Web Sites Worth Watching

Alliance for Aging Research—www.agingresearch.org The organization's Web site offers a fact of the day, coverage of national policy and research about health and longevity, and a quarterly newsletter. In addition to sections labeled advocacy, news, archives, and general information about AAR, visitors can use the site's longevity calculator to get an estimate of their life expectancy, along with research-based details on how that prediction was reached.

Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States—www.siecus.org/ The site opens with a question of the week and SIECUS' answer, including a Real Audio sound clip. Sections of the site include news, information about the council, descriptions of programs, international activities, information for parents, a list of publications and a link to SIECUS' public relations department.

Journal of Online Behavior—www.behavior.net/job/ This peer-reviewed, behavioral science-social science journal is concerned with the empirical study of human behavior in the on-line environment, and with the impact of evolving communication and information technology on individuals, groups, organizations, and society. Each article published on the Web is accompanied by an interactive discussion space.

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion—odphp.osophs. dhhs.gov/ This division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services works to strengthen disease prevention and health promotion priorities within the collaborative framework of the HHS agencies. Its Web site offers announcements, on-line publications, and links to other government sites of interest.

American Medical Association's Physician Select—www.ama-assn.org/aps/amahg.htm Provides information on virtually every licensed physician in the U.S. and its possessions, including more than 650,000 doctors of medicine and doctors of osteopathy or osteopathic medicine.

National Health Information Center—nhic-nt.health.org This health information referral service puts health professionals and consumers who have health questions in touch with organizations that are best able to provide answers.

Interactive Testing in Psychiatry—www.med.nyu.edu/Psych/itp.html Sponsored by the New York University department of psychiatry, this site offers psychiatrists an opportunity to test their knowledge on questions similar to those found on certification board examinations and to review annotated answers on line. Visitors can earn continuing education credits for completing the test modules.

The Wounded Healer—idealist.com/wounded_healer/ A site for psychotherapists and others who have had traumatic experiences, including child abuse. Offers discussion forums, articles, and live chat rooms.

David Satcher, M.D., Ph.D., the Surgeon General and the Assistant Secretary for Health, has taken a personal and user-friendly approach to the design of this Web site. He states, "I would most like to be remembered as the Surgeon General who listened to the American people and responded to what they said," and visitors are urged to use the e-mail feature to contact him. "My Library" provides a history of the Office of the Surgeon General and full-text versions of the office's most recent reports, including the latest report on the nation's mental health (see news story on page 264). "My Team" describes the U.S. Public Health Service and the Office of Public Health and Science. "A Tour of the Nation" shows how Dr. Satcher's national priorities are being carried out on the local level, with detailed descriptions of programs and accompanying videos. "For Kids" offers games, learning tools, poems, and pictures.