The Erie Canal and the transcontinental railroad helped industrial growth by making the shipping of goods and resources more efficient. These developments had several positive outcomes including:
1) Shipping goods became cheaper.
2) The amount of time it took to ship goods from city to city decreased.
3) Connecting cities/states that before these were made, had very limited opportunities to do business.
4) Allowing businesses to increase the amount of consumers they could sell their product to.
The most significant thing about Obama's election in 2008 was that he was the first black president to ever hold the presidency.