Glossary

Adit – opening in side of mine in order to drain water, later replaced by steam-powered pump.

Capitalism – economic system in which initial funds, or “capital” are invested in industrial production, with the object of receiving profit.

Commodity – trade item whose quality is not really distinguishable from that of any other; labor became a commodity during the Industrial Revolution because the new machines did not distinguish very much by skill level but only by physical capability.

Enlightenment – European school of thought that arose after the Renaissance; praises reason and logic above faith and tradition.

Factory – a localized area, usually a single building, where goods are produced using a standardized and mechanized process. Characterised by the production of good in an assembly-line fashion rather than one at a time.

Industry – a system that produces one important product in large quantities, using modern machinery and production techniques.

Inflation – economic trend where there is more currency available and its value is reduced.

Laissez-faire – a governmental policy toward a capitalist economy, in which the workings of the market are not interfered with by the government, but are controlled only by the interaction of supply and demand.

Machine tools – machines used in factory production to ensure that everything produced was identical. These machines performed one action continually, working over each product in the same way, so that each item had standard qualities.

Mine – area where natural resources, such as coal, are removed from the ground for use.

Natural Capitalism – New movement in economic thought; emphasizes importance of natural and human resources.

Piston – in an engine valve, this blocks the passage of air. When (in a steam engine) the water inside the lower chamber expands to form steam, this is pushed up, and the kinetic energy of this motion can be used to do work.

Revolution – a relatively sudden, substantial, and significant change.

Romanticism – Reaction to the Enlightenment; emphasizes imagination, emotion, tradition, and beauty.

Rotary engine – a steam engine that converts the up-and-down motion of a piston into a circular motion like that of a wheel.

Socialism – economic system in which industrial operation belongs to the people in general.

Steel – an alloy of iron and carbon in varying ratios that can be made strong yet rigid.

Steam Power – the use of water's property of expanding when heated to cause physical motion, like that of a piston. This kinetic energy can be harnessed for use in pumps as well as in rotary form (to produce a circling motion, like that which is necessary to make a wheel turn).

Transcendentalism – American incarnation of Romanticism, additionally stressed religious values and personal relationship with God.