Fossil fuels. For thousands of years, people made things with their hands. They used the power of the wind, water, and animals to travel, move, or build things. Most people burnt wood to heat their homes and to cook. Then, in October 1765, a young engineer called James Watt built a machine that changed the world a steam engine. To make a steam engine work, coal is burnt to heat water, and this makes steam. The steam goes into the engine and moves the parts inside it. There were steam engines before 1765, but Watt's new engine worked much better and could move big machines in factories. Soon people began to build factories everywhere.