Innovations That Brought Breakthroughs and Increased Labor Productivity During the First Industrial Revolution.
We are entering the Fourth Industrial Revolution, also known as the digital revolution, with modern technologies that promise to change the economic and social landscape of humanity.
However, all these advancements might not have become a reality if humanity had not undergone a significant transformation that lasted from the mid-18th century to the early 19th century.
During this period, the world produced a series of renowned scientists such as Isaac Newton, James Watt, and Thomas Edison, who made great discoveries in mathematics, physics, and chemistry, laying the knowledge foundation for advancements in manufacturing.
Below are five of the top inventions that led to breakthroughs and increased labor productivity, contributing to humanity’s progress toward industrialization and modernization.
1. Steam Engine
Invented by: James Watt, Scotland
James Watt from Scotland and the invention of the steam engine.
The steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work by using steam to convert it into mechanical energy. It is also known as an external combustion engine, distinguishing it from later internal combustion engines.
Before the steam engine was invented, transportation still relied on horse-drawn vehicles, and heavy industries such as mining and manufacturing depended on human labor. This method was generally inefficient and had many downsides.
With the creation of the first steam engine, James Watt revolutionized the face of humanity in general and England in particular. There, humans were no longer “energy sources,” but instead became operators of machines capable of working more efficiently.
In 1860, Lancashire—a city in England—contributed half of the world’s cotton fabric production. England was recognized as the strongest and richest industrial country, often referred to as the “workshop of the world.”
Subsequent improved versions of the steam engine replaced a large amount of manual labor in factories, creating locomotives, cargo ships, and steam turbines.
2. Canning
Invented by: Nicolas Appert
Workers sealing and canning food in France in 1870.
Looking at a modern kitchen, we can see a particularly useful invention that emerged from the First Industrial Revolution: food preservation technology.
In 1795, a French chef named Nicolas Appert was intrigued by a prize offered for anyone who could find a way to preserve food for transport over several days.
At that time, food could be preserved through methods such as drying and fermentation, but these methods did not retain flavor and were not 100% effective.
Appert spent 14 years solving this puzzle. Eventually, he successfully developed a technique for preserving cooked food by placing it in jars and sealing them tightly.
He then boiled the jars in water to create a vacuum that prevented the food from coming into direct contact with oxygen in the air, allowing it to be preserved longer.
3. Telegraph
Invented by: Samuel Morse
A telegraph machine using Morse code for communication.
Before the era of smartphones and laptops, people used technology for communication through an invention known as the telegraph.
The telegraph was invented in the 1830s by Samuel Morse. At that time, Morse discovered that he could communicate with his friends by transmitting electrical signals through connected wires.
Seeing the potential of this method, he invented a code using dots and dashes, known as Morse code, to facilitate sending messages.
The method was simple: you just had to turn the switch on and off in the correct “rhythm” to transmit a predetermined short message. In this code, the duration of a dash is three times that of a dot.
Besides using electric current, Morse code can also be applied to radio waves, visible light, or sound waves.
The strong development of this method in the 1840s even helped create the first electronic news service in the U.S., Associated Press. Morse’s invention also connected communication between America and Europe—a global feat at that time.
4. Phonograph
Invented by: Thomas Edison
The phonograph is one of Thomas Edison’s great inventions.
Until Edison introduced his invention, there was no way to record songs or even a piece of music. The only way to enjoy music was to listen live.
Thomas Edison changed this with a very simple but highly effective idea. The key was to use a needle to create grooves on a music disc based on variations in sound signals.
In the phonograph, sound is processed in reverse, converting mechanical impulses into small sound signals, which are then amplified through speakers.
5. Photography
Invented by: Louis Daguerre
One of the photos taken in 1838 by inventor Louis Daguerre showing a scene of a street in France.
Although the first camera was created a long time ago, the concept of photography only truly emerged in the 1830s.
At that time, Louis Daguerre—a French physicist—along with his collaborator, Joseph Nicéphore, is considered one of the first to invent the daguerreotype, the first form of modern photography.
This was a direct positive process that created high-detail images on a copper plate coated with a thin layer of silver, polished to a mirror finish. The remarkable aspect of this method is that it does not require the use of negatives.
After exposure to light, the copper plate was heated over hot mercury until the images appeared. To fix them, Daguerre dipped the plate in sodium thiosulfate solution and then polished it with gold chloride.
Daguerre’s invention is seen as a significant contribution to contemporary culture, creating opportunities for the middle class to obtain affordable portraits.
