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Major Industries of Texas. Unit 13, Section One Notes. Free Enterprise System. Texas’ economy runs on a free enterprise system, meaning that people can own and run their own businesses with a limited amount of government interference.
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Major Industries of Texas Unit 13, Section One Notes
Free Enterprise System • Texas’ economy runs on a free enterprise system, meaning that people can own and run their own businesses with a limited amount of government interference. • Supply and demand is a big part of the free enterprise system, and it helps to decide if a company or industry will make a profit. • We are now part of a global economy, where businesses not only compete locally, but with companies in other states and countries.
NASA Opens in Houston, Texas Date: 1958 • During the Cold War, the U.S. and Russia competed in almost every way. After the Soviet Union launched their first satellite, known as Sputnik, the United States needed to catch up! • The government then created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to take over the U.S. space program. We all know it as NASA. • Houston was chosen as the headquarters for NASA, which brought many jobs and lots of recognition to the state of Texas!
Aerospace • NASA was created in 1958 and the Johnson Space Center, the headquarters for NASA, was built in Houston, Texas. • The 1000 acres set aside for the NASA buildings were donated by Rice University. It also supports the oil and gas industry because so much fuel is needed for launches and to create shuttles. • NASA was not created until Russia launched Sputnik during the Cold War. This scared the U.S.! NASA then had a goal, set forth by President John F. Kennedy, to send a man to walk on the moon. • The Johnson Space Center has improved space satellites and developed new technology that is still in demand today.
Aerospace • The International Space Station could be called the biggest scientific project in history. Led by the United States, the International Space Station unites scientists from 17 different countries. They work to research aspects of space exploration, and they also observe the Earth from their far off view. They can see changes in the environment caused by pollution and natural causes from space!
Aerospace Fun Facts • Sputnik was only in space for 98 minutes! • The Johnson Space Center was named after President Lyndon B. Johnson, a Texas native. • Over 3000 people work for NASA in Houston alone. • NASA has had an influence in Houston in many ways. The Astrodome was named for the Aerospace Industry in Texas. So was Astroturf, which was first used in the Astrodome!
Aerospace Sacrifice • Many astronauts, including ones from Texas, have died while attempting to do what many of us would never try: enter into space and explore the great unknown. • In 1986, the space shuttle Challenger left from Florida and exploded 73 seconds into its flight. A teacher was onboard, attempting to be the first civilian in space. • The shuttle Columbia was destroyed in 2003 as it tried to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere over Texas.
Walter Cunningham • He was aboard the first Apollo spacecraft to carry astronauts into space. He and three other astronauts successfully orbited the earth 163 times before returning safely after 11 days in space. • For his bravery, he earned the American Legion Medal of Valor.
Medical • The medical profession first became a huge industry in Texas beginning in the 1950’s and 1960’s. People from all over the world travel to Texas because of our very successful cancer and heart research facilities. • The M.D. Anderson Cancer Center was created by the Texas State Legislature in 1941. It is located in Houston and employs over 16,000 people. It is now one of the biggest and most respected research centers in the world.
Medical Some of the greatest medical advancements have been made in Texas. • Michael DeBakey was one of the first cardiovascular doctors to perform experimental surgeries on the heart and attempt to invent synthetic organs and blood vessels. He performed the first successful coronary bypass surgeries in Texas. • Denton Cooley, a doctor from Texas, performed the first human heart transplant in the U.S. in May of 1968 in Houston, Texas. He also installed the first ever artificial heart. He is still at the Texas Heart Institute in Houston today.
Dr. Michael DeBakey Dr. Denton Cooley
Benjy Brooks • Benjy Brooks was the first woman to become a pediatric surgeon in the state of Texas. • She worked at both the Texas Children’s Hospital and St. Joseph’s Hospital in Houston. • She did research on all types of illness!
