These essays are the first of an annual series that brings to the public the distinctive views and approaches of the humanities to urgent issues of the day. David Rothman, in "Lessons from an Opium Eater," examines how the nineteenth-century confessions of a famous English opium addict, Thomas De Quincey, has relevance to the present, how it might be used to help find solutions to the current problem of drug abuse. Ann Henderson offers a commentary on the issue of drug abuse and public policy. Joan Scott, in "The History of Families," argues that, far from being fixed and immutable, the family is a varied, changing, adaptable institution. Whether women work to support their families or to find meaningful, productive activity, or both, their wage-earning activity does not in itself disrupt family stability or impoverish their children emotionally. Rather, the attempt to impose idealized models of the family on diverse and changing families undercuts their ability to adapt to changing economic and social circumstances and so to survive. Margaret Kingsland adds a commentary that focuses on the issue of day care. Donald Worster in "Devastating Nature" examines some of the threats to the environment and relates them to the changing values and ideals of modern society. If society wants to stop the devastation of the earth, it must be willing to change itself. David Tebaldi's commentary illustrates the distinction between the anthropocentric and the biocentric view of nature and the environment. An appendix lists addresses for humanities councils in all 50 states. (JB)