SORU: aşağıdaki parçaya göre cevaplayınız
One understands from the passage that, before the mid-nineteenth century, ----.
In the last third of the 19th century, new technologies
transformed the face of manufacturing in Europe,
leading to new levels of economic growth and
complex realignments among industry, labour and
national governments. Like Europe's first industrial
revolution, which began in the late 18th century and
centred on coal, steam and iron, this “second”
industrial revolution relied on innovation in three key
areas: steel, electricity, and chemicals. For instance,
steel, which was harder, stronger and more malleable
than iron, had long been used as a construction
material. But until the mid-nineteenth century,
producing steel cheaply and in large quantities was
impossible. That changed between the 1850s and
1870s, as new and different processes for refining
and mass-producing alloy steel revolutionized the
metallurgical industry. Although iron did not
disappear overnight, it was soon eclipsed by soaring
steel production. So, steel began to be used for
various purposes. In Britain, for example,
shipbuilders made a quick and profitable switch to
steel construction, and thus kept their lead in the
industry. Germany and the US, however, dominated
the rest of the steel industry. By 1901, Germany was
producing almost half as much steel as Britain and
was able to build a massive national and industrial
infrastructure.