Sometime around 1968, in the south of France, I remember looking up a hill as someone pointed out to me the remains of a Roman aqueduct, still there after 2,000 years – a high wall with arched openings and a stone channel on the top where water used to run.  The Roman system of aqueducts carried water for irrigation and drinking across much of Europe, just as the Roman roads created a transportation web.  Many modern expressways in Europe follow these same ancient paved highways, built by the Roman legionnaires.

What is not so well known is that the Romans did not themselves invent either aqueducts or the system of paved roads.  It was actually the genius of the Etruscans that developed these and a number of other technical wonders.  Etruscans had a high degree of technical knowledge.  They developed the intricacies of water and sewage management, plumbing, irrigation, and…