The Impact of Technological Improvements: Examining the Cotton Gin Case Study

1. Are technological improvements always good?

2. One BAD Example…

3. Cotton Gin • Eli Whitney - 1793 • Increased demand for cotton • Textile mills in Europe and in the North • MUCH faster than by hand

4. Is Cotton the “fabric of our lives?” But what if it cost 100x more?

5. Cotton Craziness! • By 1850, cotton prices dropped to 1% of what they cost in 1784 • Why? • 1860 • Cotton = $191 million export • 2/3 of U.S. exports

6. Major Increase

7. Raw Cotton

9. http://cottonclassroom.com/videoofcottonbeingcleaned.html

10. Under Pressure • On their first day, slaves were often tested • Pick and clean cotton while being watched

11. Eli Whitney’s Next Big Thing • 1798 - accepted offer from Thomas Jefferson to make rifles for army • Wanted 10,000-15,000 rifles in two years • But how???

12. Instructions • Each paper must have: • BLUE square • BLACK triangle • RED circle • PURPLE stick figure • Folded in half • Stacked in a neat pile

13. Interchangeable Parts • Whitney used interchangeable parts to create the guns faster • Each person has specific task • Together they are assembled into a gun • Previously everything was done individually, but now it was assembly lines