TABLE OF CONTENTS project (praj ekt, ikt) n. a proposal of something to be done; plan; scheme 2. an organized undertaking; specif., a) a special unit of work, research, etc., as in school, a laboratory, etc., b) an extensive public undertaking, as in conservation, construction, etc.
Webster s New World Dictionary
Sometime during the third millennium B.C., workers on the Great Pyramid of Cheops set the last stone in place. Certainly they must have felt jubilant, for this event represented a milestone of sorts in one of humanity s grandest undertakings. Although much of the ancient Egyptians technology is still a mystery, the enormity and quality of the finished product remains a marvel. Despite the lack of sophisticated machinery, they were able to raise and fit some 2,300,000 stone blocks, weighing 2 to 70 tons apiece, into a structure the height of a modern 40-story building. Each facing stone was set against the next with an accuracy of .04 inch, and the base, which covers 13 acres, deviates less than 1 inch from level (Figure 1-1). [1.]
Equally as staggering was the number of workers involved. To quarry the stones and transport them down the Nile, about 100,000 laborers were levied. In addition, 40,000 skilled masons and attendants were employed in preparing and laying the blocks and erecting or dismantling the ramps. Public works were essential to keep...
