Evolution of the cosmic star formation rate density as a function of look-back time and redshift (adapted from Hopkins 2006). The redshift range of MASSIV (0.9 < z < 1.8, magenta box) is compared with other major IFU surveys of distant galaxies: IMAGES (z ~ 0.4−0.75), SINS/OSIRIS (z ~ 1.4−2.6), and LSD/AMAZE (z ~ 2.6−3.8). The relative height of each boxes is proportional to the samples size.