Building the World: An Encyclopedia of the Great Engineering Projects in History [2 Volumes]Bloomsbury Academic, 2006 M06 30 - 937 pages Humans are builders--we make structures to span rivers, to connect points of land, to offer shelter. Indeed, throughout history, civilizations have created structures of such immense scale, requiring such tremendous resources, that they might have been thought impossible. From the Taj Mahal to the Suez Canal, from Solomon's Temple to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, these feats of macro-engineering are a testament to the creativity and foresight of engineers, architects, government officials, and diplomats. Who came up with the ideas for these projects? How did they see them through to completion? What obstacles--diplomatic, legal, logistical, and engineering--had to be overcome for these structures to be built? What impact did these engineering projects have on the economies and cultures of their societies? This encyclopedia answers all these questions, showing how central these great engineering projects are to the history of civilization. It includes the legal documents that launched them. Building the World comprises detailed entries on over forty of the most important engineering projects in world history, such as: BL Washington D.C.: A "master-planned" city created to house the government of the new country of the United States BL Eiffel Tower: The construction of this now-iconic feature of Paris was protested by such leading French figures as writers Emile Zola and Alexandre Dumas BL The Channel Tunnel: While the actual tunnel was not completed until 1993, the idea of a tunnel under the English Channel was considered as early as 1802 by Napoleon. The rich, detailed illustration of some 75 architectural drawings and images documents the most important structures ever built. Each entry includes a detailed history of the planning and construction of the project, and a discussion of its subsequent importance. A unique feature of the encyclopedia is an extensive primary source collection that illustrates how the decision to create such a structure came to be, demonstrating the importance of individuals in imagining, planning, and building some of the most famous engineering landmarks in the world. |
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aforesaid agreement al-Mansur amended amount appointed apportioned approved aqueduct Article bonds building built Canadian Pacific Railway Canal Zone centum Colombia Colorado River Colorado River compact commissioners Company completed Congress construction contract cost court cubits Cyrene dikes Documents duties Eiffel Eiffel Tower emperor ending June 30 engineering Erie Canal established Federal Federal-aid highway feet Ferdinand de Lesseps fiscal year ending funds further enacted gate Government Grand Canal granted hereafter highway department interest Interstate System June 30 kilometers labor Lake land Lesseps London Bridge maintenance memorialist ment meters miles million necessary operation Panama Canal payment port President purposes railroad Republic of Panama road route Secretary of Agriculture Secretary of Commerce ships Singapore Suez Canal Taj Mahal telegraph temple territory thereof tion tolls Tower Treasury treaty United vessels Washington York
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