very day we look at pictures - in our local paper, on the Internet, in magazines. We often take the power of photography for granted, until we see a picture so moving or unique that it haunts us for days. The Pictures of the Year International competition (POYi), sponsored by the Missouri School of Journalism, annually recognizes excellence in photojournalism by honoring press photographers, editors and institutions. POYi invited a dozen of the world's leading photographers and editors to select the winning images. The judges viewed nearly 24,000 photographs submitted by 1,500 newspaper and magazine photographers and editors. A total of 252 awards were given to 175 people in 48 categories. The photographs that follow were selected by the POYi judges as nominees for the Public's Best Picture of the Year Award. While some of the images you will see are aesthetically stunning and uplifting; others are deeply disturbing. So within that mix, its up to you to decide what constitutes "the best" image. As POYi Director David Rees says, "Sometimes really disturbing pictures help us to understand the realities of war and challenge us to do something about man's inhumanity to man. The best pictures are not always easy to look at - sometimes, they make us squirm and move us to action." Click small or large pictures to begin and then cast your vote.