FROM THE PUBLISHER:

HOW HOT IS IT?

As I write this the US mainland is going through yet another record heat wave. Already this summer hundreds of Americans have died as a result of what is bidding to be the hottest summer on record. Every day new high-temperature records are falling. At the same time this summer's crop of hurricanes are boiling up out of the Caribbean and Pacific with some climatologists predicting another record season.

What does all of this have to do with global warming? The short answer is no one knows for sure. The long answer is much tougher to discover and decipher. The amount of global warming and global climate change research currently underway is staggering. So is the diversity of opinion in the scientific and lay communities. Trying to understand this avalanche of data, particularly for those of us who are not scientifically inclined and trained, is a daunting task.

This leads us to Issue #2 of OUR ENVIRONMENT -- ONLINE. Our intention here is to try to make some sense out of the global warming debate. We have tried, as much as possible, to present a balanced diet of information. Overviews of climate change dynamics from NASA and Greenpeace give us the basics, in two different styles. Then we present some startling imagery graphically depicting climate change data from several worldwide locations. This is followed by a provocative interpretation of conditions in the Arctic, considered by many scientists to be the first place we will see global warming in action. And finally, just for fun, is a critique of the Rush Limbaugh interpretation of this and other environmental issues.

This publication represents our first effort to present information exclusively from Internet-based resources. Virtually every word, and picture, in this issue are available somewhere on the Internet. In this way our publication represents an effort to cull through this incredible diversity and to try to "boil down" this information-rich "stew" into a palatable and understandable single serving. Our thanks go to the authors and institutions who graciously allowed us to "reprint" their work. You will note that some of our "articles" are on our home server, others are links to other servers. Please don't forget to use your browser's "back button" to return to OUR ENVIRONMENT -- ONLINE. You will also note that, like the Internet itself, the information in this publication is truly international in scope.

In SEEN & NOTED we present a selection of short takes on a variety of environmental issues, from a variety of sources. All have appeared in either the popular or environmental press and, hopefully, serve as a teaser designed to instill a desire to find out more.

The heart of the OUR ENVIRONMENT -- ONLINE message is our focus on "What We Can Do." In this issue we offer the comprehensive Greenhouse Gas Miser Action Menu. This information-packed feature includes tips on how we can, individually, help overcome the impacts of what may be one of the most grave problems facing our global community.

Finally, our thanks also go to all of you who selected OUR ENVIRONMENT -- ONLINE as one of the Top 5% of all World Wide Web sites in the 'net survey conducted by Point Communications. Recognition is always welcome and always provides additional motivation to continue this work. You can check out the rest of these top-rated sites at: http://www.pointcom.com.