Praxis II World and US History Exam Prep

Answer : C - The widespread usage of the steam engine made it the primary source of energy during the first half of the Industrial Revolution.

Key Takeaway: A steam engine performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The idea of using water to power machines has a long history, and the water wheel was already in use at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. But once effective designs for using boiling water to produce motion were widely available, they enabled the beginning phase of the Industrial Revolution, starting with applications for removing mine water with vacuum engines. Electric turbines and the internal combustion engine did not into use until the latter half of the period.