Non-Egyptians seemed to be unaware of Qattara's existence until after the First World War. The credit for its "discovery" goes to Dr. John Ball, English director of the Survey of Egypt, who oversaw the mapping of the depression in 1927 and who first suggested using it to generate hydroelectricity.[8][9] In 1957 the American Central Intelligence Agency proposed to President Dwight Eisenhower that peace in the Middle East could be achieved by flooding the Qattara Depression. The resulting lagoon, according to the CIA, would have four benefits:[10]