 The growth of railways and discovery of electricity took hold in Europe, North America, and its extended European outposts transforming them in modern industrialized societies while China remained unaffected, maintaining a stunted feudal agricultural society.China's failure to modernize resulted economic stagnation and decline leaving it vulnerable for the European colonial powers and Japan to exploit China.In addition, China also lacked the innovative capacity to modernize coupled with war, revolution, and invasions contributed to its economic decline and reduced its productive capabilities.