Once again, we present our annual List Issue, for which we and others pulled, polled and probed the vast photonics industry for information on who’s doing and thinking what on a number of topics. From the salary survey starting on page 43 to the reader polls starting on page 60, we offer a look at job satisfaction throughout the industry, a year’s worth of mergers and acquisitions, and a new crop of young scientists and innovators. Inspired by her grandmother’s fight with brain cancer, high school senior Emily Wang put her youthful energy and curiosity to work on developing new fluorescent proteins to improve biosensing and shared her work in a paper that helped her take the top prize in the 2014 International BioGENEius Challenge, a competition that recognizes outstanding biotechnology research by high school students. Read her story and those of other up-and-coming scientists in our annual “Ones to Watch” list, beginning on page 50. Exploring topics ranging from robotics and energy to plasmonics and more, these young researchers are already on a path to enabling a bright future. We took to a variety of social media outlets and asked three questions of our audience. One focused on learning styles; one on the International Year of Light, which will be celebrated in 2015; and one on social media’s effects on work in optics and photonics. In a nutshell, we found that those polled think both textbooks and experience are important for success, that plans are still being formulated for IYL2015 – don’t forget to get back to us on that! – and that social media allows you to connect for success. Also in this issue Contributing editor Hank Hogan briefs readers on the power of imaging software in “For Image Processing, More Power and More Challenges,” beginning on page 64. And Mike Naselaris and Zachary Hobbs of Sydor Optics deliver an update on how the company is mastering cerium oxide slurry in “Improving Slurry Recycling Makes Green Process Greener,” beginning on page 69. Our thanks to all who participated in our various reader polls and to SPIE for letting us share some of its salary survey with you.