"Industrial Revolution", in my opinion, is not a correct term. It makes it sound as though the whole thing happened at once, which it did not. It was rather an industrial evolution, or better yet an industrial chain reaction. One event impacted others and these changes impacted yet others. There were many important inventions during this time period. These inventions all made life a little easier for the people living during this time. There was an increasing demand for new material for clothing. The invention of the spinning jenny and powered loom made this possible. Steam engines provided power for machines. The cotton gin was another important invention. The Cotton gin made it possible to make clothes out of cotton, instead of the scratchy wool that clothes had always been made out of. Railroads were a very important invention during this century. Before the railroad was invented, people who lived away from their families never saw them. There simply was no easy way for them to visit. By 1869, railroads could go coast to coast in six and a half days. This is one way that the Industrial Revolution impacted social aspects of people's lives. The Industrial Revolution did not only provide positive changes. There were also many negative changes. However, when you"re dealing with something that is going to change people's lives to this degree, some downfalls can be expected. The industrial revolution contributed to immigrants coming to our country. Many immigrants came from Southern and Eastern Europe. This affected the lives of people because there were foreigners living in their country. Some would construe this as a bad thing. Some would consider this a good thing. The facts remain the same. Having foreigners in the country did put a bit of a strain on the economic resources. However, they were contributing to economic growth. They came over in search of freedom, which they received.