The first human industry was agriculture.
Most developing countries still
depend on agriculture as their main
industry.
Another early industry was mining, or
the removal of metals and other materials
from the earth. Since prehistoric
During the Industrial Revolution people
invented looms that ran on steam or other
power sources. These power looms wove
cloth faster than ever before.
Manufacturing plants produce many different
kinds of products, including foods and
beverages.
134 Industry BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
times humans have mined metals to
make tools and other goods.
Manufacturing industries make goods
from the raw materials produced by
agriculture and mining. Manufacturers
make such everyday items as clothing,
cars, computers, paper, and processed
food. Another manufacturing industry is
construction. Construction workers
build houses, office buildings, roads,
bridges, and sewers.
Service industries dominate the economies
of developed countries.Workers in
service industries do not provide actual
goods. Instead they perform actions.
Teachers, car mechanics, barbers, housepainters,
bankers, and actors are all in
service industries. One of the most
important service industries is telecommunications.
By connecting telephones
and computers, telecommunications
allows people to talk across great distances.
#More to explore
Agriculture • Economics
• Manufacturing • Mining
• Telecommunication
Indus Valley
Civilization
One of the first civilizations in the world
developed in the valley of the Indus
River in Asia. It occupied both sides of
what is now the border between Pakistan
and India. The Indus Valley civilization
lasted from about 2500 BC to about
1700 BC.
Society and Culture
The biggest cities of the Indus Valley
civilization were Harappa and Mohenjodaro.
Both were in what is now Pakistan.
Harappa might have had as many
as 35,000 people. Mohenjo-daro was
even larger. There were also at least 60
smaller settlements along the Indus
River and the Arabian Sea.
Farming was important to the Indus
Valley civilization. People ran water
channels from rivers to the fields. The
Indus people were among the first to
grow cotton and use it to make cloth.
They also might have been the first
people to raise chickens.
Indus merchants used carved stones
called seals to mark their goods. Many
seals show pictures of animals and a
form of writing. These seals have been
found in Mesopotamia (in what is now
The people of the Indus Valley carved many
objects, including mazes and dice.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Indus Valley Civilization 135
Iraq). This means that the two regions
might have traded with each other.
History
Beginning in about 5000 BC, farmers
near what is now Iran began to gather in
villages. In about 3500 BC settlers began
to move eastward into the Indus Valley.
By about 2500 BC the Indus Valley civilization
had developed at Harappa and
other sites. Scholars do not know much
about Indus Valley history because they
do not understand the writing system.
The Indus Valley civilization probably
broke down in stages between 2000 BC
and 1700 BC. Some historians blame
invaders from the west, probably a
group known as Aryans. Climate
change, floods, and diseases also might
have hurt the civilization.
#More to explore
Civilization • Indus River
Influenza
Influenza, or flu, is a common illness of
the respiratory, or breathing, system.
Germs called viruses cause influenza.
The viruses invade the nose, throat, and
lungs.
The signs of influenza come on suddenly.
They include body aches, chills,
and fever. The person also may cough
and sneeze and have a sore throat.
People with influenza often become very
tired. Some may have a headache. After
three or four days most people start to
get better. But flu can be a serious danger
to people who are very old or very
young or have other health problems.
Such people can get pneumonia and
bronchitis.
Influenza viruses come in many types.
The most dangerous types can kill even
young and healthy people. Luckily, they
do not cause outbreaks very often. But
in 1918–19 an outbreak of influenza
A seal often had animal pictures and writing
carved into it.
Temporary hospitals took in many influenza
patients during the 1918–19 outbreak.
136 Influenza BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
killed more than 20 million people
throughout the world.
People with influenza should get plenty
of rest and drink lots of fluids. In the
late 20th century scientists developed
medicines to treat influenza.
People can protect themselves from
influenza viruses by getting a shot of a
substance called a vaccine. Because the
viruses change constantly, a person must
get a vaccination every year to stay protected.
#More to explore
Pneumonia • Respiratory System
• Vaccine • Virus
Inquisition
In the 1200s the Roman Catholic
church set up a court called the Inquisition.
The Inquisition examined people
accused of heresy, or going against
church teachings.
The officials in charge of the Inquisition
were called inquisitors. Inquisitors first
gave an accused person a chance to confess.
Some inquisitors tortured people to
get them to confess. Even innocent
