Most of these guys were born and already famous before the steam engine patent - let alone the real industrial boon
The Wikipedia summary isn't wrong, it is just misleading. The inventions and innovations that lead to the industrial revolution were founded in the late 18C, but the real transformation was much later (although it did happen, comparatively, quickly)
It is a bit like saying that the 'Internet era' is from the 1950's, because that is when the integrated circuit was created
The environment of 1700 seems likely to share more characteristics with 1750 than 1600. Whether these people were famous during or _just before_ the IR does not change my point.
Steam engines were invented many times during and before the IR. What allowed the IR to happen was more likely coal, I think.
Comments
"The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century [...]"
Please excuse my quoting from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Revolution
So using 18th century people to illustrate that hereditary factors were not dominant pre-IR is a bit strange.
Most of these guys were born and already famous before the steam engine patent - let alone the real industrial boon
The Wikipedia summary isn't wrong, it is just misleading. The inventions and innovations that lead to the industrial revolution were founded in the late 18C, but the real transformation was much later (although it did happen, comparatively, quickly)
It is a bit like saying that the 'Internet era' is from the 1950's, because that is when the integrated circuit was created
The environment of 1700 seems likely to share more characteristics with 1750 than 1600. Whether these people were famous during or _just before_ the IR does not change my point.
Steam engines were invented many times during and before the IR. What allowed the IR to happen was more likely coal, I think.