High Tech Many technological advancements have been made in Texas by Texans! • The “computer chip” or the integrated silicon circuit that runs almost all computer games and hand-held devices was invented by a man named Jack Kilby in 1958. As a professor at Texas A&M and an engineer at Texas Instruments, he also invented the portable calculator. Because of his chip, the U.S. was able to launch small satellites into space. He won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his efforts.
High-Tech Two very advanced High-Tech companies call Texas home. • Texas Instruments is based in Dallas, Texas. Originally started as an exploration service for oil companies, TI started making electronics for the army in World War II. Jack Kilby helped Texas Instruments grow into the computer and semiconductor giant it is today. • At the age of 18, Michael Dell used $1000 to start his own business of making people personal computers. He founded Dell Computers in Austin, Texas in 1984, and it has since produces the largest number of personal computers in the world. They have made over $32 billion and Dell employs 38,000 in Texas.
Tourism We all know that Texas is awesome, and know people come from all over the world to see why! • In 1950, tourism was Texas’ fifth largest industry, but now it is the 2nd largest! Tourism allows for thriving restaurants, hotels, and amusement parks. • San Antonio is one of the most popular cities in Texas, probably because of the Alamo. Over 2.5 million people a year come from all over the world to see the Alamo. They also visit the River Walk, Sea World, and Six Flags Fiesta Texas.
Tourism • Texas is also home to not one, but two presidential libraries! Each president erects a library after their term in office is over. Lyndon B. Johnson Library is at the University of Texas in Austin. It is the only free presidential library, so you don’t have to pay a fee to visit. George Bush Sr. has his Presidential Library at the campus of Texas A&M in College Station. A third library is about to be built for President George W. Bush near Dallas, Texas. • Texas is also visited often for our National Parks. Parks like Bastrop State Park and Seminole Canyon offer visitors places to hike, bike, and camp.
Presidential Libraries Lyndon B. Johnson Library George Bush Sr. Library
State Parks Bastrop State Park Seminole Canyon State Park
Oil and Gas The oil business exploded in Texas after the discovery of oil at Spindletop on January 10, 1901. • Often called Texas Gold, petroleum has brought economic prosperity to Texas off and on for the last 100 years. It has changed the shape of countless towns throughout the state.
OPEC Oil Embargo and 2nd Texas Oil Boom Date: 1973 – 1982 • In 1973, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (also known as OPEC) banned shipments of oil to the U.S. for political reasons. This drove up the price of oil substantially and caused gas shortages throughout the nation.
OPEC Oil Embargo and 2nd Texas Oil Boom Continued… • Though it hurt the national economy, Texas oil companies made a killing! People working for the oil companies also made large profits. • Eventually, this second oil boom ended like the first. Increased production led to a drop in prices. Supply exceeded demand. More than 200,000 people in Houston alone lost their jobs. This also led to a bust in the real estate market!
Real Estate 1970’s to Present • In the 1970’s, unemployment was low in Texas. Because of this, real estate was in demand and more buildings were built. • Then, unemployment increased in the 1980’s and the real estate market decreased. • This kind of boom and bust cycle continues in Texas with the real estate market.
Banking • After the Great Depression, the government took steps to ensure that another depression would not happen. Laws were passed to make sure that businesses were being run in an honest way. • By the year 2000, the economy in Texas was booming and loans were taken out by people to buy homes, cars, and commercial property. • Then, the economy slowed down and people couldn’t pay those loans back. • It came out that many banks were giving loans to people who couldn’t afford them in the first place! • This is an ongoing situation for the state and the country.
Agriculture • Agriculture has always been an important source of jobs in the state of Texas. • Texas agriculture has grown to include cotton, rice, sugar, vegetables, fruits, cattle, poultry, and timber. We sell to many other states and countries throughout the world. • Texas now has the third largest fruit industry in the United States!
Agriculture Continued… Agriculture is successful in Texas due to many technological advancements. • Barbed Wire • Windmills • Irrigation • Tractors and other mechanized devices • Soil conservation
