Pluribus Unum: Evolving Fixes for One Tough Problem

摘要

That translation of the familiar Latin phrase, E Pluribus Unum, which runs across a banner held in the beak of a bald eagle on the $1 bill, evokes this nation's proud founding and conjures up noble images of Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and Franklin standing unified against King George III. But today, the phrase has taken on a new meaning in our tech-savvy 21st century. Now, as public works departments across the United States―like so many units of local, state, and federal government―are being charged to "do more with less," we can see amazing new technologies now affordably stepping into the void. And they are generating many innovative solutions to the one problem vexing nearly all jurisdictions: how to meet the rising demands of the public while traditional resources continue to diminish.