The DENIS & 2MASS Near Infrared Surveys
  The DENIS and 2MASS near infrared surveys are presented. Their applications in extragalactic astronomy and cosmology are listed. The prospects for a rapid spectroscopic followup survey of a near infrared selected sample of nearly $10^5$ galaxies are illustrated with Monte-Carlo simulations. 
Gary Mamon (Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris & DAEC, Obs. de Paris)