Industrial Revolution Lecture Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards defining key terms, historical figures, and concepts related to the Industrial Revolution from the lecture notes.

Specialization

The practice of picking a small number of high-demand items and spending all productive work time on just those items, rather than trying to produce everything as a jack of all trades.

Rationalization

The process of organizing a production system logically and efficiently in advance to ensure smooth workflow and eliminate wasted steps or materials.

Arable land

Land that is suitable and usable for growing crops.

Commercial agriculture

A system of farming where producers specialize in a small number of items to produce a surplus to sell for cash, rather than growing food strictly to feed themselves and their families.

Coal

An energy source that replaced wood in industrial processes because it burns hotter and longer.

Technology in Industrialization

Inventions that come into widespread use to solve real economic problems, rather than serving as the original cause or driving force behind industrialization.

Flowbee

A vacuum-attached haircutting device used as an example of a frivolous technology that lacks a major economic impact.

Francis Cavitt Lowell and Samuel Slater

Individuals who constructed the first industrialized textile factory using power-driven looms rather than hand-powered looms.

Eli Whitney

The inventor who developed the original cotton gin.

Cotton gin

A simple device featuring rotating cylinders with saw blades that separate seeds from raw cotton, drastically increasing processing speed and profitability.