The Industrial Revolution and its Impact
The paper will address how changes in economics, immigration, as well as religion and culture, resulted from the industrial revolution in the United States. It also finds significant migration hubs and the causes of the population shift from rural to urban areas. The paper concludes by comparing and contrasting the industrial revolution with the current tech boom. Notably, the industrial revolution, which took place between the 17th and 18th centuries, is the most significant occurrence in human history. Through the increased use of factories, power, mass production, and specific purpose machinery, the revolution advanced the economy and technology. The development of the steam engine, along with textile and iron industries played significant roles which resulted in improved systems of communication, banking, and transportation. Tech boom also referred to as the third industrial revolution has similarities and differences with the industrial revolution.
Economic, Migration, Religion, and Culture
Economic, migration, religion, and culture are some of the transformations which occurred during the industrial revolution. The economic activities in many communities shifted from agriculture to manufacturing which contributed to change in traditional locations which were home base to a small workshop and eventually to factories (Nardo, 2015). A large number of people migrated from the countryside to the cities and towns where manufacturing was taking place. The goods and services produced expanded intensely, and there was growth in per capital investment proportion per worker. The gross domestic product increased dramatically compared to its growth prior the industrial revolution which was more stable and progressed at a slower rate. The immigrants who came to the United States introduced new machinery which includes the spinning mill which fueled development in technology after merging with the domestic skills. The people who moved to the cities were from different communities who varied concerning religion and culture. As a result, there was the loss of religious and cultural norms since there were fewer people to identify with regarding religion and culture for the individuals in the cities differed greatly in origin. The minority culture was assimilated into the dominant culture in the towns.
The Shift from Rural to Urban Areas
The key locations where migration took place during the industrial revolution were from rural to urban areas and also from one country to the other. The United States was changed from a predominately countryside agrarian society to an industrial economy centered with large urban cities (Kim, 2015). Before the revolution era, most Americans lived in separate agricultural households and small towns that were related to the external world through the use of horse-drawn carts. The rural communities were self-sufficient in clothing, food, and other fundamentals of everyday life. Some of the reasons for the population shift from rural area to cities where to find employment and a better way of life. As a result of poor working conditions, sanitation, and housing in the countryside many people preferred to migrate to the urban sectors which had better standards of living. Manufacturing enterprises were concentrated in rapidly growing cities such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Buffalo, Detroit, San Francisco and Cleveland. The cities developed in technology and innovation, transportation human resource and education making them more desirable for people to live in them. Other people would move from one country to another due to poverty in their native land hoping to find a better life. In other cases, emigrants had no choice since they were transported as a punishment to serve as laborers.
Similarities and Differences with the Tech Boom
The industrial revolution has a close similarity with the Tech boom of the current history. The first similarity is that the industrial revolution brought about efficiency in production which resulted in economic growth worldwide while Tech Boom is bringing profound changes of its own which are changing the world for a time of information age. Secondly, industrial revolution brought about the change in production methods from handmade to machine-made production, improved efficiency of water power, increased usage of steam power and development of machine tools (Russell, 2013). Similarly, the tech boom has brought about mass production of digital logic circuits and its derived technologies like the fax machine, computer, and digital cellphone. The tech boom has made it easier and faster to obtain information than it was before. Another similarity is the effect that they both had or continue to have on the economy. The industrial revolution marked an extraordinary change in history with sustained growth in average income while tech boom has brought about the internet which has made it easy to do business in a global market efficiently. Nevertheless, there are some major variations between the two. While the Industrial Revolution began the process which has created full-scale health issues and considerably damaging the environment, the tech boom adverse effects have come at a much more individual level through creating little space for private lives to escape from work and social pressures.
References
Kim, S. (2015). Immigration, industrial revolution and urban growth in the United States, 1820-1920. Cambridge, Mass.: National Bureau of Economic Research.
Nardo, D. (2015). The industrial revolution in the United States. Detroit: Lucent Books.
Russell, C. (2013). The Technology Boom in the United States of America. New York: Plenum Press.
