It has been speculated that in nucleosynthesis, existing stable nuclei in the universe derive from their unstable cousins which greatly outnumber stable nuclei. Thus understanding the properties of nuclei far from the valley of stability may provide the key to our knowledge of the origin of universe. However, due to their short live times, it is difficult to gain detailed knowledge about these unstable nuclei.

In the past decade, with the availability of secondary beams, there has been an explosion of knowledge gained from research on exotic nuclei. One result is the expansion of  the nuclei chart from the creation of many new nuclei with radioactive beem and more recently from production of fission fragments with very different neutron to proton ratios. Recent experiments with the radioactive beams to study the decay along drip lines also increase our understanding of element formation in hot stellar environments.  The unique properties of some of these new nuclei are currently being explored for use in material and medical applications.

Our knowledge in halo nuclei where a tight nuclear core is surrounded by either a cloud of pure neutron or proton matter has caught the imagination of many scientists. For example, these nuclei may have exotic shapes which have never been observed before and the neutron rich "halo" may allow one to glimpse at the property of neutron stars. The advance in creating halo nuclei and other nuclei far from stability beams also allow one to study new forms of nuclear decay such as di-proton decay and search for weakly bound resonances and precision mass measurements.

The importance of radioactive beams is illustrated by the many facilities currently being upgraded or under construction as well as many new proposals under development.  Among the Pacific Rim Countries there are major construction of new facilities and upgrades in the United States, Canada, Japan and China. Most of these facilities will begin operation near the end of this century. Thus, the PACIFICHEM 2000(Symposium 169) to be held in Hololulu from Dec 15 to Dec 19, 2000 will offer an unique opportunity for scientists around the world especially those from the Pacific Rim countries to meet and discuss the new experimental results, to gain insights from each other and to plan for the future.