READER FAVORITES

The Civilized Workplace: No Jerks Allowed
Today's workplace is beset with people who deliberately make coworkers and subordinates feel bad about themselves in the day-to-day working environment. Clearly, IMT readers can relate. This was by far our most-read and top-commented article of the year.

10 Off-the-Wall Projects
Many people today believe that the population is losing its hands-on skills. This opinion doesn't seem to be held among much of IMT's readership, however, as this month's look at 10 remarkable and ridiculous DIY projects was particularly popular.

To the Edge and Back: Grand Canyon Engineering
The Grand Canyon's much-hyped Skywalk is touted as a million-pound engineering marvel. In March, the U-shaped and glass-bottomed walkway that rests more than 4,000 feet above the canyon floor was inaugurated and opened to the general public.

America's Deadliest Jobs
Overall, workplace fatalities edged down last year to 5,703 from 5,734 in 2005, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For many of us, the most dangerous part of the workday is the commute, but for many others, each workday is risky business.

Get a Personal Life
Life isn't all about our work. And now that companies are beginning to recognize signs of employee burnout, they are realizing that unless people can have balance in their lives, productivity will suffer. Yet only you can restore harmony to your life.

EDITOR'S PICKS

By the Numbers: In the Workforce
We're doing more with less these days. Let's see just how well we're holding up. Here, as in our Labor Day issue of IMT, we break down the employment and productivity numbers into bite-size helpings.

A Nuclear Revival: Are We Ready, Willing and Able?
Attitudes vary widely when it comes to nuclear energy, yet increasingly more companies are announcing their intentions to build new nuclear power plants or restart old ones. Who exactly will operate these plants?

The Toyota Way Forward
A recent series of interviews with Toyota's president provides great insight into not only the fabled Toyota Production System, but also the Japanese automaker's long-term strategy, which involves a combination of continuous improvement and innovation.

Labor Crisis! Panic on the Streets! Doomsday! Really?
Interest in the labor market behavior of the Baby Boom generation continues unabated. To some, it seems to be a crisis; but like any crisis, it is also an opportunity to seize -- or to squander.

Clever Ideas for Creative Thinking
Some ideas are brilliant and complex, while others are good and simple. Creativity may be a haughty term, but businesses need it to stay innovative and competitive. You can also approach brainstorming in a practical way. Here are some tips on how to get your creative juices flowing.

As always, it means a great deal to all of us here at IMT that our loyal readers continue to come back to us for industrial news, business trends and career tips. We're trying to better connect our users and, through our community-oriented content, get industrial professionals such as yourselves necessary information across a body of industries. Here, you have the opportunity to have your say and share your knowledge, experience and insights. We hope to continue putting out content that is valuable to your professional working life, is entertaining and, above all, provokes the exceptional discussion among industrial peers IMT and its readers have become so used to.

Cheers.