What drives the mega-project boom? Why are megaprojects so attractive to decision makers? The answer to these questions may be found in the so-called four sublimes of megaproject management.

The first of these, the "technological sublime", is a term variously attributed to the analysts Roger Miller and Leo Marx to describe the positive historical reception of technology in American culture during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Planning expert Karen Frick introduced the term to the study of megaprojects and describes the technological sublime as the rapture engineers and technologists obtain from building large and innovative projects, with their rich opportunities for pushing the boundaries for what technology can do, such as building the tallest building, the longest bridge, the fastest aircraft, the largest wind turbine, or the first of anything.