new that’s making human life much more easy than the latest it was.
Shopkeeper handed over the chilled vanilla ice-cream to Eda and we walked through the streets, the sun had set. Out of my curiosity I just asked Eda “What if there would have been no technology in your life, what if u would get the things you desire for after months?” Eda thought for a moment and replied “Grampy its weird, Life would be so impossible!” I wasn’t much surprised hearing this, as I was expecting only this from a 21st generation child, but I wanted her to think at least for a life, a world where there was no ease.
I told her to shut her eyes and make the portray of my words. I saw her face lightening up out of curiosity, she was getting so desperate to know of the world where there had been no technology and then how it all came up eventually, that I had to start up from the very beginning.
“Million years ago humans practically live the same day to day life until hundred years ago food was farmed for local population. Skillsets like creating clothing and tools were limited to within towns and most people lived a rural lifestyle, a child grow up in a world identical to that of his father. Nations change borders technology certainly improved but this was never enough to change the monotonous lifestyle of common.
In the 19th century Coal production skyrocketed. New inventions were born to harness the potential power in other innovations rapidly changed the scenario of European continent, then many farmers had moved out of the agriculture and moved to cities looking for variety of jobs, economics transformed media, medicine, transportation every aspect of how people conduct themselves was not just changed but it was reinvented, that was the Industrial Revolution.” I told her.
“What if industrial revolution had never been happened?” Eda asked as we were heading back to home. “Well! It didn’t just happen all in a one go, the change occurred gradually over decades it began in the United Kingdom around the 1760s.” Eda with a great doubt asked “Why just in UK Why not in any other part of the globe” I could see the interest see got so not to miss out that, I replied “The factors for an industrial transformation were perfectly in Britain in the 18th century.
There were two big events which set it up to prosper, The Industrial Revolution is not only the driver of population overshoot. The whole globe faced food production crises in the 1880’s when there was no technology and it couldn’t produce enough nitrogen fertilizer to recharge the soil, produce and feed billions of the people. So, primarily, Industrialization changed the aspects of agriculture; it allowed production of more food within less input.” She again asked “…and what was the second big event?”
“Economic, political and financial leniency allowed new entrepreneurs of Britain to venture forth with new ideas it was the cusp of a new age of capitalism, extremely high wages for the common Brit meant people had more money to spend on things that weren’t food or tools. A market for goods was created one which would be beneficial.
In 1712, Thomas Newcomen invented the new Cummins steam engine whose design went on to be improved by James Watt, it allowed to pump water out of coal mines and coal production increased. It could also be used to power machines that supported faster production of goods like textile, steels and natural resources. Steam Engines helped the industries in providing water and now were not limited to just river side. On trains and ships it transported the goods produced by these factories with a much fast speed. After this, Iron was discovered which led to the invention of more machines powered by steam which boomed the market, and the population of Britain became urbanized. This technological revolution spread across mainland Europe and into the America’s.
The second revolution brought the addition of new growth of population, electricity, war-weapons and other various new inventions sent Europe into the dominant power across the globe. Technology has changed the course of history, Eda hope you now have got a brief idea how it all happened gradually.” I asked.
Eda was in deep thought she replied “Means without the Industrialization, neither the world population nor development could possibly be the same as it is now. Without factories; automation, the automobile, planes, phones and my stylist dresses would have nothing. Science wouldn’t have improved so sporadically and no field would have been as far as it is today. The world population couldn’t be sustained. Have I got it Right Grampy??”
“Exactly!!! Otherwise we would have stuck at the equivalent, technological, economic, social and cultural level 17th-18th century. Everything would still be custom made by skilled and creative craftsmen i.e. the entire economy would all ‘be spoke’, and we would be spending days to do a work that now can be done within few minutes. It has saved our time, increased the wealth, production of goods and improved our Education and standard of living.
Although new methods and machinery simplified work and increased output. Every Coin has two phases just like Industrialization has introduced new problems as well. Air and water pollution, deforestation, extinction of species, excessive wastage of land, and soil contamination resulted in a deterioration of quality of life and life expectancy and socially who owned the means of production became disproportionality rich resulting in Income inequality further.” I explained.
“It was really very much interesting, Thanks Grampy ” she said to me.“Eda come for dinner, Girl” as her mom called her for dinner, she rushed to the dining room with a pride of knowledge that she has now and it makes me smile.
