A How-To Manual for the Megacity
an IEEE Spectrum Special Report

Engineering The Megacity
Urban living has its advantages, but the challenges are formidable. Here’s a how-to manual of technology solutions.

PERSPECTIVES

Megacities by the Numbers

The biggest, smallest, richest, poorest, most polluted, and best connected in the world.
How to Measure a City's Metabolism

Like most cities, London consumes more than its fair share.
How to See the Unseen City

A veritable museum of forgotten infrastructure lies buried beneath a city's streets.
How to Build a Mile High Skyscraper

Behemoth buildngs are becoming practical, thanks to new technologies and innovations in construction materials.
How Not to Make a Megacity

On a good day, Lagos is exasperatingly corrupt, poverty-ridden, and dangerous.
How to Design a Perfect City

Paolo Soleri imagines systems as intricate and insular as ocean liners
Life in the Megacity: A Photo Essay

How to Build a Green City

The city of the future—a sustainable future—is being built on an island off the coast of Shanghai.
Commentary: Urban planner Richard Register

Is Shanghai's imaginative eco-city master plan imaginative enough?
Slideshow: Scenes of Shanghai
To Probe Further

Where to find out more about Shanghai, Dongtan, and sustainable megacity development.

How to Keep 18 Million People Moving

São Paulo's sprawling network of busways offers a new take on an old mass-transit option.
Q&A With Darío Hidalgo

Colombian transportation expert Darío Hidalgo reveals how Bogotá built one of the world’s best bus rapid transit systems
Slideshow: Scenes of São Paolo
To Probe Further

Where to find out more about São Paolo's mass-transit system and other transportation options for megacities.

How to Blackout-Proof a City

Mumbai has enjoyed plentiful and reliable power for a century. But this year, it might be lights out.
Q&A with Tata Power's Gerry F. Grove-White

Listen or read along as Spectrum's Harry Goldstein interviews Tata Power Co.'s executive director about Mumbai's current power crisis.
Tata Power Co.’s Islanding Scheme

The company explains its islanding scheme designed to isolate its power grid and prevent blackouts.
Slideshow: Scenes of Mumbai
Audio Q&A: Clinton Andrews on urban planning and electricity

Mr. Andrews, a former member of the IEEE Board of Directors, is a professor of urban planning and policy development at Rutgers University.
Audio Q&A: Rangan Banerjee on Mumbai's power crisis

Rangan Banerjee is a professor of mechanical engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay.
To Probe Further

Where to find out more about Mumbai and its islanding scheme for power grids.

How to Master a Seismic Disaster

When the next big earthquake strikes Tokyo, an early-warning system could help save lives and property.
A Brief History of Earthquake Warnings

The idea of using seismic waves to provide advanced warning of impending doom dates back to 1868.
Slideshow: Scenes of Tokyo
To Probe Further

Where to find out more about Tokyo, disaster preparedness, and early warning systems.

How to Fight Crime in Real Time

Integrated databases and a central control center have enabled New York City's police to cut reaction times and speed investigations.
Slideshow: Building a Megacity

Archival photographs document New York City’s growth as it builds itself into a megacity.
Slideshow: Scenes of New York City
To Probe Further

Where to find out more about New York City's high-tech crime center.