Abstract
In commemoration of the centenary of Ferdinand de Lesseps’ death on 7 December 1894, an expanded version of the 1993 MIT BruneI Lecture delivered by Jean-Paul Calon is here reproduced. The benefits that humanity has derived from innovative large scale projects such as the Suez Canal – the product of Lesseps’ imagination and perseverance – are affirmed and the technological progress born out of this massive constructional effort is reviewed. Finally, a plea is made for a more visionary and enlightened outlook among contemporary engineers in the light of several macroengineering projects that are ripe for development and exploitation.
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