The first Web site is a NOVA Online Adventure from PBS (1). Into the Abyss decribes the "pitch darkness, poison gas, heavy metals, extreme acidity, and enormous pressure" found at hydrothermal vents, and offers a look at bizarre and fascinating creatures found in this environment. The next Web site from Exploring Earth, an online earth sciences text book, contains video clips taken during research...

This week's In the News focuses on discoveries that provide support for the theory that deep sea hydrothermal vents may have been the "factories of life" three and half billion years ago when Earth's atmosphere did not consist of any oxygen. A recent article published in Science (February 5, 1999, 283:831-833) discusses how scientists at Nagaoka University created an environment similar to a...