Editor's Notebook January/February 2025

Craig Mongeau - Editor in Chief - January 2025

We at Superintendent's Profile hope all of you had a happy, healthy and safe holiday season.

As we begin 2025, I thought maybe I could do some research and find the consensus of what the top five predictions are for the new year. So, I looked around on the web and saw lots of different ideas and so forth, but then it occurred to me: what am I doing? Why not ask AI? I mean, if it's so smart (well, artificially intelligent), then shouldn't it be pretty good at predicting stuff? So, I asked and here's what it said:

Number one on the list was "AI and Automation Will Revolutionize Work and Productivity." Wonderful, AI has already grown full of itself and puts itself on the top of the list. Now, I think I fear it even more.

Number two was "The Global Shift Toward Clean Energy Will Accelerate." I'm not so certain about this one. I guess that depends on how fast AI thinks it will be accelerating, but it didn't say.

Number three was "Advancements in Biotechnology and Healthcare." Pretty general. There's always going to be advancements in healthcare, pharmaceuticals and what not, so this seems a bit of a safe, non-controversial prediction. So, AI has learned how to hedge its bets.

Number four was "The Expansion of Virtual and Augmented Reality." Again, self-absorbed technology-based generalities. I wonder how a virtual reality highway department would work?

And number five was "Geopolitical and Economic Shifts." Brilliant. This has been going on every year for thousands of years. This is like saying, we'll have some good days and some bad days in the world for 2025.

So, there you have it: now you know what to expect in 2025 and to prepare accordingly for it.

While I am not as smart as AI, I'm going to offer this one prediction, at least as far as Superintendent's Profile is concerned: we're going to keep telling stories about the great work all of you do in 2025, beginning with this issue and we're going to work hard to put on another successful N.Y.S. Highway & Public Works Expo later this year.

Happy New Year to all! P