A typical research lab can be a letdown for a nonscientist. There's very little Mr. Wizard stuff: bubbling test tubes, flashing laser beams. Much of what's there goes on inside pieces of nondescript equipment with readouts that look about as high-tech as a microwave oven. Nonscientists often emerge from lab tours baffled and bored.

The Web, on the other hand, would seem to give research organizations a chance to counteract this drab PR by letting them strut their stuff to the public in a friendly, engaging way. Bells, whistles, interaction!