Lesson 10: Inventions
The Industrial Revolution was a time of invention and innovation. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, there were few machines. Most work was done with tools and manual labor. The Industrial Revolution was the beginning of change in that respect. In this lesson, a few inventions will be introduced that came during this time period.
1794 - Perhaps the most influential invention that changed society in the United States was the invention of the cotton gin. In 1794, it was patented by Eli Whitney.
A patent is given by the government giving the person the rights to an invention. This includes building, creating, selling, and other rights. If "Billy" has the patent to an individualized jet pack, then "Jeff" cannot develop a jet pack too. If Jeff does, the jet pack he created can be taken and given to Billy to sell as his own, modify, or destroy.
The cotton gin separates cotton from its seeds. At the time of this invention, slavery had been dying out in the Americas. It cost a lot of money to produce cotton. With the invention of the cotton gin, however, it became much cheaper to produce cotton, particularly if the grower owned slaves. The began to be an increase in slavery again, which would continue up until the Civil War.
1844 - Samuel Morse built the first telegraph. This was not original. In Great Britain, they had used wires to send messages for over 50 years. The best thing, however, about Samuel Morse's telegraph was that he also created a way to send original messages. Messages in Great Britain had a particular code for a particular phrase, so both ends of the telegraph had to know that when there were two beeps it meant "The train will be late" or that sort of thing. Samuel Morse set up a code so that each letter had a signal, allowing a person to send a message like "The southbound train caught on fire and will not come until tomorrow." This type of message was far better than just hearing the train was going to be late and not knowing how long it would be until the next one. To learn how to understand Morse code, follow these instructions: http://www.learnmorsecode.com/
1844 - The sewing machine would make a huge difference in manufacturing of cloth and clothing. Read about the road to its invention here: http://inventors.about.com/od/sstartinventors/a/sewing_machine.htm. Read both pages dealing with the sewing machine.
1866 - Transatlantic Cable - Laying a cable across the floor of the Atlantic Ocean so that messages could be quickly sent from North America to Europe was quite an undertaking. In 1833, it would take a transatlantic liner 18 days to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Messages would take longer than that to be delivered, particularly if the recipient lived inland. The transatlantic cable allowed messages to be sent and received the same day. Read about it here: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-transatlantic-telegraph-cable-completed
1876 - Alexander Graham Bell would build upon the telegraph and invent the telephone. Watch and read about his discovery here: http://www.history.com/topics/inventions/alexander-graham-bell
1877 - Way before the MP3 player, the phonograph was invented as the first recording device. Read about the phonograph here: http://www.nps.gov/edis/learn/kidsyouth/the-phonograph.htm
1879 - The light bulb changed everything. With light bulbs, suddenly night time was not the end of the day. Read about Edison's success with the incandescent light bulb here: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/edison-demonstrates-incandescent-light
1794 - Perhaps the most influential invention that changed society in the United States was the invention of the cotton gin. In 1794, it was patented by Eli Whitney.
A patent is given by the government giving the person the rights to an invention. This includes building, creating, selling, and other rights. If "Billy" has the patent to an individualized jet pack, then "Jeff" cannot develop a jet pack too. If Jeff does, the jet pack he created can be taken and given to Billy to sell as his own, modify, or destroy.
The cotton gin separates cotton from its seeds. At the time of this invention, slavery had been dying out in the Americas. It cost a lot of money to produce cotton. With the invention of the cotton gin, however, it became much cheaper to produce cotton, particularly if the grower owned slaves. The began to be an increase in slavery again, which would continue up until the Civil War.
1844 - Samuel Morse built the first telegraph. This was not original. In Great Britain, they had used wires to send messages for over 50 years. The best thing, however, about Samuel Morse's telegraph was that he also created a way to send original messages. Messages in Great Britain had a particular code for a particular phrase, so both ends of the telegraph had to know that when there were two beeps it meant "The train will be late" or that sort of thing. Samuel Morse set up a code so that each letter had a signal, allowing a person to send a message like "The southbound train caught on fire and will not come until tomorrow." This type of message was far better than just hearing the train was going to be late and not knowing how long it would be until the next one. To learn how to understand Morse code, follow these instructions: http://www.learnmorsecode.com/
1844 - The sewing machine would make a huge difference in manufacturing of cloth and clothing. Read about the road to its invention here: http://inventors.about.com/od/sstartinventors/a/sewing_machine.htm. Read both pages dealing with the sewing machine.
1866 - Transatlantic Cable - Laying a cable across the floor of the Atlantic Ocean so that messages could be quickly sent from North America to Europe was quite an undertaking. In 1833, it would take a transatlantic liner 18 days to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Messages would take longer than that to be delivered, particularly if the recipient lived inland. The transatlantic cable allowed messages to be sent and received the same day. Read about it here: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-transatlantic-telegraph-cable-completed
1876 - Alexander Graham Bell would build upon the telegraph and invent the telephone. Watch and read about his discovery here: http://www.history.com/topics/inventions/alexander-graham-bell
1877 - Way before the MP3 player, the phonograph was invented as the first recording device. Read about the phonograph here: http://www.nps.gov/edis/learn/kidsyouth/the-phonograph.htm
1879 - The light bulb changed everything. With light bulbs, suddenly night time was not the end of the day. Read about Edison's success with the incandescent light bulb here: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/edison-demonstrates-incandescent-light
Assignment #10
1. Who had an American patent on the first practical sewing machine?
2. Who first developed and commercially sold the sewing machine?
3. Who messaged Queen Victoria when the first transatlantic cable was laid?
4. Where was the first telegraph message sent from?
5. Name two other inventions, besides the telephone, that Alexander Graham Bell helped invent or work on.
6. What kind of wire was used to transmit the first "phone call" (Bell to his assistant Watson)?
7. What led to Alexander Graham Bell's study of sound waves?
8. Name two recording devices that came between the phonograph and the MP3.
9. What was Thomas Edison working on when he invented the phonograph?
10. Where was the first demonstration of the incandescent light bulb?
11. How did the invention of the cotton gin affect history?
2. Who first developed and commercially sold the sewing machine?
3. Who messaged Queen Victoria when the first transatlantic cable was laid?
4. Where was the first telegraph message sent from?
5. Name two other inventions, besides the telephone, that Alexander Graham Bell helped invent or work on.
6. What kind of wire was used to transmit the first "phone call" (Bell to his assistant Watson)?
7. What led to Alexander Graham Bell's study of sound waves?
8. Name two recording devices that came between the phonograph and the MP3.
9. What was Thomas Edison working on when he invented the phonograph?
10. Where was the first demonstration of the incandescent light bulb?
11. How did the invention of the cotton gin affect history?